OWJones 1,981 Posted November 18, 2014 On a local Facebook group, someone posted a picture of a pin-back button that they had picked up at an event a few years back- just a generic "I (heart) Ottumwa" - very simple black text and red heart on a white background - and wanted to know where they could get more. Someone else said they though the chamber of commerce might be interested in buying hundreds of them... Eventually my name came up in the discussion, but it was pointed out that at this time I only make the 2.5" buttons, and the one they had was a 1.25" button. The response was "yeah, nobody wants the big buttons, just the small ones." Since the equipment to make the smaller buttons runs around $330 (including 1,000 sets of parts), I said I would buy the equipment if there were sufficient demand to make it worth the investment. No one seemed interested, and so it went no further. Then last week I got a call from the marketing director at the local downtown hotel asking if I could make her 100 of "I (heart) Ottumwa) buttons by 6 PM that same day - I told her I only had the bigger equipment and she said that was OK, she still wanted 100 buttons that same day. Three days later I got a call from a customer I've dealt with several times before and she had seen one of the buttons and wanted to get 100 for herself to give away. She picked them up yesterday (along with a small batch of t-shirts for her volunteer organization) and has already given most of them away and called back last night to order another 100. She also implied that she is putting together requests for an even larger order of buttons in the near future (and so far she has always followed through when she says things like that). It's funny how quick it went from "nobody wants those" to a 3rd order for 100 of them and more in the future... I do need to buy that 1.25" button equipment one of these days... 12 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pshawny 410 Posted November 18, 2014 Like my buddy Steve Jobs use to say "People don't know what they want until you show it to them." 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BannerJohn 1,324 Posted November 18, 2014 I do need to buy that 1.25" button equipment one of these days... Now might be a good time. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
OWJones 1,981 Posted November 18, 2014 Hotel just called - they want another 100... 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mr300s 1,272 Posted November 18, 2014 Just curious what do button sell for? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
OWJones 1,981 Posted November 19, 2014 In small quantity, I have no problem getting $1 each (with a cost in materials of ~$0.10 if you include the printed artwork). I drop the price as quantities increase. For these, I am comfortable with $0.50 each. 100 buttons takes me an hour and I can do them while watching TV as there isn't a lot of attention to detail required. That means an order of 100 buttons has around $10 in parts plus 1 hour of my time, so I'm getting $40 per hour, which is more than I charge for most work. I've done them as low as $0.25 each for a huge order (some lady wanted a few hundred buttons for her son's college graduation party!), but most of my orders are in the <50 quantity range so I usually get more per button. Just went to order another set of 1000 parts and saw that prices have gone up slightly - new price for parts (including S&H) is 10.78 cents per button (plus artwork)... May have to raise my prices! 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
express2100 154 Posted November 19, 2014 $10.78 per button? You sure? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pshawny 410 Posted November 19, 2014 $10.78 per button? You sure? 10.78 cents each or $0.1078. Might as well round up to $0.11 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
signyouup 178 Posted November 19, 2014 In small quantity, I have no problem getting $1 each (with a cost in materials of ~$0.10 if you include the printed artwork). I drop the price as quantities increase. For these, I am comfortable with $0.50 each. 100 buttons takes me an hour and I can do them while watching TV as there isn't a lot of attention to detail required. That means an order of 100 buttons has around $10 in parts plus 1 hour of my time, so I'm getting $40 per hour, which is more than I charge for most work. I've done them as low as $0.25 each for a huge order (some lady wanted a few hundred buttons for her son's college graduation party!), but most of my orders are in the <50 quantity range so I usually get more per button. Just went to order another set of 1000 parts and saw that prices have gone up slightly - new price for parts (including S&H) is 10.78 cents per button (plus artwork)... May have to raise my prices! I can get them for $58.00/1000 before shipping. These guys are the manufacturer and I have never had any problems with there parts. https://www.usabuttons.com/products/button-parts-for-button-machines/buttons-round-2-14-inch/ 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
OWJones 1,981 Posted November 19, 2014 Thanks for the cheaper source! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
signyouup 178 Posted November 19, 2014 You're welcome, can't have a fellow forum member paying more than they need to!(Unless they live near me. ) 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
OWJones 1,981 Posted November 19, 2014 Son of a.... They wrote an article for the local paper and didn't even mention me! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
threezzz 10 Posted November 20, 2014 what is a good button making machine??.. cost?? is there other things u need to start up cost?? sounds interesting.. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
OWJones 1,981 Posted November 20, 2014 I have a Badge-A-Minit semi-automatic machine and accessories. A new setup from them will run you $450 for the press, a circle cutter and your first set of parts to make 100 buttons. If you're wanting to make large qty, I wouldn't get the hand press or bench press models as they take much longer to use. I have a Badge-A-Minit system because I got a great deal at a live auction and no one else was really interested. If I was going to pay retail price I would probably go with a Tecre brand machine. They are cheaper and use 'standard' size parts instead of the non-standard B-A-M sized parts, which means there is a greater variety of choices, and usually cheaper. Invest in a good circle cutter - cheap cutters are awkward to use, tend to slip and will cause you to waste printed art. I have an electric cutter that was part of my auction deal and one of the cheap plastic manual cutters. This one http://www.badgeaminit.com/4in1cutacircle.html and others like it blow them both away as far as speed and accuracy go. There are several big auction site vendors who sell Tecre equipment and starter sets with everything you need, except a printer, and any inkjet or color laser printer than does decent printing will suffice, you don't need to worry about dye vs. pigment, etc., although I do use pigment printers for all my buttons. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hummer 21 Posted November 20, 2014 What size buttons do you think are the most popular? What do you think about the 3 in 1 machines? Thank you for your time... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pshawny 410 Posted November 20, 2014 I have a Badge-A-Minit semi-automatic machine and accessories. A new setup from them will run you $450 for the press, a circle cutter and your first set of parts to make 100 buttons. If you're wanting to make large qty, I wouldn't get the hand press or bench press models as they take much longer to use. Do we have to send you royalties from any ideas that we get from your posts? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
threezzz 10 Posted November 20, 2014 can the basic 3" Tecre do the kids sports picture buttons... reading some review of the Tecre, you need a special button maker for photo paper?? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pshawny 410 Posted November 20, 2014 I've seen it recommended that you use a thinner mylar cover, 2 mil instead of 3 mil, for the front of the button if using thicker paper like photo paper. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
OWJones 1,981 Posted November 20, 2014 I've seen it recommended that you use a thinner mylar cover, 2 mil instead of 3 mil, for the front of the button if using thicker paper like photo paper. I've tried using photo paper as if it were normal paper and it did not work well for me. The "proper" way to do it is to cut the photo paper the same size as the front of the button (my button maker is closer to 2 3/8" and I cut my artwork at 2.75" - the same diameter as the mylar - the paper and the mylar get wrapped around the front shell of the button leaving 2 3/8" showing - if you cut the picture to 2 3/8" and then put a normal piece of blank paper behind the photo and the thinner mylar on top, it will supposedly work. I buy the higher quality, higher brightness inkjet paper and print my photos onto that - the mylar cover gives it a look similar to lamination so it ends up being shiny and pretty and is cheaper and easier than trying to do it the "proper" way and I don't have to worry about a visible edge around the photo. 3" buttons are BIG and about the only thing they're good for is large photo buttons and I haven't ever had anyone ask if I can make bigger size buttons. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
OWJones 1,981 Posted November 20, 2014 What size buttons do you think are the most popular? What do you think about the 3 in 1 machines? Thank you for your time... I've never tried any of the X-in-1 button machines, the only thing that you're really changing out is the die set and the machine itself stays the same, so it should be OK. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hummer 21 Posted November 20, 2014 Thank you for the information. What size button do you think is the most popular? Thanks again... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
OWJones 1,981 Posted November 21, 2014 The 1.25" size is the most popular one you'll find in stores. That is the size you'll usually see in record stores, gift shops, etc. The 2.25"-2.5" buttons are slightly less popular, but have much more room for a larger message and/or picture. When I set up for buttons at an event, I bring blank paper and have dozens of different colored pencils, crayons, markers, gel pens, etc. and let customers draw and color a design and then cut and press it while they watch it. I don't know how well that would work with the 1.25" size buttons as there isn't a lot of surface area for them to draw in. I've purchased some 1" buttons and they are tiny and not much good for a message that you want people to be able to read from any distance. If I was starting from scratch and was only going to sell one size, I would look closely at the 1.25" and 1.5" systems and pick from one of those two sizes and I'd probably pick the 1.5" just for the extra bit of surface area to put a design on. You also need to look at what parts are available as there is more than just buttons you can make. At the 2.25" standard size you can buy parts kits where instead of a pin on the back, it's a bottle opener. The smaller sizes have parts kits where you can make pigtail holders, or shoelace decorations, zipper pulls, pendants, etc. with the same equipment. Badge-A-Minit sells pin backs, magnet backs, mirror backs, bulldog clip backs and that's about it. I buy the pin back kits, remove the pin and then add my own magnets on the back to make refrigerator magnets and it's a lot cheaper than buying their magnet kits. Like I said, I ended up with the brand and size that I did because I got a steal at an auction (I got the semi-automatic machine, a hand press, a bench press, a manual circle cutter and the electric circle cutter plus a couple of hundred sets of parts, replacement blades, etc. all for $27 or $37, I forget which). It was only after I started shopping for cheaper parts that I found the "standard" size button part kits that let you make more than just buttons, but they aren't compatible with the Badge-A-Minute machines. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hummer 21 Posted November 21, 2014 Thank you so very much for such a detailed reply. You answered all of my questions and more. I have been on the fence about purchasing a button machine for awhile now. With your help, I am a little closer to a decision. Thank you once more... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
signyouup 178 Posted November 22, 2014 I have the Tecre machines in 1", 2-1/4" and 3" and they work great. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hummer 21 Posted November 22, 2014 It seems that Tecre is the way to go...thanks again. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
