RFQ Response Etiquette, (The Man In A Shed) vs (The Commercial Operator)

[Fivetide]

Ah “Man in a Shed syndrome” , I like it  Personally I wish to remain always a man in a shed, but I am aiming at a niece market where a workshop cannot “do” what I want to do. And therefore I charge accordingly. However an example of “Man in a Van “ would have been my Dad, who took his redundancy money and bought a Transit van and sold nappies to Nursery’s out of the backdoor. Same product the big boys were selling only he had no marketing, office storage or personal overheads. That said 10 years later he was the biggest private medical supplies business on the Fylde coast. Going from a transit full of nappies a week to 4 Artics full of Baby to Man size incontinence pants.,per week. Man in a shed is the start for some and the end for others.
Now my Dad is a Justice of the Peace an ex Major .. shop steward and Labour councillor , he ran his company by the book for 10 years but was investigated by the Inland revenue for 2 of those years. Why you may ask? Mainly because my Dad believe that sharing the good fortune created by hard work was more valuable than giving it to lazy arsed shareholders. So the wages where well above average and the company gave very generous bonuses. The turnover of staff was 0% throughout the life of the company and he retired with a good pension and some sizable assets. The Inland revenue couldn’t understand why he was paying so little profit tax on such a large turnover. They were basing the idea on the standard greedy owner who exploits his workers. Anyway I thought I would share .. its probs off topic but in my mind its knowledge worth sharing.

[blackburn mark]

Mainly because my Dad believe that sharing the good fortune created by hard work was more valuable than giving it to lazy arsed shareholders.

Nothing is quite as gorgeous as a man big enough to stick to "solidarity" in the minefield of success :)
Maybe I have gone blind in my old age but I cant seem to see any of that in the leadership today.... somehow it seems the scum has managed to rise to the top.

[corkcnc]

Hi all,
I avoided posting in case it was seen by anyone as sour grapes. However I'm quite happy to share a couple of lines on my situation.
As I said in my intro some months back, I do my best to charge man in a shed prices. On this side of the pond we don't have anything like a hobby allowance, income is income and woe betide the person who tries to avoid their tax liabilities. Irish revenue keep us all in line by applying penalties and interest on unpaid taxes that will in almost all cases I've seen, exceed the initial moneys.
So for someone like me, for everything I earn after expenses, I hand over 41% of that to big brother as the day job knocks me into the higher band. As Andy mentioned I live in a society and a man must pay his dues. So break down my £25 and you are looking at £15 left before I've provided everything from power,tools,coolant, right down to the sacrificial base plate. So while I'm not a business man I still have to abide by the rules.
As Jon said, he is not breaking any laws if he is under his tax threshold (if he was doing the job himself) and in Ireland I could operate cheaper if I was either out of work, a student or retired till I reach the threshold for marginal tax. So for me it's not sour grapes, it's a free market and I compete in this same market. If someone can do it cheaper, fine, best of luck to them.
I think it has been a very worthwhile discussion, the problem with internet discussions is that a lot can be inferred that is not meant and Jon's "shocked" smiley face, as he said himself was a bit out of place.
I'm learning loads from this forum specifically the old posts on automation and I like to do interesting jobs for people if I have the time so I reply to the rfqs and if I get outbid then that's life. I wouldn't lower my prices any lower for two reasons, firstly because life is short and I love spending time with my kids and it's not worth it if the extra few quid doesn't improve our lot. It pays for the small things, like new tools or swimming classes, not Ferraris I'm afraid. Secondly we do a highly skilled job, not everyone can do it. The complex stuff can take a bit of time. I could be in bed reading my book and suddenly find that I've zoned out from the page and I'm working out where to put the cutter compensation in a deep pocket.
Anyway enough from me. Poor Doddy only wanted a plate made and it morphed beyond recognition.
Noel.

[EddyCurrent]

Anyway enough from me. Poor Doddy only wanted a plate made and it morphed beyond recognition.

Amen to that

[blackburn mark]

[QUOTE= morphed beyond recognition.[/QUOTE]
I guess we can get a bit carried away but it all part of the fun.
I'm with you when it comes to sticking to your guns on price, life is kind of short :)
Jonathan is young and has time to burn :)