Price for Boot Polishing Services?

[karasha]

Hey guys!

I have always taken an interest in leather care, but I seem to have developed a specialized interest in boot care. Since this is so, my boots are always well shined and well cared for. This has garnered some interest from some barnmates for me to polish their boots.

I have no idea how much to charge them! So, I wanted to reach out to y’all and see what you think is a fair price for the following three options:

1. Hunter Princess Boot Shine

• Clean the boot with leather cleaner to remove excessive dirt, sweat, etc.
• Strip the boot and remove all the old layers of polish
• Condition the entire boot with Mink-oil based conditioner
• Develop 2-3 coats of cream-based polish that creates a dark, soft, "eggshell" patina. This will also condition the boot and protect it from the elements.
• Edge dressing on the shoe's edge/heel.
• TIME: 45 minutes

2. Dressage Queen Boot Shine

• In addition to the Hunter Princess Boot Shine process...
• Develop 2-3 coats of a beeswax/caranuba based polish for a high gloss finish ("spitshine" finish) over the entire boots (obviously minus the inner calf portion). Additional 1 coat on the boot's toe box.
• TIME: 1 hour

3. The Basic Boot Shine

• Clean boot with leather cleaner to remove excessive dirt, sweat, etc..
• Condition the entire boot with Mink-oil based condition
• Develop 2-3 coats of cream-based polish that creates a dark, soft, "eggshell" patina.
• TIME: 25 minutes

Optional add on:

• Waterproofing spray that is made specifically for calfskin leather to help add durability and longevity to your well polished boot.

All products are incredibly high quality (actually, it’s the same products Hermes uses!). I included the time it takes me to perform each “option”. I do take my time and I could “speed up” the process if I was in need, but I do prefer to take my time and do a spectacular job. I really don’t want to base my prices on time, I guess, because it’s my problem I take so long. :lol:

[karasha]

Wow, no one?

[vxf111]

I cannot imagine anyone paying a rate that would both cover the cost of the materials and your time. If you presume “skilled” barn type work at a rate of about $15-20/hr I suppose you could start there-- but add on what the polish etc. costs you. I just don’t see there being a margin for profit here.

[AndNirina]

I get my boots professionally shined at a local shoe repair before every show. They do a fantastic job, and although I have no idea how much time they actually take to do the shine job, they charge me $18.

I’ve tried to do the same on occasion and cannot even come close to getting my boots as shiny and lovely as the shoe repair does. I agree with vxf, though, that you’ll be hard pressed to turn a profit from a ton of time spent on each pair of boots. Although, if you were one of my barn mates I’d most likely give you my business as it sounds like you do an amazing job!

[Thoroughbred_in_Colo]

Do you know how many uses you get out of each product you use? If you do, then pricing is easy.

Take the cost of each product and divide by the expected number of uses in the container to get the cost per use. Add the cost per use for each product in each of the packages described above to get the hard cost per offering. Even with expensive products, you probably aren’t going to go above a few dollars worth per pair of tall boots.

Figure out how much your time is worth (per hour) to you and use that as your baseline.

For example (with made up round numbers for easy math):

Your time = $20/hr
Glycerine saddle soap to strip wax = $.25/pair
Leather cleaner = $.50/pair
Mink oil = $.50/pair
Polish = $1/pair
Wax = $.75/pair

DQ, using all products would be $23. HP, $22.25 because you’re using fewer products. Basic $22.

I’d pay you to do my boots, I hate polishing:lol:.

[karasha]

Ahh well thanks for the feedback!

My profit would be about $10/hour if I charge $20-$15-$10 for the three services. This includes conservative consideration of supply replacement costs.

Perhaps I should combine the DQ and HP shines (#1 and #2), since the beeswax-based polish is actually the cheapest and lasts the longest. So, I could combine them and just ask the customer what level of shine would they prefer (Eggshell finish or a spit-shine). It would simplify things, too!

Example of my personal boots: http://i.imgur.com/GwhlVJM.jpg

[vxf111]

Your mean your labor pay would be $10/hour. That of course excludes the time you spend “advertising” and spreading the word, the overhead things like gas to drive and pick up boots and to buy your replacement cleaning products, the water bill for the water you use, laundering your rags etc. etc. I know, I know they’re TINY-- but if this is truly a BUSINESS they’re overhead.

If you like doing this as a hobby, that’s fine. I just think there are a lot of jobs out there you could get that pay considerably more than $10/hour and that would be a much steadier paycheck and probably more satisfying than shining a few of your barnmates shoes.

In other words, if this is fun for you-- cool. But I wouldn’t quit your day job.

I say the same thing to everyone who thinks their leadline bow or crochet ear net business are the next Smartpak. It’s a hobby craft business and that’s fun but it’s hardly a profit making venture. These things are nice to do for friends and for fun if you enjoy them, but they’re not really about making money-- they’re about the experience and pricing it so at least you don’t end up in the hole.

[karasha]

Oh I totally agree. I don’t think this will be something that will really become a huge money maker. I just really enjoy polishing boots. :lol: When I “unwind” from the day, I take my tack, sit in front of the TV, and clean it. So this is not really agonizing work, it’s something I enjoy doing and like the opportunity to continue my skill with a wider variety of boots.

This is definitely “hobby” more than “I hope this pays the bills this month!”

Thanks for the honesty, vxf111.

[Calling_Duck]

Consider calling Pisano & Son, 806 Village at Eland, Phoenixville, PA 19460 at (610) 933-1599 to see what their prices are, what products they use, and their turnaround time…assuming you are not going to be a competitor of theirs in the same geographic area.
They do professional boot polishing for lots of show folks, including one grand prix show jumper and another hunter rider that has been multiple times champion at Devon. There IS a market for this service, if you are in the right place to have the customers. These are riders who have multiple pairs of boots, and are constantly dropping them off and picking them up before and after each show when they are between shows. But just because there is a market…does not necessarily mean you can make a living doing it.
Good luck, well polished boots are a thing of beauty.

[yellowbritches]

Can’t imagine paying anyone to do a simple job that I can do quite well in 5-10 minutes.

That being said, there are plenty of people out there who would. If you enjoy it, want to do it and want to put in the effort to draw business, than, pssh, don’t mind me and go for it!

[hunterrider23]

It probably shouldn’t take you an hour unless it’s a really deep clean and shine. The guy at my fathers office charges $15, gets tips, and probably does about 30-50 shoes a day. That said, with expensive gear maybe charge more. I personally would buy kiwi products because they’re cheaper but goods quality, and offer a parade gloss. I was always taught not to use soap or conditioner on boots because it strips the shine, but to each their own.

[Lucassb]

If you were at my barn, I would gladly pay you. For one thing, you use Saphir products, which are absolutely the very best. And from the pic of your personal boots, you know how to use the stuff. I actually like doing leather care as well, but these days I just do not have the time to keep up with my boots the way I should.

BTW you just cost me a small fortune because seeing that pic reminded me I needed some new polish… so I went to The Hanger Project … and saw a bunch of stuff I had to have

[karasha]

[QUOTE=hunterrider23;7966895]
It probably shouldn’t take you an hour unless it’s a really deep clean and shine. The guy at my fathers office charges $15, gets tips, and probably does about 30-50 shoes a day. That said, with expensive gear maybe charge more. I personally would buy kiwi products because they’re cheaper but goods quality, and offer a parade gloss. I was always taught not to use soap or conditioner on boots because it strips the shine, but to each their own.[/QUOTE]

It takes an hour indeed because I never go for anything but a clean and deep shine. Boots are subjected to some pretty ugly environments; they’re at a barn, not an office building.

Everyone has their own way, but when I am going to be polishing boots, I will use a leather cleaner + a conditioner. I have had my boots for four years and that picture in my previous post is after a polishing I did a few weeks ago. I guess you can be a judge weather it really strips the shine

Otherwise, for daily cleaning? If you have a proper polish job on those bad boys, you need to just wipe dirt off with water and shine them again with a cotton chamois/microfiber.

[QUOTE=Lucassb;7966913]If you were at my barn, I would gladly pay you. For one thing, you use Saphir products, which are absolutely the very best. And from the pic of your personal boots, you know how to use the stuff. I actually like doing leather care as well, but these days I just do not have the time to keep up with my boots the way I should.

BTW you just cost me a small fortune because seeing that pic reminded me I needed some new polish… so I went to The Hanger Project … and saw a bunch of stuff I had to have ;)[/QUOTE]

Why thank you!

Hanger Project is AMAZING and has lovely customer support. And should you have any questions regarding application and use of products, Kirby Allison is very accommodating and will answer your questions at length.

Saphir products are really amazing; there is a reason Hermes uses them :lol: I have used Kiwi and melatonin, and personally, Saphir is just predictable, easy to work with, and consistently gives me a great result.

My mom had an upcoming dressage show and she needed her boots shined quickly. Her boots, Tredstep Donatellas, had been through some serious wear-n-tear; she mucks through the mud with them, washes horses off in them, uses saddle soap on the bare leather to clean them (if and when she cleans them). She handed them to me, caked with horse sweat and mud, and this was the result:

Before (after cleaning off mud/grime) and After

Really surprised me for a “quick” 30 minute job. I wanted to add more cream polish to develop a deeper, darker black, but she needed a quick job done. Oh well, still quite an improvement.

[MintHillFarm]

Your boots look awesome!

[hunter51]

Just wanted to pop in to say, I’d definitely pay for this, your boots look fantastic. Teach me your ways!

[karasha]

^ Thanks yall!

I appreciate everyone’s feedback!

[Wonders12]

I think I would pay $10/$18/$20 for them. If I can hand you to them “as is” and you won’t make me feel bad about the mud and muck and lack of polish, I might go up to ~$23 because I know you’ll need to build some layers on them.

If they’re your barn mates, maybe you can do I monthly all inclusive service! You’ll wipe their boots when you’re out 2-3 days a week and polish them once a month. I would pay good money for that! :lol:

[Duckz]

[QUOTE=yellowbritches;7966338]
Can’t imagine paying anyone to do a simple job that I can do quite well in 5-10 minutes.

That being said, there are plenty of people out there who would. If you enjoy it, want to do it and want to put in the effort to draw business, than, pssh, don’t mind me and go for it![/QUOTE]

Speak for yourself! :lol: After seeing a picture of her boots I’m ready to ship a few pairs off to her. Or at least see if my local shoe repair place will do it. So shiny…

ETA: OP, I would pay $20-25. But unless you live down the street from me, I’m calling the shoe repair place