Tired of buying Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, or even Nike? Want to give
your own brand a shot? It can be done and its not as expensive as you
think. I started my own private label gift line for less than $500 ten
years ago.
Most of us think of ourselves as "the underdog" when it comes to
private labeling; the Calvin Klein's of the world had millions backing
them. That may or may not have been the case, but, since the Internet
was created, it really doesn't even matter any more.
With the Internet, anyone can brand with a few dollars, a good idea, and a few clicks of the mouse.
Depending on your style, you might want to start small, buy some lables
with pretty graphics and your name, and bottle or serve to your heart's
desire in your own community. You may want to outsource it all to a
manufacturer. You may think that is expensive. It is if you pay
outright. it is not if you "make a deal" to split the keep. You better
have a good idea to pitch that. And you want know how good until you
pitch it. I had to pitch to almost 200 of them before one said yes. And
it was a big fish.
Cartoons and humor were always my forte'. When I started Londons Times
Cartoons I had acquiesced to the fact that I would be a middle class
creative semi-starving artist marketing to trade publications. And that
is excactly how it started ten years ago. Now I sell over 100,000
cartoon humor products from clocks to aprons in 7 different
highly-ranked e-stores..
You can do it yourself, you can go to a local manufacturer or
screenprinter, or you can find a manufacturer online who makes your
kind of product and will private label it for you. I did all three.
There is more than one way to skin a cat. Though I wanted my Rick
London label on everything, I was not a trust fund baby. And like many
entrepreneurs, my dreams were a bit larger than my pocketbook, but I
still felt I had the right to dictate quality control. So until Cafe
Press got their act together, which admittedly they finally did, I
began using a Denver print-on-demand named Printfection to launch
several niche stores including RickLondonwear . It turned out to be a
good idea.
A little over a year ago, I "got brave" and launched the very first and
only exisiting private label gourmet coffee cartoon gift basket, Ruth
London's Exquisite Coffees. Each box includes a cartoon coffee mugs and
coasters and of course gourmet coffees and a biscotti. At $50, they are
a top-seller and I exclusively sell them at my Londons Times
Superstore. I didn't have to spend a penny to launch it. I used my
cartoon as my barter leverage, had a good idea, and asked the
manufacturer to risk his money. He wisely did and it has paid itself
back many times over.
So when they are looking at their favorite coffee cup with a cartoon
that makes them laugh, they are also looking at your company name and
URL. They are generally in a good mood while seeing your gift. So you
are giving both a gift and "a good attitude" towards buying from you,
first thing in the morning. It prioritizes things. Sounds a bit
Machiavellian but it is not. It is simple basic business that makes
sense.
This may sound a bit manipulative, and I agree, in a way it is. But it
is also providing a product and service that people want, and an ideal
way for a company to personally get their name to the right party. And
it works and it works very well (is the feedback we get).
If you have not noticed we live in the information age and the Internet
has made all information available to everyone, you've been out on a
limb. Take advantage. All the information is there. All you need do is
utilize it. If not for the Internet, there would be no Londons Times
Cartoons, RickLondonwear, LTSuperstore, RickLondonCollection or many of
the smaller niche stores I have opened, all branded under my name. You
really can do it with a little effort.
