Supported by our experience in previous markets and driven by the ambition to further improve, our group had a clear vision of what we wanted.
Previously, our group had sold soy candles, and while we agreed that it was successful, there would be increased competition with the onset of other candle groups as well as little creative freedom due to a rigid structure to follow when one made the candles.
In line with the upcoming Christmas season, we decided to produce laser cut Christmas cards under the name “GreetYourself”, a memorable play on the notable words “treat yourself.” At the market itself, we produced a large amount of revenue, more than four of our previous, selling out in the first 45 minutes. We were also much more organized and creative in the process and had a highly successful outcome. Something that was quite intriguing was that unlike candles and notebooks (our previous products), the cards were not overly labour intensive, as the laser cutter was tasked with the most laborious work of carving the designs that we had previously transferred to Adobe. With this, we all gained valuable skills, most significant were our newly polished Adobe skills and our ability to work the laser-cutter.
This terms journey was an intentional one, with organization, problem-solving and innovation being the backbone of it all.
As per our unofficial goal, we were certainly more organized, slotting in specific bookings with the school’s laser cutter to carve our cards and most importantly, formatting the designs for the cutter before then.
Once our cards were carved, we had to problem-solve to find a way to incorporate colour and a clean writing spot. The method shall not be disclosed, however, they did make for a sleek, unique, innovative finished design, that, when displayed upon our well-set table, attracted many eager buyers, with one even buying up to 10+ cards.
A thought-provoking aspect of GreetYourself was the price. Our products had to meet an equilibrium, not too low for the sake of profits and not too high for the customer. Curiously enough, our initial price was said by a/the facilitator to be too low, as “crafty” cards like ours sold up to double, even triple our proposed price. Heeding their advice, we did increase our price, however, next time, we should research the market and not involve our self-deprecating thoughts that “no one would want to pay ” et cetera.
Even though we used the markup formula, in retrospect, this shouldn’t have been the primary way for settling on the final price. It would have been more effectively used in conjunction with other methods, such as surveying our target audience for what they would pay vs what we would take as a profit, the equilibrium formula, cost-plus pricing and the one that we should have been less careless to overlook, market comparison.
Our product idea was innovative, timely and filled in a gap in our market. To improve, I would consider other unseen aspects and research thoroughly before making a decision. The process was fun, rewarding and gave us a plethora of new skills to add to our ever-growing collection, as well as an exciting profit.
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