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Re:Growing a company that sells miniature construction suppl... by mathofma on Wednesday February 21, 2018 @12:52PM (#16431372)
Mat from Mini Materials here - I'd love to answer any questions yall have!
Re:Growing a company that sells miniature construction suppl... by sorenjan on Wednesday February 21, 2018 @02:58PM (#16432439)
Pressing "Show more" on the front page doesn't work, maybe it's under heavy load due to HN?

When looking at all products, dumpsty [0] sticks out not only because of its price but also because it looks much more involved than the other stuff. How are you making that, and how come you added it?

Have you thought about adding things like concrete slabs for flooring, glass bricks, steel beams, maybe something looking like asphalt?

Did you ever have any problems delivering on time during peak season?

[0] https://www.minimaterials.com/collections/frontpage/products...

Re:Growing a company that sells miniature construction suppl... by mathofma on Wednesday February 21, 2018 @04:48PM (#16433278)
Dumpsty is actually handmade by another company, we just thought it was cool so we asked if we could sell it for them. We looked into steel beams but it was too expensive to sell. Cold weather is the bane of cement, so Q4 is the only time where we get close to running out of product. The great thing is that we make everything ourself, so we just make more.
Re:Growing a company that sells miniature construction suppl... by V2hLe0ThslzRaV2 on Wednesday February 21, 2018 @03:03PM (#16432483)
Just noticed the "spin a sale" email for prize link in the footer, how is that working out?

https://www.spinasale.com/

Re:Growing a company that sells miniature construction suppl... by mathofma on Wednesday February 21, 2018 @04:44PM (#16433247)
It is working wonders. It 10x'd my email captures.
Re:Growing a company that sells miniature construction suppl... by markdown on Wednesday February 21, 2018 @07:45PM (#16434274)
I can see it working great for captures, but these people have given you their addresses on the chance they might win something, and not necessarily because they want to receive emails from you.

I imagine this results in significant subsequent unsubscribes and getting reported as spam.

Re:Growing a company that sells miniature construction suppl... by Clanan on Wednesday February 21, 2018 @01:24PM (#16431636)
Can you share ballpark percentages on the customer type? Railroad hobbyists, wargamers, etc.
Re:Growing a company that sells miniature construction suppl... by mathofma on Wednesday February 21, 2018 @02:21PM (#16432118)
50% is people who just want a desk toy. The rest is broken up between fairy garden, dollhouse, RC, train, and construction promotional materials.
Re:Growing a company that sells miniature construction suppl... by pjmorris on Wednesday February 21, 2018 @06:05PM (#16433768)
I see you sell the mold for the cinder blocks... is your cement recipe a trade secret, or something you'd be willing to share?
Re:Growing a company that sells miniature construction suppl... by V2hLe0ThslzRaV2 on Wednesday February 21, 2018 @02:31PM (#16432212)
Have you experienced copycats, and if so, what do you believe is the number one barrier to them competing against you?
Re:Growing a company that sells miniature construction suppl... by mathofma on Wednesday February 21, 2018 @04:45PM (#16433256)
There are a couple of people copying it. The main barrier to entry is that you need to do volume to make money, and to get to that point you need to do everything yourself or you'll be spending too much out of pocket. My partner and I can create products, design, build sites, market and advertise, run warehouses, do our own accounting, etc... We haven't hired outside help for any of it.
Re:Growing a company that sells miniature construction suppl... by panzagl on Wednesday February 21, 2018 @03:41PM (#16432790)
Plaster bricks for modelling in a variety of scales have been around for a long time.