Chapter 14. Order a production run

As I type this sentence, I have today taken delivery of the first batch of manufactured product, two full pallets of it, sitting in boxes in my garage.

I have no anxiety today around the fit and finish of the parts. Just in case, though, my next objective was to field-test my product with customers. I knew I could install and take advantage of my own product, but what challenge is a busy mother-of-four in Florida going to have installing it? The only way to find out is to try to sell some. I ordered $10,000 worth of the product. It costs more when you do small batches and when your cavity count is low, so I ended up paying probably three or four times more than I hope to pay to manufacture the same amount several years from now. The objective at this early stage is not to maximize profit, but rather, to test the product at the next level: The Customer.

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Cost of this stage: $10,000. Costs so far: $76,800