Raise Your Holiday Prices. Just Not Randomly.

Happy September, y'all! Fall fair season is here, and I want to talk about something a lot of us go back and forth on: holiday pricing. Grab your coffee, let's talk it through.

Here's where I land on this.

You don't have to apologize for making more money during the holidays. But instead of tacking on a few dollars just because it's December, make sure the value, the cost, the demand, and the presentation actually back up that price.

That's the difference between a price bump that feels fair and one that feels like you just made it up.

1. Okay, But Should You Actually Charge More During the Holidays?

Yes. But hear me out, because there are really two different things going on, and I don't want you to mix them up.

• Raising your price because your everyday pricing doesn't actually cover your costs.
• Charging more because you turned a regular product into a holiday gift.

Those aren't the same move at all. The first one is fixing a mistake you've probably been making all year.

The second one is smart positioning. I think the second one is the more interesting story, so let's start with the first and build from there.

2. First, Let's Make Sure You're Not Already Underpriced

Before you even think about holiday pricing, take a look at your everyday pricing. So many of us don't fully account for our own labor and overhead.

Some of you do supply cost times two or three. Others have your own formula, and that's fine, there's no one right way. But whatever method you use, it has to cover supplies, labor, overhead, and profit.

Covering your costs just gets you to break-even. Your business needs to actually make money on top of that.

If your regular price is already scraped down to the lowest number you think people will tolerate, you've got nowhere to go when Black Friday rolls around.

You can't take 20% off a price that barely paid you in the first place.

I know somebody reading this is thinking, "Cheri, people are already complaining about prices." I hear you.

But here's the thing I need you to sit with: you can't build your pricing around whether every single person who sees your product can afford it.

Your job is to price it fairly for what it actually costs you to make, package, sell, and ship it, with enough left over for you to make a profit.

That's not you being cold. That's you still being in business come January.

3. Don't Just Raise the Price. Raise the Value.

I'm not telling you "it's November, slap five bucks on everything." What I'm saying is holiday shoppers shop differently, so let's package and price for that.

Think about how you shop for gifts. You'll walk right past a $15 candle for yourself, then happily spend $25 on one that comes gift-wrapped, because it's not for you anymore.

Nobody's pulling one over on you there. That's just what good presentation is worth when it's headed to someone you love.

4. How I Turn a $10 Product Into a $35 Holiday Gift

Here's exactly what I do in my own shop. Let's do the math together:

$10 craft kit
+$4 second activity (a wooden craft kit or some clay)
+$1.50 packaging
+$0.50 label and filler
= about $16 in product and packaging, total

Holiday gift box price: $35

Nobody's paying $35 for a $10 kit. They're paying for a cute, curated gift that shows up ready to hand over, no assembly required on their end.

If you're reading that and thinking "so she wants me to triple everything," nope, that's not it. I'm showing you how to build something that's actually worth $35, not just slap a bigger number on the same little kit.

5. Presentation Matters More When It's a Gift

I always grab clean brown or white boxes with nothing printed on them. This isn't the season for whatever recycled boxes are sitting in my basement.

Then I add branded tape or a big label so it looks like I meant to do that, not like I threw it together five minutes before the mail run.

I also offer gift wrapping for an extra $4. It costs me about a buck in supplies and takes less than 10 minutes.

If it costs me a dollar and 10 minutes of my time, charging $4 isn't me pulling a fast one on anybody. I'm saving somebody a trip to the store for wrapping paper.

That's worth something, and that math is exactly why I don't lose sleep over it.

6. Leave Yourself Room for a Black Friday Sale

People kind of expect a sale around the holidays, and that's fine, plan one if it fits your shop. But you can only pull off a real discount if your regular price actually has room in it.

If your everyday price is already scraped down as low as it'll go, you've got nothing to give. You can't take 20% off a price that barely paid you to begin with.

7. Don't Forget Shipping and Packaging Cost More Right Now Too

Major carriers almost always roll out holiday or peak season pricing this time of year, and if you're building gift boxes and offering wrapping, your own packaging costs are climbing too.

Before things get busy, take five minutes and check your current rates straight from USPS and UPS. That's one more reason your holiday price needs a little breathing room.

It's covering more than it was back in July.

8. Your Homework for the Week

Here's what I want you to actually do. Pick five products. Write down the supply cost, packaging, labor, overhead, current price, and profit for each one.

Then be honest with yourself about whether that price still makes sense heading into the holidays.

Raise your price because you were underpriced to start with. Raise it because your costs went up, because you added convenience, because you leveled up the packaging, because you built a bundle, because demand is eating up more of your time.

Don't raise it just because Christmas is coming.

And if you find one of those five is barely paying you? Don't feel guilty about fixing it. Just fix it.

Stay crafty,
Cheri