GGG just started video feeds of how cottage manufactures produce products. The first video is with Brautigam Expedition Works. Full disclosure, GGG distributes some of our products / we have no relationship with Brautigam Expedition Works.
This video provides some pretty good insights into a well scaled cottage industry for backpacking gear. First of all, he has a solid background in tool and die making so that helps out by leaps and bounds. What is stunning to me is the amount of Capital Equipment needed to run his shop. My guess is that a lot of it is used equipment and that he can do repair and maintenance on them. My guess is that most of the cost is associated with direct labor and there are a number of steps to make a spoon. It is hard to imagine starting a business like this as one of the key things to do is to pencil out the financials” what it the return on investment, when does the company become profitable? I hope that they are doing well and are very successful, seems like a tough business to me.
