Chef Archive
Thread: Pricing to keep stock on the vendor?
I'm wondering what you think of this idea of pricing of a 40-crate (25 in each crate) run:
- 20cases of 25at regular price
- 20 cases of 10 at at regularprice plus 10%
- 20 cases of 5at regular price plus 15%
- 25 singles at regular price plus 15%
- 5 cases at regular price plus 25%
- 2 cases at regular price plus 50%
For example, for Fishak (5 use), the prices would be:
The idea here is that if someone visits my vendor, they will have many options if they come early - buy in bulk for "cheap", or buy smaller quantities for more.
The extra 7 cases are for those people who come late... if they come late, and others have bought up all my stock except the expensive stuff, it will be their option to buy the expensive stuff, or leave without anything.
I could even have a system that re-imburses regular customers the "regular" price if they are forced to pay the inflated price.
This is a solution to the issue "never leave your vendor empty". I am thinking it's better for a customer to turn away because they choose not to pay a high price than have an empty vendor when a person is desperate.
Thoughts?
I think the best part of your plan is to increase the price for smaller quantities. It does reinforce the buy-in-bulk concept to save money, and you're really wanting to encourage them to buy the full crates anyways to get quicker reimbursement for your product. It also is more inconvenient to have lots of odd sized crates for sale. I'd say it makes sense to charge more for broken up crates. I know personally I don't break up crates. The only crates I sell that aren't whole are the odd ones that are extra from a factory run.
As for pricing some of the same crates higher, I suppose it'd be a way to keep something on the vendor. My only worry is if you have only the high priced crates left on your vendor at a certain time. The customer may think you're way too expensive. It may or may not happen, but I'd say it's possible.
Marrok wrote:
...My only worry is if you have only the high priced crates left on your vendor at a certain time. The customer may think you're way too expensive....
I completely agree. But what is worse - a customer thinking you are too expensive, or thinking you don't sell anything (i.e. empty vendor). It's a tough choice, but when it comes down to it, your loyal customers will know your pricing, and the occasional customers will either pay a premium & never come back, or become loyal customers since they know they can always get stock at your storeand be pleasenlty surprised by your "regular" prices.
It'sa tough choice... I may do only2 cases at cost + 25% and leave the rest at regular...
This seems like an ok idea on paper, but from a PR point of view, I don't think it really works. You would be better off putting the run up on your vendor on as they come out of the factory (say, 10 crates a night) so that you are restocking more often, and it will spread out to more customers that way.
If you did the lump stocking with the increasing prices, you are really adding a luck variable in your sales, and a lot of customers aren't going to get it, unless you explain it pretty carefully. And if you do go that way, you should have a schedule of some sort so that good customers can expect to buy from you on a certain day, while the price is still cheap.
This is pretty much the jist of the airline industries pricing polocies though, so it isn't without precident. If you do it, please tell us how it goes after a few weeks.