Toy birds at Tk 7 wholesale; about Tk 1 lakh in monthly sales, Tk 60-65 thousand after costs
A craftsman from Keshabpur, Jashore, has made foam toy birds for 17 years. Selling them wholesale at Tk 7 each, he keeps Tk 60-65 thousand a month after costs. After failing at other businesses he settled on this one.
According to a Prothom Alo report, 31-year-old Abu Saeed of Keshabpur, Jashore, has made toy birds for 17 years. He makes four kinds: parrot, pigeon, rooster and silver carp. The main material is foam pad, bought from the Karnaphuli EPZ area; paint, glue, rubber thread, straw and sequins are also needed. He spends 15 days of the month making toys and the other 15 selling them. A skilled worker can make 300-400 toys a day, at one to one and a half minutes each; with the family together about a thousand toys are made on every other day. There are 13,000-14,000 toys of orders a month, from Khulna, Rajshahi, Dinajpur, Noakhali, Barishal and other places. The wholesale price is Tk 7 each against a cost of Tk 2 to 2.5. Retail, they sell at Tk 15, 20 or 30. Monthly sales are about Tk 1 lakh, and after production and personal costs Tk 60-65 thousand remains. Earlier he tried a raw-material business, mason work, selling samosas and ice cream, and did well at none. From this income he has been able to spend Tk 8 lakh on his mother's kidney treatment, buy 18 decimals of land and build a house.
Lessons
- 1.Low-cost items made in volume for wholesale orders give a good total even with a small profit per piece.
- 2.Family labour lifts output, and splitting the month between making and selling is a workable plan.
- 3.Rather than hopping between businesses, sticking to the skill you have can bring stable income.
We published this with the person's permission, without revealing who they are.
Discussion
Nobody has written anything yet. You can be the first.