Poor man's rowmark / DIY rowmark

[John Lifer]

I expect this is who he is talking about.

http://www.southeastplastics.com/

A couple of minutes with a search function. And there is a link for getting catalog. Prices seem to be pretty cheap, unless you get good discount on Romark.

[Joe Pelonio]

I really only use Rowmark for one customer now, for name badges. Not counting what I charge for the magnetic and labor, the return on a 12x24" sheet is about $400. For a hobbyist doin fun things around the home, and for friends and relatives, I don't see a problem with DIY material, since it doesn't require the same durability expected by commercial customers. Colored acrylic is not that much cheaper than Rowmark, but you have more color choices with paint.

[Kev Williams]

I pay $17 for a quarter sheet of Rowmark. 1x3" is a very common size, for customers, friends, foes, whoever. At 96 per sheet, cost is 17.8 cents each. Cheap...

Now, if you start using it for flooring...

[Mike Null]

I use a lot of grained laminate so I have some waste. The items I cut have rounded corners so, a little more waste. Even with that I get 77 pieces to a quarter sheet. Adding magnets, my cost per piece is 51 cents. My income per quarter sheet is $462. I buy from Johnson Plastics because their selection and inventory is broader than anybody else I've found. That is important because my customers want the same look on their product every time they order.

They have 9 locations around the country which improves response time and reduces shipping costs versus a supplier with just one location.

[Brian Leavitt]

Yes, Southeast is who I use. I do buy Rowmark occasionally, when I need a color I can't get from Southeast. I do a lot of plastic so the savings add up - for me at least. Plus I like supporting small business.

[Henri Sallinen]

It's undestandable if you are a hobbyist, but as a company, you just have to price things right. No material is expensive if you can yeld the right ammount of money out off it. We use plywood that's priced 40 euros per square meter when we could get the same thickness material for about under 10€/square. The material we buy works better for us and is locally made in our country. Also it's a bit better quality and more laser friendly. Our customers have to understand why our material is more expensive and usually they are willing to pay enough for it to be a reasonable material to stock/use.