Hard to believe it was 12 months ago we were thrown into the deep end having to supply punching bags. We knew it was coming so there was time to prepare, but you have no idea what to expect. The first few months there were many cock ups with many late nights fixing the issues and teething problems that existed and that is how you learn which is actually a positive.
At work things are moving along very smoothly lately and having the 12 tons of stuffing material makes life a whole lot simpler. We received this latest delivery last week and is roughly 10 weeks between deliveries so yes we do run out. This is only enough for just over 1000 punch bags so this may seem like a lot, but will be finished in no time. When you need to do 80-100 bags every day this needs to be diluted with other stuffing and having two other materials used this should help make 2000 bags.
We had one of the buyers pop in today from one of our bigger clients and they mentioned that the quality of the bags has never been this good and that they were impressed with the filler. This is our key ingredient that no competitor has and why I purchase every kilogram from my supplier and pay immediately. This can never be put at risk as I know there is nothing like it anywhere else and took months to find so I know how rare this waste material is.
Today the staff grabbed another 1 ton and had to intervene making sure they are doing the right mix and not solely relying on the easy stuff that takes little or no work. The stuffing is like gold dust and I need this to last into next month as I would guess the next delivery will only happen in October or early November. The stuffing is the hard part in this business and if we could double our supply of this particular material this would be a cake walk.
The orders are there and we have roughly 2000 bags that need to be completed by the 10th of next month which is not a stressful number and is all under control.
We have taken on this new part of the business and have been doing this for 12 months now and have learned so much already. The important take away is we now know there is a season for this product with the peak demand period being September through to December and why I need this material to last at least 1 month more.
The monthly numbers are very good and I am hoping that we do not see a large spike in orders and that because we had only started up last year we had peak demand to fill the stores. The supply before we started up was hit and miss so having had a steady supply for 12 months we have filled the gaps and why we are now the main supplier nationally and the neighboring countries.
This punch bag business was one I have had my eye on for the last 10 years and had to wait patiently on the side lines whilst others messed their opportunities up. Having the time to prepare knowing the business was coming our way and do some homework did help and has proven so having lasted the first year having been audited by 4 different companies and passing with no problems. The positive part is I know I can eek out more profit knowing the monthly numbers and will be implementing new cost saving ideas from January next year.