Updated: September 2024 to reflect price increase
Dear friends & community,
We pride ourselves in having been transparent with our business so far and not participating in scarcity marketing. This has been really important to us since day one and is a core part of our values as a company and as individuals.
We have been very conscious not to use language that is overly selly, or trying to get people to buy based on false scarcity. I personally hate this kind of marketing and see it all the time from so many businesses, and personally, I see right through the smoke and mirrors.
We decided from the beginning that we weren’t going to play that game. You all know the brands that are pretty much on sale 100% of the time. Or, experiences such as visiting websites that have those tickers and popups saying “so and so just purchased xyz in Alabama” and 2 seconds later another pop up that says “Allison purchased in Ontario.” These tactics are designed to play on our psychology and leave us feeling like if we don’t buy now we’ll miss out.
I completely understand why these discount game/pricing strategies exist and that they work. I am also susceptible to them and can feel them at work in my psyche when I come across them. I also don’t judge any business for employing them.
However, as a business owner who is now on the other side of the fence I am faced with the difficult decision around how to price our products in a way that allows us to continue as a company while also staying true to our values. Trust me when I say we have spent hours working through different spreadsheets and scenarios for our pricing.
In June 2023 we reduced our price and lowered/subsidized shipping costs throughout the summer to try and make things easier for our community. However, the truth is that it’s not sustainable for us to continue subsidizing shipping and offering common discounts such as “sign up and get 10% off”.
It became clear to us that we needed to increase our pricing, and/or charge the actual cost of shipping instead of subsidizing it.
Also, just before coming to this conclusion around the need to increase pricing we received word from the manufacturer that our cost per sweater is increasing significantly.
Why is it increasing? Well, of course, inflation. But also, we are a *very* small player in the outdoor apparel field and because we order what in the industry is considered a small order, we pay a surcharge. That surcharge has increased greatly. Literally, just to have a seat at the table, and to manufacture at the same quality of factory that many other well loved outdoor brands manufacture at, we pay a premium.
It’s worthwhile noting that I have been working on this business full time for nearly 4 years now and have not received a pay check. Beyond this, with the capital intensive investment involved in our orders and the design process, as a family, we are taking big risks to bring high quality outdoor clothing for mothers in nature to life. To be clear, we love what we’re doing. It’s also very real and at times it is scary. I share this with you to be transparent about the fact the pricing decision does not provide me a wage, but does impact the likelihood of being able to one day.
It’s uncomfortable to raise our prices because quite frankly, this may result in you deciding not to buy and that hurts us. On the other hand, the cost of literally everything has increased greatly, and we simply must raise our prices to reflect the true cost of goods.
We’re a ma and pa business and in order to continue serving women in motherhood, we have to charge closer to what our product is worth. It’s kind of as simple as that.
In traditional retail, the price of the All Phases Fleece would need to be at least $270 CAD. Obviously, this is not a realistic price, but nor is our current price of $188 CAD.
At the end of the day, we are not a major corporation like Patagonia who is able to charge $189 for their Marsupial fleece. One must keep in mind that their fleece also does not offer functionality for breastfeeding or pregnancy - functions that comes with added costs both in design and manufacturing.
In raising our price to get closer to fair market value, we have to trust that the true value of the All Phases Fleece will come through in our reviews and people’s experiences of it.
Without further ado, here is the decision we have come to.
As of Sep 24th 2024 the price of the All Phases Fleece is rising to $208 CAD / approx $154 USD. This price reflects the increase and true cost to manufacture such a high quality and functional sweater.
We stand by our decision to not offer perpetual sales which psychologically affects your decision to buy. We want your nervous system to feel good when shopping with us.
We are excited to be adding a second a product offering in October 2024 (our 100% Merino Wool Nursing and Maternity Base Layer) and to introduce "Bundle Deals" to help you build your capsule wardrobe for pregnancy and nursing. This means that if you buy both the Base Layer + the All Phases Fleece, you will get a discount.
We will maintain our annual sale around Mother's Day for the time being, and, if you’re on our email list, from time to time we will send out discount codes as a thank you for being a part of our newsletter community. We will also invite some of our affiliate partnerships to share a discount code depending on the season. It's important to us to create value for their communities which they are kind enough to share with us.
Beyond these opportunities our price is our price and we’re not going to pressure you to buy with fake time scarcity - "Buy now or miss this deal FOREVERRRRR".
Our mission as a company is deeply connected to what’s truly important in this time that we’re living, and we hope and trust that you as our community will help spread the word and see the value of a garment that is designed to last in a temporary, fast-fashion world.
The biggest way you can help us is by purchasing a sweater, and/or telling your friends about us. We are so thankful for our customers thus far, and for your kindness in sharing about us with your own communities.
Connecting mothers with nature, slowing down, being present with ourselves, our little ones and the natural world around us is why we’re here. And, we suspect it’s why you’re here too.
If you have any questions at all, don’t hesitate to contact me using the form on the website.
Thank you for taking the time to read this, and for your understanding.
To read Our Pricing Manifesto, click here.