One of my side gigs is trying to start my business, Heiselmann Supplies. If you don’t know, I best describe it as a supply store for grown up cub scouts. I know, I know….”where’s the demand for that?”….there isn’t much….but…here’s some math….there are 7.7 billion people on the planet….4.6 billion have access to the Internet…and roughly $1,000,000 is spent on the Internet every minute….well, the opportunities are endless.
I’ve already started selling kindling kits on Etsy. Again, not a high demand for those but I’m trying to fit into that cub scout genre…
Now…I’m ready for shopping bags….you know those canvas reusable shopping bags. Not exciting but we really should be using them. I don’t know how it is at your house but we throw away A LOT of those plastic grocery store bags. Ooo…let me know Google the math on those…
Look at this: “Americans use 100 billion plastic bags a year, which require 12 million barrels of oil to manufacture. Americans use an average of 365 plastic bags per person per year.”
And from what I’ve seen in the past, most canvas shopping bags are designed with feminine features. Which I get. Grocery shopping has long time seen as the woman’s job. Well, times have changed. Statistics now say grocery shopping is broken down to 51% done by women, and 49% by men.
And I’m totally a progressive business supplier. Some men may prefer more feminine bags. I’m cool with that. And maybe some women want more masculine bags. I’m cool with that. And maybe you’re non-binary and you choose a bag that speaks to you, and it’s not about it being feminine or masculine. Hey, whatevs. I’m good with it all.
Having said that, I personally do not want a shopping bag that looks like it was designed by Vera Bradley. I want something that looks like it came from an old school store from the 40’s or more modern and tactical.
First step is to figure out if I want these made or if I want to make them myself. I’ve contacted a local vendor here in town and supplied them with a Heiselmann Supplies logo and requested a quote for them to supply the shopping bags and screen print the logo on them. Depending on their level of business, quotes can sometimes take a week to get back.
Until then I’m exploring what it would cost to make my own. Already I’ve seen cheap ones at Michael’s but I need to check them out first hand. These bags need to be able to hold heavy things like apple juice and almond milk. Don’t want them breaking and spilling your groceries all over the parking lot.
But then I’d need to get my logo’s made at some place that does iron on’s. I imagine that would all be cheaper than getting them made but it depends on how much cheaper. Would it be worth my time to do myself?
Plus I would like to hand out several free ones to shoppers in grocery store parking lots. It’ll be a fun thing to do, while blessing others with something free, and getting my business name out there. So I can’t put too much money into this…..
Fer The Awesome 
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