Support Your Local Bead Store (Long)....
Q: I took this thread to heart, and reminded myself to stop by my local
bead store today when I just needed some findings and a few beads to
complete a project I'm working on. When there, I was reminded of one of
the problems of dealing with a store versus retail bead shows and
catalogs. It seems to me that shows and catalogs are true retail,
whereas my two local (little) stores are more like double, or triple a
retail price. I saw beads that I have bought for $4 a strand (for 20
beads) sold for 50 cents a bead.
A:
Unless one has a very large cash flow to start a store, or a large loan is
taken out, it is very expensive to set up a store. I got one order for beads
by mail, and the $50.00 order cost me $129.00 to fill, as I had to buy by
bulk from my distributor to get the colors I did not have in stock (only 2
colors out of about 9). So, before you s
it puzzled over why the cost is
higher in some bead stores, the owner may not be open if the prices are too
low. For instance, to order 10 colors of transparent 11/0 Japanese beads,
it would cost the store about $170.00. To double the price of the beads for
retail, they would mark up to a total of $340.00. Now, the shipping was
$10.00 - Each tube costs about 10 cents, tabs to mark tubes with price and
color number are sometimes needed, etc., therefore, mark-up is actually
less than 2 times cost. If I buy my beads at the 'Tucson Show' in Feb., where
you can get great prices, I have spent airfare for a plane ticket or money
for gas, and maintenance on a car to drive there, not to mention hotel
costs, food costs, etc. Same for you.
'Promenade's' in Boulder did not carry 'Delicas'. The last
time I shopped there (and I do mean LAST), I
called ahead of time to check to make sure they
did, because I needed a specific color to finish a
project, but when I arrived they carried 'Toho Antiques'
and labelled them as 'Delicas'... and on top of that,
told me twice that they WERE 'Miyuki' brand 'Delicas',
even though I can tell the difference a mile away.
They are also incredibly expensive, and harbor the
rudest employees/owner I've ever encountered
anywhere. Good luck finding parking or facilities
within a quarter mile of the store, and be prepared
to be snubbed and insulted if you ever make
it past the front door. I haven't seen anything in
that shop that I couldn't find elsewhere for less
(and I mean less hassle, not than less money).
