Posts
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
the one less car ebay store has been closed, for a couple reasons. the first reason is because we had to charge a little extra to cover ebay costs and i don't like that. being the fledgling little “business” that we are we're still having a hard enough time trying to figure out what a reasonable price is to be charging for our shirts. since our inception our prices have slowly fluctuated, both up and down, trying to find that “sweet spot” as we've taken to calling it. see, we're not trying to make a killing doing this. all we want to do is make shirts and jazz that spread the word - and sing the praises of - riding bikes while getting compensated for the price of materials used and a nod or high-five for our time spent making said shirts. that's it. this was supposed to be a side project, something fun to do when not riding bikes. one less car wasn't started to rob you blind of the money you've earned by selling your time to your employers. i'm not a fan of the employer. i'm not a fan of selling my time. so please don't think we're ever going to try and pull that shit with you. the other reason is the immediacy that our culture has been all caught up in. we want everything now! drive-thru windows, a.t.m.s and scratch off lottery tickets (god forbid i'd have to wait for the evening drawing to see if i won) litter our countryside. we're all jacked up on caffeine, energy drinks and pharmaceutical speed (of all shapes and colors). where's my wireless internet connection? my blackberry? did i miss a text message? where's my debit card so i can transfer money from my savings to my paypal account? hurry, i only have two minutes left on this ebay auction! for some reason when people point and click on ebay they expect the item they bought be be on their doorstep the next day. unfortunately, we're not that high stress. we get results, but we're not glued to our computer screens. sorry. we have failed those of you caught up in the immediate culture surrounding us. three kids handling your orders takes a little time, as we too have decided to sell some of our time to employers. i wish that this was my job, but i'd rather live off myself than off of you and your money. three kids washing screens and burning images and photoshopping on borrowed computers takes a little time. ordering the shirts we need takes some time. we don't have a bunch of money to carry a large inventory. printing your shirts and sewing patches on hats takes a little time. i really don't want to come across in this note as a cynical prick. i'm just bummed on ebay and the hassle that comes with it. i'm bummed on people clicking “buy now” and sending an ebay message four days later asking why they haven't received their package yet. please exercise some patience. once you place your order we have to get the shirt you need in the size you want. then we have to screen your shirt. then we have to get all your information together and pack and ship your shirt. and then it's in the hands of the trusty postal employees, who are selling their time to an employer. we're all selling or time away. let's just step back, take a deep breath and start enjoying the time we have (while we have it). i promise that your package will get there. it may take a little more time than ordering from the big guys like amazon.com or bestbuy.com, etc. we're not real high tech. we're not trying to be. we're trying to make shirts that show everyone that we all love our bikes. i love my bike. you love your bike. and that's enough.
12 comments:
Bummer about the ebay closure but that's a long post to mention I can get your shirts cheaper elsewhere! ;)
I guess I could've used the time spent typing this to place my order but, oh well, I'll get there really, I just have to decide which three shirts are the best three..
awww; really sorry to hear that- I can't help but feel responsible for it.
regardless, I don't think that you overcharged for the shirts you were selling on ebay, but unfortunately, I think that people often expect cheaper prices online compared to if they went to an average priced clothing store. I love every single one of the products you guys were selling in the store, but I also think that at twenty bucks, they only appeal to a smaller market. they're all awesome shirts, and I've showed the designs to my friends who thought they were equally awesome, but wouldn't consider spending twenty bucks on one. I think that's just because they're not cyclists and all think I'm crazy for being sixteen and not having a license or learner's permit. okay, so maybe I am, but that's beside the point. it's hard to find that small market on ebay though, and I think that the tags listed in the product also made them a bit hard to find; the only way I could find them was by typing in 1 less car, and for some reason, that only worked half the time.
anyway, I'm still sorry if my order was your last, and I'm also sorry for being a little bit impatient with you guys, (the last one was kind of a hectic week for me) but I got my shirt yesterday afternoon and absolutely love it. thanks for the stickers also; I immediately put one on my 1981 Schwinn world (that someone in my neighborhood threw out!) then called my friend up and told her that I set one aside for her bike. can't wait to ride around town today and have people look at me funny as usual (no one rides road bikes in my city just for the fun of it; only old guys in spandex on bikes worth more than my house come by early in the morning).
hope you guys find out how to sell your shirts more efficiently. already got about seven smirks from going out to eat last night wearing mine. keep it up.
-kevin
(nkevin90@gmail.com)
You guys rock, you're small and we understand. That's part of why we like you. :) Keep it up!
Well said.
i ordered some stickers and some patches, and the got to my house quick fast. almost faster than i ride. people are just to darn impatient, everything has to be here/done/ordered yesterday.
great site, and great products!!!!!
Tucson Fixie
i can't get your cole at one less car email address to work. hit me up with a working address to try you at. thanks - ellen at cat eye just wanted to let you know that your little envelope in the mail made my day!
Amen to that guys. I just spent a short time on eBay myself. Far better for me to ride my bike to go sell time than slave away in front of the computer answering inane shipping questions while my bike collects dust. My advice: Ditch eBay and rely on our cyclist brethren to drive your web traffic and business.
Finally!! Someone telling the brutal truth! It's the perfect time to get out of automatic, robotic mode and wake up! No more being controlled and more of being in the moment! Because that's all there really is, the very moment you're in. Anything that takes you away from the moment, needs to be taken out with the trash! No fear!
So you want to list an item for sale that doesn't exist, accept someone's money, then make and ship it whenever you can get around to it?
If you'd have put "will ship whenever we get around to it" in the ad, people would have known what to expect and moved on to one of the other places.
Sorry if I'm supposed to show some sympathy, but maybe internet sales isn't the right line of business for you.
was the point that there are only three people working at one less car and they have other jobs that they also work 40 hours a week, pass your short attention span?
i think all he was saying was for you to CHILL OUT! you'll get your shit, when you get your shit. they're doing the best they can. dang.
wow, jeffs. you really don't understand at all.
"I wish this was my job, but i'd rather live off myself, than than you and your money."
What the heck are you talking about??
The idea that your printing shirts for some sort of social good, is ridiculous.
Using your talent and creativity to design clothes you like, and to offer that creativity to others in exchange for compensation is calld "living off yourself"
My dollars were freely given in exchange for your quality product. Take pride in that. Don't apologize for making a profit. Ya may need some money some day.
Post a Comment