Buying Fleece - Twin Willows Farm

Many people buy fleeces over the Internet from fiber shops and ‘off the farm’ from shepherds. I have a vested interest in this topic since I do sell most of my fleeces this way. Everyone who has ever bought anything sight unseen knows that there is a certain amount of risk involved, but there are ways to decrease the risk. So let’s go over some points for buyers out there to be aware of.

Reputation is everything. If you subscribe to one of the many fiber arts e-mail lists you have already heard about some of the venders out there in cyberspace. You’ve probably heard both good and not-so-good. It’s difficult to accept anyone’s point of view from an e-mail. Here’s a couple of ways to sort through the muddle.

If you see a person consistently posting articles running down other people or businesses, you start to notice that it’s a pattern and can disregard that person’s opinion. The same goes for people who are constantly cranky and write complaining or whining e-mails in general. These are not people you want to consider an opinion from if you want to make informed choices. For myself, I also filter these people into the trash folder once I’ve made this decision. Life’s too short to spend reading e-junk.

If you see several happy customers comment on fleeces purchased from a vendor, jot down that vendor’s name and keep it in a file somewhere, or cut and paste those e-mails into a folder for future reference. Look for patterns to see if several people have given good comments about the same vendor. Do the same for people who post unfavorable comments about vendors or their fleece, but do take into account the person posting and whether or not he/she belongs to the group listed above.

Visit the web pages of vendors and look for a comments page. Any vender can post any comment true or imagined, but there should be a name with the quote and you may recognize some from the e-mail lists. Don’t be afraid to ask a vender for references, past customers who you may contact. Honest venders won’t mind providing these, either by providing you the e-mail addresses, or by asking the reference to contact you directly.

I would not recommend asking for opinions on the e-mail lists. That just invites negative opinions. For some reason, people are much more motivated to post negative comments than positive comments via the electronic realm and the data you collected would most likely be skewed that way.

Asking for samples is a thing of the past. I’m not sure just when it changed, but as the Internet advanced, old fashioned mailings have become almost obsolete. Fleeces sell so fast on the Internet that mailing out samples only slows down the process and many vendors no longer offer this service. For example, if I take the time to mail a sample to Suzy Spinner in Colorado, it will take that sample at least 4 days to arrive. In those 4 days, I may have another 4 offers to buy the same fleece without sending a sample. As a vendor, it doesn’t make sense for me to turn away 4 customers who are willing to buy to wait for 1 customer who ‘may’ buy. It’s not that I am against sending samples because of postage costs or bother, it’s just a matter of good business practices and satisfying customers who know what they want when they want it.

Photos are the new samples. Most vendors have photos of their fleeces available for viewing. The best way to evaluate from a photo is to have the fleece pictured with a ruler. This allows the buyer to observe an approximate crimp per inch and length of staple. Unfortunately, there is no way to truly show the feel of the fleece from a photograph. Knowing the breeds of sheep and knowing the range of wool type within that breed is a huge help to the buyer. Research in this area will help the buyer make informed choices.

Always ask for insured mailings. Whether the vendor you’re purchasing from uses UPS or USPS or FedEx, be sure to ask for and pay the extra cost to have your fleece insured. With the USPS, insurance for up to $50 costs only $1.30. Things do happen and a lost box, a damaged box where the address cannot be read, or a damaged box where the fleece itself is harmed can make an otherwise happy purchase turn into a disaster.

Stick with a good thing. Spinners tend to have favorite types of fleece. When you find a vendor who has what you like, you can avoid all the guesswork by going back to that source for your fleeces in the future. At least 75% of my fleeces sell to repeat customers. That makes me happy and obviously pleases them as well. Don’t think of it as ‘being in a rut’, but rather think of it as ‘buying a sure thing’!

Twin Willows Farm - Buying Fleece from Internet Vendors