B Grade / Damaged Stock

[Lee]

As a quick question.....do you guys ever sell any slightly damaged stock - for example something you chip, or maybe a small print error etc etc

If so, on your websites, how do you position it - what do you call it? Do you usually mark em up around 50% lower (hehe, here's that 50% again!) ...

And finally, is there, or should there be a section for marketing/advertising ?

Cheers!!

[JSR]

I never sell anything damaged.

Due to having high quality standards, we invariably have higher standards than our suppliers. As a result, we do end up with blanks that we wouldn't feel comfortable selling at full price. As there have been so many shoddy blanks making their way through suppliers (I sometimes think that we in the UK only ever get C-grade blanks), we have started a "b-grade" section on our website in which we highlight the fault, price down at 50%, and state that no returns will be accepted for aesthetic faults (even in the printing).

No one's bought any b-grade products from our website.

We also have a clearance section for end-of-line or oddball products that are just taking up space. We tend to discount these by 25%. We haven't sold any clearance products either.

So my advice is - don't be too keen to pass shabby work onto your customers.

When doing a personalised job for a customer, we may send a below-par printed product to them in addition to one that isn't below-par (as a freebie) on the grounds that we have enough scrap in our bins already, but that depends largely on how much it'd add to postage costs. Almost always this generates positive feedback (because they have one to give away as originally intended, and the below-par one they can keep themselves). But we don't send out anything that's chipped or otherwise damaged. That way lies business suicide.

[Lee]

Thanks for the advice so basically, a bit of dodgy printing or a small mark may be okay, but anything chipped - forget it I just wasnt sure if there was a small market for these things - but it seems not really I only have one at the moment and I thought hmmm wonder if I should sell it reduced or not....

[mrs maggot]

there is a section for marketing isnt there ??

if you head up a section as the OOOOPPPPPs department you might get away with "cosmetic seconds" but to make it viable, i would probably put them if mugs for instance into 4's and then sell them as cosmetic seconds, you will have to state that returns are not accepted - every year people queue in their hundreds to get some 2nd from the John Lewis china department, but i would clearly mark them as seconds ont eh advert and also by way of a label on the product, but chipped i would not bother with, bin is the place for those

[jennywren]

I put them together with a sign, Badly Made Mugs 50p. They all go. What's weird the customer look to see what wrong and can't see it. 50p is better than nothing. Putting seconds hasn't work for me, but every one wants to see what the badly made mugs look like.

[Lee]

Good advice, thank you..... I especially like the "Oooppppps" bit Laura - Im sure it will attract people when they land on the site - I might try it, and monitor the page impressions - bet it gets more then the others........oh wait, is that a good thing???!!!!!

[JSR]

I put them together with a sign, Badly Made Mugs 50p.

Are these printed mugs or just the blanks?

[jennywren]

Are these printed mugs or just the blanks?

No not the blanks, I use them to make badly made mugs lol. All the mugs that I've cocked up ,Upside down mugs , back to front mugs anything, faded.

[Lee]

actually, an upside down mug could be a novelty purchase might try that one!

[Paul]

actually, an upside down mug could be a novelty purchase might try that one!

realy?
imagin mug with hot tee and somone thinks is up side down and try to quick flip it over...