Hello /biz/ I come to you in a pretty crucial point in my life and I'm curious on opinions. I want to have a startup busniess making custom skateboards/longboards . I've worked as a carpenter and have made actual boards that skate fine. I want to know is it possible to make a living selling one product like this? This is a passion of mine and I think there is potential in my area. Please weigh in.
You have to fucking brand yourself. You have to be cool, you have to sell something that people want. The actual product doesn't mean anything. Look at stupid fucking generic brands like ripndip, dta posse, lurk hard, etc.
Just make cool videos, get cool kids to take pics with your shit. You have to just play on that teenage "cool kid" shit which means you have to make limited runs of your shit, make people feel like idiots for missing out on a chance to cop some of ur shit.
dont ever sell out, make your shit exclusive and dont skimp on branding / website / brand image. act like you dont give a shit if anyone buys your stuff, make fake products and put sold out so people think ur shit is flying
>>1131218
I was thinking about that. One idea was making just tons of boards and just giving them out during town fairs and shit.
Bump
You definitely will want to have hella nice videos of good skaters riding your boards. I like skateboarding, and this is a simple fact. Pay an experienced video guy to shoot a skater that you sponsor. Make a simple website. Above all, put some dope trippy shit on your boards or no one is going to care.
also know that skaters are not trying to spend more than ~$30 on your boards. They most likely dont skate as well as the $40-$50 boards of major companies so dont bother trying to pull the "but its handmade, local, support me, muh feels" bullshit. Make them dope, sell them cheap, and with any luck people might actually give you their money
>>1131229
Hopefully I can find a niche.
>>1131241
Do you live close to an area with a nice skatepark and established skate shops?
>>1131239
They are going to be more longboard cruiser than skateboard. I get wood from a local lumber yard. So I was thinking cranking out boards and selling them for about 50$. I see people sell custom boards for 200 and I get sick.
>>1131245
more about the artwork than anything else im assuming you cant draw for shit so good luck you dont really have anything special
>>1131244
I live by NYC but in my proximity there are no skateshops. Maybe a vans. I know there are kids that'll love it. Especially if I give some away.
Looks like a new skateboard on ebay goes for about $60
Let's assume you can sell yours for $80, and the cost of your material is say $20
That's $60 profit per board, less overheads like marketing, warehousing, freight, etc.
Let's be conservative and say all up you can clear $40/board
Say you want a modest income of $50k per year, that's 1,250 units per year you need to sell, basically 5 a day
Can you make that many boards?
>>1131248
You're right about that. But I've learned how to stain over the last 15 yrs hopefully a classy / varnished board will be nicer.
>>1131251
Yes no doubt about it.
>>1131251
I most power tools at my house. And If I think I want to start this up in will get a band saw or table saw and cut boards all day and night.
>>1131257
That was 5/day every weekday for 52 weeks to be clear
So then the question becomes can you sell that many boards?
>>1131260
That's the thing. Should I just be a wage slave and sign my life over to some cube or take a risk
>>1131264
Well option 3 is do other carpentry as well, not just boards
Make furniture and custom cabinets and shit
>>1131265
Very true. I also looked into going to farmers markets and outdoor markets because in nyc there is one everday during the summer. That's a whole new problem
Carpentry is losing value in todays world, including skate/long boards. When things can be mass manufactured, the guy using his hands will lose.
>>1131271
To be successful at something like this you can't think of your job as "making skateboards"
Your job is marketing, that's what brings in the money, that's what you need to spend most of your day doing
You need to be on top of your website, make sure your online shop is good, run a regular newsletter with mailchimp, blog all the time about skating/new boards/events, manage your ad words budget, brand image, work out packaging and shipping and warehousing
This is what brings in the money, not building the skateboards, the skateboards are just a background process
>>1131278
and of course be on top of your social media presence, youtube, facebook, ig, twitter, all gotta be updated constantly
>>1131278
I understand. I guess I'll have to start very small and just build a movement. I just don't know what I have to do to get traction. All I'm doing right now is just cutting boards and just skating.
>>1131216
Honestly, as someone who skated most of my life, that market is flooded to hell and back. Might be better off making adult shit like furniture or cabinets.
>>1131286
If you need money to buy the band saw or wood or anything I'd strongly consider crowd sourcing
For a product like this it's basically free financing AND word of mouth advertising, absolutely ideal
Drop a couple grand on a high quality video of your boards in action and some graphic design (logo, cg renderings etc) and you're golden
If you primarily want to make money this is a shit idea. If you want to follow your passion, and build a life where you make a living doing what you love, I guess it might be worth it.
>>1131301
Not looking to be a millionaire. But I just want to be proud to say i own a company and I actually contribute to society.
>>1131292
I live at home, have a job and have some money saved. If I get a saw. Or keep cutting them out. Should I just give them away? Let people just use them and let social media take it.
Self bump
