Quote Originally Posted by Iņaki
Alan,
My question is, do we have a final price yet? You know you can count with my at least 2 meters (depending on the price I might end up getting 2.5)
No. It's going to be an absolute minimum of two more weeks before the N. Bately swatches get around to Steve, Bear, Matt and Cyndi. Probably three weeks is more like it. US Postal service told me a week from the SF Bay Area to Victoria, BC where Freedom Kilts is. He should have them any time, now.

Here's a timetable, starting NOW, May 3rd:

If the swatches go Steve to Bear to Matt to Cyndi with no delays it'll take roughly 3 weeks. This means the kiltmakers have to be on top of it and move them along, eh! It's now roughly May 24th. At that point, four kiltmakers/experienced kilt-lookers (and me!) will have seen the N.. Bately swatches. Rocky from USA Kilts will certainly have his by then. We can get a well-informed opinion regarding the N. Bately fabric at that time.

It'll take 2-3 days to get everyone to chime in with an opinion regarding the stuff. It's now May 27th. If the kiltmakers give the stuff the thumbs-up, I will go to N. Bately for a firm price and an estimate of shipping to the USA based on the number of meters I add up from replies to this post. As of right now we have "commitments" for a minimum order, plus a few meters.

We know exactly what the price is, delivered in Canada to Bear Kilts or Freedom Kilts, of the Fraser and Kirkbright cloth. Sending the material out from there will add cost, but the up-front price that Fraser and Kirkbright is offering us is good. It's just that I THINK I can save you all ten bucks a yard by working with N. Bately. I might be hallucinating, but I don't THINK so.

OK, so around May 27th or so, if all the kiltmakers cooperate and don't sit on the swatches forever, I will go to N. Bately for a firm price, and their estimate on carriage and duty to the USA. Cyndi has been so kind as to give me a rough idea of what that's going to be, and it's substantial. Anyway, I assume they'll be back to me with their price by the end of May and mid-week, first week of June. I know what a theoretical maximum on the price of the material ONLY is going to be, but I want a hard price on material, carriage, and import duty.

So now it's around June 1st. I pitch it to Highlandtide with our recommendations on what to do. If Hank turns around a reply quickly, then I move fast. Hank hasn't been online much lately I think, and he isn't answering my PM's, so I don't know what'll happen with that.

Around June 3rd. I publish the web page that's the order form. X-Markers who want to order fabric print the web page and write me checks and mail them to me. I'm planning on giving you all two weeks to get them to me. If somehow enough checks to make the minimum order sadly never arrive in my mailbox, then I'll e-mail/PM you all and tear up your checks. Then I'll go get drunk because I will have done a *+^&^%$# of work for nothing. I'm counting on you lads and lasses to step up to the plate when it comes time to send me dollars, OK? If you're gonna have excuses, tell me NOW, not a month from now!!!

Assuming enough money arrives, then after two weeks I go to the bank, cash your checks and wire a money order to N. Bately or Fraser and Kirkbright OR I send the money to the "distributor", the kind person/business who has a retail/resale license so that A.) we're leagal, here and B.) we get the "to the trade" discount, and are not paying retail cost for this.. It's now June 15th.

Six weeks later, the Mill ships the cloth. It's now August 1st. The cloth arrives at the home/business of whoever will serve as the distributor. That makes it about August 8th. By about August 14th, the distributor has shipped all your kilt material out to you. Depending on where you live, you'll get your X Marks tartan in mid-August.

OK, y'all got that?

Can't wait? Contact M.A.C. Newsome or Cyndi and get your yardage hand-woven by the person they know and use for custom work. It'll cost you $65 a yard and they'll turn it around in a few weeks. I'm targeting $50 a yard/meter, and hoping for $45 yard/meter. If I hit this I'll be saving you (and me) $40 on a "4 yard" kilt, $50 on a "5 yard" and $80 on an "8 yard". Do you want your kilt faster and are willing to pay for it? OK, then you know what to do. If you're going to do that, then TELL ME NOW because if two-three people pull out of the project now to do a custom order, that will bring us below the minimum order. IF you decide to go with the custom weave, but don't tell me, you're going to waste a month of my time, so PLEASE TELL ME.