Selling pedals as a “side hustle” vs simply enjoying the hobby.

[SlowAudio]

When I first got my planer, I started making hardwood cutting boards from cherry, maple, and walnut milled locally.

I totally get it. It did a trademark search before I even named my instagram account and came up with this logo. I have been researching the whole pedal supply chain. It's a terrible habit and I have a sneaking suspicion I'm using it as a form of procrastination so I don't have to finish any songs haha

It's cool you have a planer! I wish I had one because you can make guitar body blanks with it. At the same time, it's probably cheaper (and definitely a lot easier) to buy a pre-routed blank than a single piece of raw tonewood. Economies of scale are a trip!

 

[andare]

The Fisherman and the Executive​

A powerful executive was walking along the beach in a small coastal village, taking a much needed vacation. It was his first in more than 10 years. He noticed a small boat with just one fisherman pulling up to shore. Inside the small boat were several large fish. The executive complimented the fisherman on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took to catch them.

The fisherman replied, “Not very long.”

The executive then asked, “Then why didn’t you stay out longer and catch more fish?”

To which the fisherman responded, “I have enough to support my family.”

“But what do you do with the rest of your time?” the executive asked.

The fisherman said, “I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take a siesta with my wife, and stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine and play guitar with my amigos.”

The executive quickly interrupted, “I have an MBA from Harvard and can help you. You should start by fishing longer every day. You can then sell the extra fish you catch. With the extra revenue, you can buy a bigger boat. With the extra money the larger boat will bring, you can buy a second one and a third one and so on until you have an entire fleet. Instead of selling your catch to a middleman you could sell directly to the processor, eventually opening your own cannery. You would control the product, processing and distribution. You would then of course need to leave this village and move to the big city and eventually NYC where you will run your expanding enterprise.”

The fisherman then asked, “But how long will all this take?”

To which the executive replied, “Twenty, maybe 25 years.”

“And after that?” the fisherman asked.

“Afterwards? That’s when it gets really interesting,” answered the executive, laughing. “When the time is right you would announce an IPO and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich. You could make millions.”

“Millions? Really? Then what?”

“Then you could finally retire and move to a small coastal fishing village! There you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take a siesta with your wife, and stroll to the village in the evenings where you would sip wine and play guitar with your amigos.”

Exactly why I don't work Fridays. I make quite a bit less money but I have time to do nothing, walk around, go to the gym and play guitar.
I've been straddling the line between making a good living and being poor for a long time now.
I'm almost 47 and still living like growing up is a trap
I know that eventually reality will slam my door open with a ram's head. That's the day I finally become an adult.

Going back to selling pedals. A more likely scenario for me is selling to local musicians and friends. In that case there's no need to involve the government.
What would be your markup for a handmade fuzz pedal, considering it'd be breadboarded then built on eyelet board with a high quality painted enclosure and the whole process would take 5 hours?

Like @KR Sound I'm unwilling to cheap myself out because I wouldn't do a good job.

 

[jjjimi84]

Do you want a hobby or a job?

Nailed it.

 

[Robert]

I've done the legwork on a pedal business because I'd rather spend 20-30 extra hours a week earning money from something I enjoy rather than being in management.

You just have to be careful and pace yourself, otherwise before long you'll be spending 20-30 extra hours a week doing something you no longer enjoy.

 

[jjjimi84]

Irrational market. Your stuff is in a league of its own (and criminally underpriced!).

Everyone!!!!

Listen to what this man says!!!!

I am working on a video for @dan.schumaker cavalier chorus and it is beyond amazing! Dan doesn’t know this but its not leaving here, I am buying it.

It is so freaking versatile and sounds epic!

You just have to be careful and pace yourself, otherwise before long you'll be spending 20-30 extra hours a week doing something you no longer enjoy.

This is my biggest fear! I love this hobby and community but have spent the last two and a half years making videos without a break and had to take a few weeks off to refresh.

You know what happened?

I found myself in the forums more and thinking of new pedal demo ideas and what I want to do next.

Turns out I still love this and am very appreciative of this semi self funded hobby.

With that being said;

I get about 75 bucks a pedal…..maybe. I am a shit business man and am pretty hippy ish with money.

 

[Alan W]

Right, but you have to spend money to make money and profits will often outstrip write offs.

In short expect the best, prepare for the worst.

My plan is to collect NYS Sales Tax and squirrel away my current combine federal and state tax rate up front in each sale. That’ll give me access to instant liquid capital and then some extra once tax time hits and write offs reduce my actual taxable income.

You should look into the NYS sales tax collection regulations. In CA, once you have a resale license (needed to an avoid paying sales tax on supplies) your business is assessed and you need to prepay sales taxes on a schedule. As a former business owner, this meant I had to pay taxes before I collected payment from most (corporate) clients—pretty much the reverse of what you are hoping for… And, out of state sales are generally exempt, if you ship using a common carrier, from your place of business. (Keep all shipping documents for tax time.)

 

[Harry Klippton]

 

[coltonius]

I'm in the same position - a few pedals a month. I typically don't mind, especially if it's a circuit I really dig. Even better if it's an established circuit with some cool mods or extra features.

I typically charge enough to cover the commission + my next parts order for the stuff I want to build.