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Need Help Is coro-platics sign profitable?

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equippaint

Active Member
unclebun said:
Signs365 is $40/sheet for a s.f. 4'x8' sheet, no matter how it's cut up. What gets me is the $10 next day shipping. When we ship a lighter package of roughly the same size as a box of 18x24's from Signs365, by ground, we're getting charged anywhere from $10-$19 depending on destination address type. And next day shipping can be $75. Same thing with Amazon shipping. Basically the large shippers are being subsidized by the small shippers. I know, volume, yada, yada. But the Post Office would be in a lot better shape if they weren't undercutting their own price to ship Amazon's packages. And though Jeff Bezos might be a million or two poorer if Amazon had to pay the same rates as everyone else, it wouldn't be the end of the world. Considering the volume that they ship, if they just made Amazon pay half what I do, they (UPS or FedEx) could send my packages for free and be making twice the money they are now.
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I wonder this too but they keep saying that Amazon has helped the Post Office which I can see strictly in terms of gross revenue. Dont forget, they use UPS as much or more. Really, these guys (UPS/USPS) are subsidizing a business model on the backs of the rest of us that would not be sustainable if they had to pay a normal rate. Hell, they even have the USPS running around on sundays which is total BS on many levels. There are really only 3 shipping options (not even 3 when you look at the last leg requirements that Fedex wont do) and there is no rational argument for any of them to cut their rates for this company like they have. If they just held firm, what option would Amazon have? They could not and can not create an internal shipping network just for their stuff that would be cost effective and have total coverage of the entire USA.
 
Texas_Signmaker

Texas_Signmaker

Very Active Signmaker
If you look on S365 they have FedEx trailers sitting in their parking lot. Maybe they just drop a trailer off to them ready to go and that saves $$ too.

Around here, Amazon delivers their own stuff. Usually in a van or some dude's car.
 
E

equippaint

Active Member
Texas_Signmaker said:
If you look on S365 they have FedEx trailers sitting in their parking lot. Maybe they just drop a trailer off to them ready to go and that saves $$ too.

Around here, Amazon delivers their own stuff. Usually in a van or some dude's car.
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Yeah that's pretty standard for the large shippers. As far as Amazon goes, the independent delivery guys are another pet peeve of mine, just like Uber. How in the world do they get away with supplying the van, giving them uniforms, setting their hours, routes and everything thing else and then call them a subcontractor. No employment taxes, workers comp etc. That is not a subcontractor by any definition. If it were any of us we'd be nailed to the cross with fees and penalties. Its screwing all of us. Whatever. Sorry to throw off the thread, continue on debating the proper name for coro.
 
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BALLPARK

New Member
zspace said:
Volume. Peak seasons we turn a pallet of 4x8 coro daily. Could do more but we only run 1 shift most of the time.
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Sounds like a fun day during peak seasons! I love to print on flatbeds...

What printer series did you decide to go with and do you do automation for loading or allow your workers to load each sheet?

We are looking into purchasing another used flatbed either Vutek GS3250+ series or HS100 series. I love the qty levels 100+ 4x8 sheets per hour with the HS100, but the quality max on the dpi is in the 600 range, but it does have matte - luster - gloss as the finishing for other types of rigid signs. We like the GS series as we started with the QS series and they are similar with better features (600 or 1000 dpi) and good speeds (24-60 sheets) just not HS100 speeds.

Have you used either of those series? If both... which did you prefer overall?

The HS100 series has some sweet loading automation options, but I doubt we could afford that with this up-coming purchase.
 
T

TimToad

Active Member
Quark said:
So how do they do it ?
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Multimillions worth of large scale equipment, as few employees as necessary, very little "sales" force", massive facilities, incredible economies of scale for purchasing, etc... The average couple person commercial sign "shop is like an ant on an elephant's butt compared to them and others.

What is lost in all of these discussions is what WE'RE all supposed to be charging for our work regardless of who produces it. It all has an intrinsic advertising value that needs to be factored in on top of the pure mark up factors.
 
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equippaint

Active Member
3F42ACD3-F95F-4751-9B5C-0475380A86D4.gif
TimToad said:
He also might be a French Canadian........ not everybody gets to live in the hotbed of high academic learning and speak perfect 'mericun...... This is a global site after all with members from all over the planet.
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E

equippaint

Active Member
TimToad said:
Multimillions worth of large scale equipment, as few employees as necessary, very little "sales" force", massive facilities, incredible economies of scale for purchasing, etc... The average couple person commercial sign "shop is like an ant on an elephant's butt compared to them and others.

What is lost in all of these discussions is what WE'RE all supposed to be charging for our work regardless of who produces it. It all has an intrinsic advertising value that needs to be factored in on top of the pure mark up factors.
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Its a different business really. The lesson to be learned is to go after work that is inline with what you do. If you must compete at $4/sign then either scale up, wholesale or just say no its not what you do.
Theres so much work out there to be had thats totally within the ability of small sign shops yet so many threads asking how to do things that are well beyond what a sign shop does. Like the 60000 small decal run post the other day and people saying to run it on their latex smh. Its not even the same process. Thered be much less of this if people, especially new guys, would be proactive in their sales efforts rather than reactive and just catching anything that stumbles in the front door.
 
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printguyjohn

New Member
Quark said:
So how do they do it ?
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Forgive me for asking... When you say "How do they do it?" what do you mean?

I mean't to say that I believe they built their business mainly on the back of magazine advertisements coupled with clear, upfront rock bottom pricing and cheap shipping. "Overnight Anywhere" is a pretty good marketing term as it's easily digestible and very valuable for the typical small town USA sign shop print broker / outsourcer who doens't live in a major metro area with a 4over shop nearby.
 
Quark

Quark

Merchant Member
printguyjohn said:
Forgive me for asking... When you say "How do they do it?" what do you mean?

I mean't to say that I believe they built their business mainly on the back of magazine advertisements coupled with clear, upfront rock bottom pricing and cheap shipping. "Overnight Anywhere" is a pretty good marketing term as it's easily digestible and very valuable for the typical small town USA sign shop print broker / outsourcer who doens't live in a major metro area with a 4over shop nearby.
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Print 10 yard signs @ $40 and over night it for $10 at a self cost of $50 for air shipping
 
T

TimToad

Active Member
equippaint said:
Yeah that's pretty standard for the large shippers. As far as Amazon goes, the independent delivery guys are another pet peeve of mine, just like Uber. How in the world do they get away with supplying the van, giving them uniforms, setting their hours, routes and everything thing else and then call them a subcontractor. No employment taxes, workers comp etc. That is not a subcontractor by any definition. If it were any of us we'd be nailed to the cross with fees and penalties. Its screwing all of us. Whatever. Sorry to throw off the thread, continue on debating the proper name for coro.
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How do they twist, distort and thumb their noses at long held rules and regulations? They are called lobbyists as well as making sure they manipulate our electoral process thanks to the absurdly ironic and Orwellian "Citizens United" help install political leaders who will not enforce those long standing regulations.
 
R

RandomPrintGuy

New Member
BALLPARK said:
Sounds like a fun day during peak seasons! I love to print on flatbeds...

What printer series did you decide to go with and do you do automation for loading or allow your workers to load each sheet?

We are looking into purchasing another used flatbed either Vutek GS3250+ series or HS100 series. I love the qty levels 100+ 4x8 sheets per hour with the HS100, but the quality max on the dpi is in the 600 range, but it does have matte - luster - gloss as the finishing for other types of rigid signs. We like the GS series as we started with the QS series and they are similar with better features (600 or 1000 dpi) and good speeds (24-60 sheets) just not HS100 speeds.

Have you used either of those series? If both... which did you prefer overall?

The HS100 series has some sweet loading automation options, but I doubt we could afford that with this up-coming purchase.
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get the vutek. they have issues from time to time, but you simply can't match the speed and color consistency
 
Z

zspace

Premium Subscriber
BALLPARK said:
Sounds like a fun day during peak seasons! I love to print on flatbeds...

What printer series did you decide to go with and do you do automation for loading or allow your workers to load each sheet?

We are looking into purchasing another used flatbed either Vutek GS3250+ series or HS100 series. I love the qty levels 100+ 4x8 sheets per hour with the HS100, but the quality max on the dpi is in the 600 range, but it does have matte - luster - gloss as the finishing for other types of rigid signs. We like the GS series as we started with the QS series and they are similar with better features (600 or 1000 dpi) and good speeds (24-60 sheets) just not HS100 speeds.

Have you used either of those series? If both... which did you prefer overall?

The HS100 series has some sweet loading automation options, but I doubt we could afford that with this up-coming purchase.
Click to expand...

We run DigiTech printers. A little slower - about 30-40 boards
 
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