Sadly, the 3D printer began to object to the heavy usage. At one point, a wire melted! We began researching a few ways to mass produce. Mold casting with resin was too time sensitive and toxic. I had two littles underfoot—my girls were both less than three years old and home with me at the time. Laser-cut acrylic wouldn’t work. Acrylic is brittle with no flexibility. Also, the gills (what we call the slots in the WEFTY needle) created structural weak points. Injection molding seemed the best option as the final product would most resemble the 3D-printed WEFTY.

Once we settled on injection molding, we contacted several small-batch manufacturers. The process of vetting companies was incredibly time consuming, and responsiveness became almost as important as pricing. We spent seven months selecting and working with a company before we received our first batch order in late September 2016.

One concern I had about injection molding was that even with small batch manufacturers, often the minimum first order is 1,000 units.

In the end, we went with a company that was able to create a “family mold,” meaning one mold would house both sizes of WEFTYs. The alternative would have been one mold per needle size. Depending on design, an injection mold can cost anywhere from $1,500 to $5,000+. The family mold reduced cost considerably, and the WEFTY could continue being produced and sold in a set. We had to redesign the WEFTY in Fusion360 for the manufacturer (there is a free license of Fusion360 for hobbyists and startups who make less than 100k a year).

The retail price of the WEFTY Needle at $10 per set was not high enough to factor in the cost of an injection mold and manufacturing of the tools, or the percentage lost through wholesale and distribution pricing. For that reason, I had to increase the retail price after I began injection molding. Most people assume that injection molding will make it possible to lower your prices, when in fact the opposite is almost always true, at least on our scale.

When considering your pricing, factor in the cost of packaging per product and the cost to produce the product. That should be your baseline cost per item. My suggestion would be to double that to determine your distributor pricing, and triple it to determine your wholesale pricing. Retailers will want to sell your tool for double their wholesale cost. When I first began pricing the WEFTY needle, this formula seemed ridiculous to me. It just seemed as though items were being priced too high. However, the reality is that your margins for profit are quite small and can be eaten up quickly. If making any sort of profit is a goal, business owners have to charge enough.

Another major evolution of the WEFTY Needle was in the packaging. When I first started selling them, I taped the needles to recycled cardboard using colorful washi tape. Eventually I used self-sealing plastic packages with a little insert that had my WEFTY logo and some website information. My self-sealing plastic packets are bought in bulk from Amazon, and I have my inserts printed at a local printer. One goal I have for this year is researching less expensive packages and printing options to lower my cost per item.

In October of 2016, I was lucky enough to talk at length with a distributor who gave me feedback on what packaging should look like. My packaging needed to include photos of the tool in use, as well as a description of what it does and how to use it. I also needed a unique UPC. I found Nationwide Barcode, a site where I purchased several unique UPCs at an affordable price. Increasing my retail price and redesigning the packaging insert took me a few months, so it wasn’t until Spring 2017 that I was ready to begin taking orders from a distributor.

Designing, developing, and producing a product I use and believe in has been incredibly rewarding. Even with the growing pains, business is good. My goal was to break even the first year, and I did it! But had I known about pricing and proper packaging from the very beginning, I could have done much better. I hope reading about my journey with the WEFTY Needle helps you in your journey with your innovative product ideas. I wish you and your creative business the very best!