Why Do You Make Your Own Channel Letters?

Why do you make your own channel letters?

Quality is one possible reason. You want to be sure that high quality letters are provided to your customers. That level of control means you protect the reputation of your business. That makes sense.

However, have you considered all of the costs associated with producing your own letters? Many costs are easy to overlook.

Such as:

Your Time – Your time is valuable. So is your employee’s time. What is your cost for the time spent on purchasing letter component materials? Purchasing means spending time on negotiations, making and receiving vendor phone calls, and placing the actual orders.

Inventory – Where are you going to keep all of your raw channel letter materials? And who does the accounting for how much you have of each necessary component, and is responsible for reminding you (or your ordering employee) when an item supply needs to be refilled? We’re talking time and floor space here – a double cost.

Manufacturing Errors – This one is particularly costly. Suppose your shop produces the wrong size letter faces. By the time you realize the mistake, the faces are finished and the trim caps have already been applied.

You know the nightmare that kicks off at that time. You must use new acrylic sheets to make the correct size faces (hopefully those sheets are in your stock; otherwise you may pay an additional charge for an emergency delivery.) Then, all of the trim cap must be re-cut and re-applied. The bottom line? Goodbye profit.

Worker’s Compensation – This cost (obviously) varies by state, but over time it can add up to a considerable piece of change. If you produce in a state with one of the higher worker’s comp rates, it adds up quickly.

Inventory Again – How much cash do you have tied up in unused raw material inventory? If you have some raw channel letter materials that are gathering dust, your cash in that inventory would be better used elsewhere.

Your Time Again – How much more product could you sell when you get rid of the time spent on all of the above activity? Your sign business makes money when you and your employees are selling – not when you are spending time managing people, materials and machinery. Using a wholesaler opens up your selling time – which is something you need more of in this slow economy.

The point is this: when you make your own channel letters, it is simple to overlook your variable production, inventory and installation/repair costs. But these costs are real and will bite into your profit. When you use Direct Sign Wholesale your sign cost is FIXED, your letter quality is high and your delivery is on time. This way you do not receive any unwelcome cost surprises, and your reputation for quality is protected.