March 5, 2013

Scrap coasters?

Here is a shot from my desk. I'm usually a very organized person, but am capable of making a mess. I'm trying to figure out a way to turn scrap felt into coasters.
We already generate round coasters from the handle cutouts on the UM tote bags (and already own a 4" round die), so round would be the idea. But they are hard to package. So I've been looking at other shapes.


Here is how we used to sell coasters. I am just not sure that I want to do it this way again.
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6 comments:

  1. kfavretMarch 5, 2013 at 1:45 PM

    the nice thing about the cork and coaster combo is the cork could be a hot pad for pots as opposed to just a packaging device. maybe you use wood instead of the cork or mostly wood with a cork veneer....

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    1. ActualMarch 5, 2013 at 3:19 PM

      Hi Katharine, yes somebody else had suggested the trivet idea too and it's a good idea... and maybe wood would be even nicer. But still it would be too hard to produce given the low-cost/consumable nature of this product. Over the years I've learned that if something isn't dead simple to produce then it needs to either get a lot of attention, or be very expensive and profitable.

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  2. UnknownMarch 16, 2013 at 6:15 PM

    what if you created a pouch that consisted of two coasters sewn with a kind of bolster in between? then they slide in and out in a stack. and it probably could be made out of all scraps--though you'd use two extra circles in the process...

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    1. ActualMarch 16, 2013 at 6:53 PM

      Hi Val, I've thought about making a change purse with the rounds, but we have never been able to sell small items like that. It's our more expensive (and more unusual) things that do well. We probably won't sell many coasters either, but they are so cheap to produce that they could be a giveaway for press, stores, customers.

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    2. UnknownMarch 17, 2013 at 11:09 PM

      ah, i see. that makes sense, i too was drawn to the more unique stuff. though personally i might be more inclined to buy/have a little thing from an awesome company to compensate for the fact that i can't drop that much on a bag.

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    3. ActualMarch 18, 2013 at 10:03 AM

      Yes sales and marketing is a complicated science that I will probably never understand!

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