Current Events > Holy crap! A company wants me to pay $199 for three custom patches.

(+) Yeah! (+)

I wanted to have 3 patches made for a Halloween costume. Two of them are 4" wide and the third is 10" wide.

I've been working with a salesperson via email for the past few days and today they informed me that the total would be $199. I was totally caught off guard when they quoted this price. I thought it would be around $10-$15 per patch, $20 at most.

Was I deluding myself this entire time? Is $199 a reasonable price for 3 patches?

Needless to say, that is way over my budget and way more than it's worth for a one-time Halloween costume so I cancelled the order.

What's a patch?

Avirosb posted...

What's a patch?

It's a small piece of fabric that you sew onto an article of clothing as a decoration (or to repair a tear).

One is ten inches wide? Seems to be a fair price for custom work.

10 inches is pretty damned big. Depending on the design intricacy, I can see that massively driving up the price

Really? Are you saying that the company hand-sews these patches?

I just assumed they put it into their computer and a machine sews it for them, similar to a 3D printer.

I paid about 200 to get some glasses dyed a certain shade for a costume. Ya do what ya do

G-Ziss posted...

Really? Are you saying that the company hand-sews these patches?

I just assumed they put it into their computer and a machine sews it for them, similar to a 3D printer.

Well... the software & the sewing machine costs money too.

get it

G-Ziss posted...

Really? Are you saying that the company hand-sews these patches?

I just assumed they put it into their computer and a machine sews it for them, similar to a 3D printer.

I have absolutely no idea who you're working with. If it's like a dude a etsy? Then no, probably not.

Did they not have other works with prices shown?

FolkenRawr posted...

I have absolutely no idea who you're working with. If it's like a dude a etsy? Then no, probably not.

Did they not have other works with prices shown?

The only pricing info shown on their site says "Cheap Prices" and "as low as 29 cents per patch". I understand that 29 cents per patch is if you order a bulk quantity so I didn't expect to pay that low, but roughly $66 per patch is way higher than I anticipated based on this guideline.

G-Ziss posted...

Really? Are you saying that the company hand-sews these patches?

I just assumed they put it into their computer and a machine sews it for them, similar to a 3D printer.

Sounds to me you want some customised stuff, and bought it from someone aiming at bigger customers.

They probably cut it from some roll / coil of cloth thats at least 1,5 meter in width and charge you some minimum size.

Like, good for you that you only need something like a small patch of 500cm, but if they cut it from a 1m piece they will have to bill you some amount of the waste too.

Karovorak posted...

Sounds to me you want some customised stuff, and bought it from someone aiming at bigger customers.

Possibly, but they have "no minimum quantity" plastered all over their website which is why I thought they'd be perfect for my needs.

As far as customization goes, I gave them the design I needed, all they need to do is print it.

G-Ziss posted...

Possibly, but they have "no minimum quantity" plastered all over their website which is why I thought they'd be perfect for my needs.

No idea how it is in the cloth industry, but in the metal industry the price calculation (including minimum prices and such) isn't always that transparent to the customer.

You place an unique order, they calculate an unique price, and provide you some quote or offer.

Custom work costs money, if theyre using a machine those cost a shit ton of money, and if theyre hand sewing it labor costs money

check with a second place and compare