What makes a successful hammock company

[daneaustin3]

The thread about the latest Kickstarter campaign had me thinking:

What do you think makes a successful hammock business?
I see lots of criticism about what is wrong with this start up or that company.
We have lots on here that worship Dutch bling but would you if he sold to Cabela's, Bass Pro or REI? I feel that many small business aspire to grow to be big businesses and sell to big retailers. As much as I loath Walmart, many companies see being able to sell to them as the holy grail of consumer product manufacturing because they are the #1 retailer in the world.

Some things that I have noticed:
It seems that the "big" companies make short hammocks.
They seem to be over priced.
The suspensions seem to be lacking.

So what things would you want to see from a mass produced hammock?

[Brien]

Every business, no matter the size, wants to grow. They have to out of necessity, to stay in business. How they grow and to what extend is up to the owner. Some may want mass market success and some may be happy working out of their garage.

Personally, I don't' mind spending money with the local vendors. It's nice seeing the money go to a company in which every sale counts.

[Gadgetgeek]

I think because hammocking is a niche market, the successful companies are ones that understand the whole thing. Almost every camping related kickstarter I've seen shows that the person might have a really good idea, but doesn't understand the rest of the industry, or they feel they've re-invented the wheel when they really haven't. Dutch is very innovative and sticks to his defined part of the market. But he never claims that his hammocks are somehow magic compared to others. I think that its important for a company to do what it does well, and not try to directly compete with its "competitors", let each find a niche, and carry on. That might be innovation, production, or service, there are many factors that make a company great, and the truth is that companies have to grow somehow, and some just never get out of the garage.
Comparing hammocks to paintball, there have been many times where more funds were tied up in lawsuits than R&D. Hammocking has had its bumps sure, but I think in general good ideas float to the top, and credit tends to be given where due.

Personally I'll buy gear from whomever fits the bill of what I want, be it direct, or retail, that doesn't bother me. If KHE and others got sold along side Eno and hennesy in the big boxes, I'd think that was great.

[Rolloff]

Weight and workmanship. Everything tends to run from heavy to I wonder how they made it that heavy considering how short, and narrow they are already cut.

All of the above, except sometimes even worse on the tarps if one is even offered.

I think you need solid innovation. Doesn't have to be the entire shop, just something different enough that it sets you apart. Then watch closely at other start ups, as they come and go, then absorb any customer base they may have established with those products and services. Dutchware Gear is a perfect example. Dutch has gold in that titanium and little competition. When Lawson went down, Dutch swung a dealship from the Amsteel Blue folks and picked up a large part of the DIY cordage business. The same with fabric, then hammock body blanks and suspension kits. He also did this w/o stealing anyone's idea, or bread ticket, or stepping on any toes of which I know.

[bradray]

When the same people that handle the sales, marketing and support are also checking the quality of the goods being delivered, you tend to have a very high quality product (as evidenced by the many wonderful cottage vendors championed here on this forum).

[Dutch]

How are you defining successful? Is it just in dollars? If so, I think there is much easier ways of making a living. The last 8 years have been incredible for this industry and there have been great innovations brought by the cottage vendors. Think about Randy hand crafting custom built hammocks one at time. Every order is different and he pours a lot of love and pride into each one before he ships it out. He isn't getting rich but I would say he is doing a craft he loves and is very successful at what he does. There is a huge difference between those that do it for passion and those who do it for money and the definition of success is much different. You are not going to find Randy's passion in a kickstarter project that has hammocks that are another variation of everybody else's and are made in some factory in some foreign country that they have never visited by people who made tank tops last week, hammocks this week, and will be making hats next week. Wal-mart has its place and so does REI. Tiger Woods doesn't buy his golf clubs at Wal-Mart and I bet the guy who makes Tiger's clubs is very good at what he does and is very proud that he makes them. However the guy who sells millions of clubs to Wal-mart might drive a bigger car. If it is for the dollars I am not very successful as I had to dip into my credit to make payroll again this week. I doubt there will be a Rolls Royce replacing my 10 year old Prius. And no investor is going to buy me out and leave me sitting pretty. However I am leaving this morning for MAHHA. Many people I don't know yet will say they love my stuff, seen my vids and I will be the most successful person in my daughters eyes. You can't buy that.

[OCDave]

While I have never met Dutch, Stormcrow, Warbonnetguy, Marty at Winderness Logics, Stu at WhoopieSlings.com, Tinny at Minibull or the several other individuals who have contributed to my outdoors experience, I know they are out there and invested in my satisfaction. Individuals who through trial and error brought products to a small niche market that could only be conceived by minds confronted first-hand with the problems I am likely to face myself. Read the "Our Story" tab at JackRBetter website.

I appreciate that the products I buy from these vendors are "crafted". I recognize that my tarp Snake-skins have passed through the fingers of Mountain Goat, that Stormcrow knows the smell of the goose down in my quilts and that when Warbonnetguy goes for a hike that he can't also be building my SuperFly.

It is also notable that these individuals personally shouldered the risk of their business endeavors. When someone shows that level of commitment, that inspires one to support their business.

It is the people behind these businesses that appeal. Why should one feel the same level of admiration for a Kickstarter campaign? I am always critical of someone who wants paid before they have done the work. Build a worthy business and then get paid.

[OneClick]

When you have someone that lives, breathes and dreams the product, there's a good chance it will thrive. Know the product. Know the product. Know the product. And while I love good customer service, that's not a reason in my opinion. Everyone has "good customer service". If you DO have it, and prove it, of course that helps.

KNOW THE PRODUCT! If you're passionate about something, there will be others.

[sargevining]

The guy on the Kickstarter Campaign is a cottage vendor. In fact, he's a hammock cottage vendor doing the same thing as BIAS, Dream Hammocks, Dutch and others. He's a guy who's not just making another gathered end parachute nylon hammock that will eventually be tossed into a box when the dorm room gets cleaned out. He's offering something new---a longer, wider hammock with a device designed to keep floppy material out of one's face. This guy belongs in the company of all of the more well known cottage vendors who populate this forum, and gain a sales advantage from being here. The only real difference is that he's taking advantage of a new fund raising opportunity that frees entrepreneurs from having to go to the bank for a loan. This is good for the hobby, as it brings in competition and innovation. Its what this hobby needs.

The tragedy, of course, is that because he was new and different, the Tribe gathered to bully, jeer, and laugh at him. This should be of concern to the vendors that advertise here. It puts you in the Tribe whether you want to be there or not. He's not "one of us" but you are.

One thing that separates cottage vendors from chain stores is reputation. A successful Cottage Vendor becomes successful (in both terms of monetary return and the kind of return Dutch is talking about), through quality of work, speed of delivery, customer service all attached to offering something a given group of customers wants. You can control all those aspects of your conduct of business that affects your reputation. But Fan Boys and the Tribe represent a double edged sword for you and you have only limited control over what they do and say. What ever control you guys have, I wish that you'd do more to exercise it.

[g2outdoors]

No one can define success for anyone else. To one person success is money, to another it's freedom. To some success is being perceived as an authority or expert, to another it might just be keeping busy. There's no wrong way to define it. When reading books about success, business and prosperity, you'll find that "successful" people were almost always "failures" at first. However, very few, if any, of them consider their "failures" as failures. They simply see them as learning experiences that were integral cogs in the great wheel of their ultimate success.

Well said Dutch - if you can find something that makes you happy and then spend your time doing it, that's success.

On the Kickstarter subject - I happen to love Kickstarter and have contributed to several products. None of the hammocks have interested me for one reason for another, but let's not throw the baby out with the bathwater. There area lot of really cool products that come to life because of Kickstarter and similar crowdfunding sites. And honestly, Kickstarter is nothing new. Pre-selling items before production has been happening since the beginning of time.