19/05/2026
STOP CHEATING YOURSELF IN THE NAME OF COMPETITION
Many bag makers today are working tirelessly, yet at the end of the day, they have little or nothing to show for their labor. In the bid to “compete” and attract customers, many have unknowingly turned a lucrative business into a survival struggle. What should be a profitable skill is gradually becoming a burden because of unhealthy pricing habits and desperation for patronage.
Bag making is not a simple craft. It requires skill, creativity, patience, energy, experience, accurate measurements, quality materials, and long hours of work. Yet, many artisans cheapen their own value by accepting ridiculous prices just to make sales. In trying to beat others, they end up beating themselves down financially.
The painful truth is that many bag makers are enriching dropshippers, resellers, and middlemen while they themselves are left with little money for feeding — and sometimes, nothing at all. Imagine doing the real work, carrying the stress, spending your strength, using your machine, electricity, tools, and time, only for another person to make more profit from your sweat than you do. That is not smart business; that is self-exploitation.
Time is not on anyone’s side. The strength, speed, and energy you have today may not remain the same in the next five years. There will come a time when your body will demand rest, when responsibilities will increase, and when life’s bills will become heavier. If all your hard work today is only enough for feeding, what happens tomorrow?
Many bag makers forget to calculate the real cost of production before pricing their products. Beyond fabrics and zippers, there are bills to consider:
• Rent
• Electricity
• Transportation
• Machine maintenance
• Internet and phone bills
• Packaging
• Feeding
• Training costs
• Health expenses
• Family responsibilities
• Emergencies and savings
When all these are ignored, and products are sold at giveaway prices, the business may appear busy but is actually bleeding financially.
Another dangerous thing is making people feel bag making is easy because of the way many artisans rush to collect any amount offered.
Customers begin to think the skill has little value because the makers themselves do not value it enough. Excellence deserves proper payment. A quality bag is not magic — it is the result of hard work, dedication, sleepless nights, and years of learning.
The price of materials keeps increasing daily, yet many experienced bag makers still charge like beginners out of fear of losing customers. But the truth is this: customers who truly value quality will always pay for quality.
Undercharging does not always bring loyalty; sometimes it only attracts people who want to take advantage of you.
In the end, many artisans will look back and realize that they were not cheating others — they were cheating themselves. Sadly, some realize this only when it is already too late, after years of stress with little financial progress to show for it.
Bag making is a lucrative business. It is a powerful skill capable of changing lives, creating wealth, and building lasting brands.
But it can only remain profitable when bag makers learn to value their work, charge wisely, and stop allowing people to take advantage of their craft.
Respect your skill. Price your work with wisdom. Build profit, not just popularity. Because hard work without profit is not growth — it is exhaustion.
— Written by Ruth Olayemi Olaleru - The Global Bag Making Coach, The CEO of Tarron Innovative World
