Big Bucks In Bonsai

RonMartin(deceased)

Recently I have had a lot of requests asking me just how I came to chose the aviator that appears on all my posts. You know the one with the guy swimming in the coffee cup without a care in the world. Well the answer is that I thought it was cute. But mostly it is a trade secret. A closely guarded one at that. It is truly the only way to make money in bonsai.

Now that the shop has been sold and retirement looms. I guess that it about time that I shared my secret?

Like most that entered the business, I soon found that just about everyone thought that I was way overpriced on my trees. Why pay $450 for one of my trees when one could buy almost the same thing at K-Mart for $9.95? It may be smaller, but it would after grow up to be the same thing wouldn't it? ;o)

How could I charge so much for a tree that just sat in my backyard for the better part of 25 years? If it was so good, surely someone would have bought it long ago!

The flip side of that coin is another thing I hear a lot. “If I paid $100 for a tree and if it died, my wife would kill me!” (here you can substitute what ever verb is the right one)

There are lots of reasons why one should not pay too much for a bonsai. And I hate to admit it but there are, in fact, a lot of places that, IMHO, do charge way too much for those tiny little sticks they offer. But if they can get it then, bless their little hearts. Now, you might ask just what does that have to do with that coffee cup.

That coffee cup is a magic thing. Since I opened up my shop there has always be a pot on the old burner. Hate to think of how many pots have just plain worn out from the constant use. I have to make several pots a day.

I keep a donation cup near the coffee pot. I only ask for a 25-cent donation which does seem highly reasonable. Most will plop a quarter in the can without thinking about it. Coffee does normally cost about a buck a cup in most restaurants so that small donation is just a pittance.

Even at $1 a cup most would think it is a reasonable price. Coffee is, after all, an expensive commodity. A 2 pound can does cost about $5. Then there is the cups, the cream and the sugar. Not to mention the spoon to stir it with. And a napkin for the ladies.

I do have to pay retail for these things after all and that ain’t cheap. Coffee is $5 for a two pound tin, sugar $1.50 a pound, the powered cream another $2.27 a jar. The coffee cups are 50 for a dollar at the Dollar General store. It does add up.

If I mix the coffee to the manufacturer's recommendations then I only get 270 cups per two-pound tin. That is only $67.50 in gross sales PER TIN (if my math is right - $270 if you bought it in a restaurant) It does take me about 5 minutes to make the coffee and time is, after all, money!!!

So, if you really want to open a shop and make a living at it then get a lot of exceptionally good bonsai for decoration. Spend $30 on a coffee pot. Invest in the sugar, cream, spoon and cups. Spend 15 minutes a day making coffee and the rest of the day chatting. If you want to be the “Donald Trump“ of bonsai, then call the shop the “Bonsai Restaurant” you can charge more that way.

All I can say is thank God for the coffee drinkers. They know a deal when they get it. )

My tongue is firmly planted in my cheek, but now I have lost my drink. It was around here someplace. Maybe it's over by the coffee pot? I do tend to keep important things over there. Now, if I can just quit tripping over these stupid bonsai trees.

Heck they aren’t even real. No rocks glued on them!

If you guys were worth a salt, you would help me move this rainbarrel with the Donation sign on it.

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LivingArt

lol and can you believe i was reading intently thinking i was going to be imparted with timely knowledge!
good stuff

Jay

Thank You!

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pdbbonsai

I personally think it was a blessing in disguise that you made your way from IBC to here. No arss kissing here, just think that we are all better off with you than without you. Thanks for another great thread.

Paul

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grampz

Thanks for those thoughts Ron...I must admit I have often wondered about your avatar...now that I understand the reason behind it, I will have a good laugh to myself each time I read one of your posts and see the guy swiming in the cup...

bonsaial1

Forget the trees, put up some cheesy art, get some cool cup cozy's, call a small a "Grande", and change the name to Starbuck's. Then you can charge about 3.50 a cup and afford some of those trees Andy posts on Ebay!



Al

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Walter_Pall

Ron,

thank you for your revelation. Very heart-moving.

I feel hard pressed to now also unveil my big money making secret.
As you all know, I have this huge collection of quality trees and pots and a few hundred trees on sale. I have always looked at prices for quality trees and got aware that real quality costs a lot more than rubbish. A tree can be twice as good as another one. But it does not cost twice as much, it costs ten times as much. Now how about a tree that is ten times better?

Well, anyway, on many of my trees are price tags like 1,000, 2,000 etc. I figured that since they are really invaluable I might as well ask a round sum as minumum.

My visitors figure that one can go to the mountains and get these trees for nothing and have some fun in addition. So they restrain from purchasing these trees. They do go to the mountains, btw and come back with some trees. But they could never figure out why they cannot make masterpieces from them.

Well, anyway, more and more people came, and are coming from all parts of the country, from Europe and also from overseas to see my collection. This makes me proud, but not much richer. They come form far away because I am living in the countyside. The first thing they want is a pee-break.

One day I had the epiphany: I put up this fancy toilet house next to my entrance. Inside I have mirrors, hot water, soap, new towels.

Right in front of the mirror I have a big money pig with a sign saying:

'Dear visitor, this costs me hard earned money, but I want you to feel comfortable. I have this illegal alien who is an asylum seeker (asylant) from Bosnia where they had this terrible ethnic war and he cleans this all up. (Really my wife does it, she is cheaper!) Would you please leave .50 here? Donations are welcome.'

Since they all have guilt feelings, concerning the war in Bosnia, the fact that they are not going to buy anything from me, etc., they all pay, most pay 1.-. In addition, we feed them with lots of coffee and other drinks for free. This means they're going to have another pee-break! Then they have guilt feelings about drinking my free coffee and not buying anything, and they donate another 1.-

Altogether I have 150 per day and a lot more on weekends.
This can support a poor bonsai family.

Please don't reveal my secret to the crowds.

best regards
Walter Pall

Attached Images

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dbz12fan

LOL. What happened to selling bonsai at a bonsai store?

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Charles Bevan
Vero Beach, Fl

clrosner

Ron and all:
I am still laughing at your "secret", but as you see a great idea can occur in more than one place. After all I don't remember you ever telling me that Walter Pall visited your esteeemed Tokonoma Nursery...

Obviously Walter must have had a moll. I can just hear the Phone call to Walter, "I finally learned Ron Martin's secret... it's in his coffee!!!"

The International Bonsai Club members were all shaken by you revealing this well kept secret!!!!!

LOLIPMP!

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