posted
I'm not new to signwork, but I am new to running the shop.
Now that pricing is my responsibility, I want to make sure we are making a profit. So does the owner.
We are a small storefront vinyl shop in the business district. We don't have the expertise, tools or time to do many of our installations.
On our bigger installations we hire an outside contractor. What is the right mark-up on their work? Previous manager didn't mark-up labor at all or just minimally.
What about the sale of sub-contracted items like screenprinting or cut-out letters? My feeling is that the mark-up should be 40% plus shipping. Any thoughts?
posted
Beth, I think you should read the post of "what can I do?" before you go to far, just to get an insite of what could happen. Although I always feel when doing business with others in the same sort of trade, that it should be a benifit to both parties. then you should be ok........Cisco
------------------ FranCisco Vargas aka: Cisco aka:Traveling Millennium Sign Artist http://www.franciscovargas.com Fresno, CA 93703 559 252-0935
"to live life, is to love life, a sign of no life, is a sign of no love"...Cisco 12'98
Posts: 3576 | From: Fresno, Ca, the great USA | Registered: Dec 1998
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posted
I agree with Cisco that everyone should make a little something,and that 40% is resonable. After all,dealing with the customer,the sub-contractor,and networking the whole thing should be worth at least that much. I sub-contract to several other sign companies on a wholesale bases,so they can automaticly charge the customer retail. EVERYONE seems to be happy.
------------------ PKing is Pat King of King Sign Design in McCalla,Alabama The Professor of SIGNOLOGY
Posts: 3113 | From: Pompano Beach, FL. USA | Registered: Nov 1998
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I think a 40% mark-up is a good rule of thumb for subcontractors. Sometimes I mark up less. I can't seem to make a lot off electricians or back hoe people, or the ready mix guy. On the other hand, I doubled the price of screen printing here for a long time. Actually, I just priced it for what I thought it was worth and then had somebody else do it. I had two different places that did the work for about half what I got for it. With plastic letters, the price they give you represents a thirty or forty percent discount off list. If you're working off a 40% discount, you need to multiply by 1.67 to get back to list, in other words a 67% mark-up.
Something else to remember. You are the contractor responsible if a subcontractor fouls up. If he is not insured, for example, a damage claim could probably come back on you. So don't play 'general contractor' for peanuts.
Good luck, Brad in Arkansas
------------------ Brad Ferguson 4782 West Highway 22 Paris AR 72855 501-963-2642 signbrad@cswnet.com
Posts: 1230 | From: Kansas City, MO, USA | Registered: Nov 1998
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