Raising prices on your handmade items

[HC_Charlie]

It has been many years since I raised any of my retail prices on my handmade items. With my raw material costs increasing steadily over the years, I'd really like to increase my prices even just a little bit to help offset those expenses. I've read posts from other makers about how after they reluctantly raised prices, they didn't receive any negative feedback, and in a few instances actually saw their orders increase.

Has anyone else considered raising prices, or recently did a price increase? How did your customers react and did you notice any change (good or bad) in your order rate? And if you wholesale, how did you handle those price increases?

[VanKalkerFarms]

We raise prices pretty much on an alternating 2 year cycle.  sometimes 1 if need be.  We do roughly 1/2 of the items we offer each year.  It may be that we get to an item and decide it is fine, but in general just to keep up with inflation and input costs they will forever be going up.

If you are selling a $100 item today for the same price you were 6 years ago you are just straight up getting robbed as just inflation (no other input costs etc) that should be being sold for $126.  Now you may say that is crazy, but it is just economic facts and in effect you are getting $74 in today's money for that $100 in 2018 money item.

I 100% used to be the person that was super scared to raise prices, but for the last 10 years or so I have been the guy at the front of the pack saying this needs to go up.

We have increased in sales every year for as long as I have been involved and then owned the business.  raising prices might scare off a percent of people, but as long as you keep them smaller adjustments like $22 to $24 etc that isn't absurd and no one should be like they are robbing us with these extreme price jumps.

If at least some aren't actually complaining about your prices, then it is time to adjust your prices.  


Give the Bureau of Labor statistics inflation calculator a try and it'll likely surprise you haw much value the dollar loosed over a period of time. https://data.bls.gov/cgi-bin/cpicalc.pl

[DinaLRosenberg]

Sooooo...

Here's my advice.

Handmade is a different thing entirely. You're pouring your SOUL literally into your product. I do believe with educating you customers they will be receptive. People don't buy what you do but why you do it (Simon Sinek).

We've had virality with our Blind Date with a Book Product. It isn't exactly homemade but requires a TON of labor: we gift wrap each book and then stuff the folds with fun add-on items, we then wrap with twine and seal with wax. 

We raised prices from $24-28 and we were worried- especially since the $28 is above the value of the book received. customers didn't even blink- they get it. It takes a lot of "human capital" to create the experience of the product.