If it's just in making whatever comes to mind and a market to sell it .. then it's as has been mentioned, who too and where .. to that point .. would you buy the piece or any of them yourself, given as you've made them ..
Interesting prices on not only Ray & Dave's work .. Hmmmm sand up a whole blank for a chopping block .. what've I got ...
Hi Dave
Yes I would purchase my own pieces if I had the money, but I could not afford my prices, just like I could not afford a Ferrari.
It is always an interesting subject. One point that comes across to me again and again with woodturners is what you have said with regards to 'interesting prices' on Ray and Dave's work for a chopping board.
Marketing and selling has nothing to do with the cost price or process time of materials, saying that aside the prices on the David Mellor site I believe are reasonable, seeing that you have respected makers producing items which are then purchased by a business for onward selling and being sold to discerning customers.
The issue that most woodturners sell items for pence because they have no understanding of running business from turning nor what constitutes good design or finishing only undermines what we do as makers. So if we can make quality items as with any other business we have to aim it at the high end market.
Les's example of the market in which the RSPB are selling wooden items. The issue here is they are only interested in making money for birds, which is fine, but they have no concern about the items they are selling and are best placed to sell items from China to maximize their profit for the charity, that makes good business sense.
This in itself would tell me it would be the wrong place to try and sell top quality work and I would look for another outlet. However if people are happy to make less for their work and want to sell it at this price is also fine, we all sell our work at the price we choose.
Yesterday I went to a BBQ for a family birthday. One of the people attending I had not met before and found out that he was a cabinet maker for a high end company in the South West. The type of clients they had send £70,000 on a single piece of furniture without asking for the price before commissioning the work. Kitchens of £250,000, I saw pictures of the work, amazing and worth the money.
But knocking up a few cabinets and turning a few bits and piece, glue it together, what's the fuss.
do it in an afternoon.
In relation to who and where I sell my work, some in galleries but more often than not now it is word of mouth or being contacted via the internet. There are loads of good mixed media galleries in the UK to sell from. Unfortunately very few of them will accept wood turned items with the reason being that it is of too poor quality and has a stigma attached to it that the gallery owners do not want to include within their outlet.
It is a shame but this is the experience I have had in the past when approaching them and sadly I have to say I learnt a long time ago never to say initially that I am a woodturner.
Apologies to Bryan if this is going off the initial question but I believe it is all interlinked. If you disagree jut tell me to bxxxxr off and I will shut up.