3 Reasons Why Customers WILL Pay That Much For Your Leathergoods

A few months ago, I was on an Amtrak train coming back from a trip visiting family. I had my overnight bag in the space above my seat and my weekend leather backpack on the seat beside me.

As we were stopped and more passengers were boarding the train, a man came through the isle and asked if he could sit beside me.

I said, “sure” and move my stuff off the seat.

As I moved my leather weekend backpack off of his seat, he commented and said how much he liked the leather backpack.

Next thing I know he’s asking more about it, how he can get one as a gift for his wife and how much would it cost.

I had to think fast, because this wasn’t even a bag that I had on my website yet. It was just a bag that I made for myself!

So quickly, I just said, “I can make you one for $500”.

As the words came tumbling out of my mouth I immediately felt like it was too much, that the conversation would end there and that I just blew a potential custom order.

To my surprise, he said, “Great! Can I pay you now?”

I was shocked!

The reason that I am telling you this story is to show you that customers WILL pay that much for your leathergoods. You don’t have to undercharge in order to make a sale.

But there are few key principles to keep in mind.

#1 | Don’t let bargain shoppers make you feel like you need to lower your prices.

You need to be sharing your work with the right customers. What I mean by the right customers, is the people who need what you have and have the money to buy it.

Now did I know that that guy on the train was my ideal customer or that he had money to buy, no I didn’t know for sure, but the fact that he inquired about the bag on his own and that he asked me how much, told me that he was serious.

Only bargain shoppers will balk at your pricing and you needn't worry about them. Just because the wrong kind of customer (a bargain shopper) feels like your prices are too high doesn’t mean you need to change and lower them. It just means that you’re not talking to the right kind of customer.

Had the man on the train’s response to the price been, “woah, that’s really expensive!” I would not have felt compelled to lower my price. Instead I would have thought to myself, “this isn’t my customer”, smiled at him and gone back to reading my book.

#2 Your right customer appreciates quality.

Part of the conversation that we had on the train was about how I hand-stitch everything, how I use French linen thread, vegetable tanned leather and solid brass hardware. Before we even got to the cost question, I was telling him about the quality materials and not just that I use quality materials but also what that means. Why it’s important.

For most people when you tell them, “this is veg tanned leather and solid brass hardware”, they’re like, “so what?”

They don’t know why they should care. So by explaining to him a little bit about how vegetable tanned leather differs from other mass produced leather, how it behaves over time and how solid brass hardware is superior to nickel or plated hardware, I was educating him on the value of the bag.

And this worked in my favor. He appreciated that quality.

#3 Have confidence in your leathergoods.

You have to believe that what you are selling is actually worth what you’re asking for.

For some people this is just a mindset shift. They have a valuable product but they just can believe it for some reason. So they end up lowering their price or they offer the product at the price that it belongs but when they’re selling it, they’re meek and shy about it. Or they don’t really have too much to say about it and they’re not excited about it.

Your customer can sense this from you. If they see that you’re not excited about your own product and you’re not singing its praises, the chances of you selling it decrease.

So bring the confidence whether you’re selling online or in person at a market. Talk about your product and how amazing it is with enthusiasm. Enthusiasm is contagious and in order for your customer to appreciate the value they have to see a seller that appreciates the value of their own work.

Let your work and your confidence in your leatherwork be the guide for you setting your prices. You customers WILL pay that much for your leathergoods as long as you follow these key principles. Forget the bargain shoppers and go for your ideal customer, express the quality of your work and materials and share your own confidence and enthusiasm for the work.

Follow these guidelines and your customer WILL pay that much for your leatherwork.

Are you pricing your work according to what it’s actually worth?

Have you ever felt swayed or pressured by bargain shoppers to lower your prices?

Do you have confidence in your own leatherwork? And are you expressing this in your marketing and sales pitches?

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