Makers2MakersWhen to outsource custom orders (and what to keep)
Custom orders are slower than they look: gathering details, approving files, making the item and shipping it. Many sellers reach a point where orders are coming in faster than they can make them. This guide covers how to tell, what to keep, and how to test outsourcing safely.
Signs it may be time
- You are turning down or delaying orders because you cannot make them in time.
- You spend more hours producing than selling, designing or answering customers.
- A product sells well but eats your whole week.
- You want to offer something your own equipment cannot make.
What to keep in your own hands
- Your listings, brand and customer service.
- Final approval of design files before production starts.
- A few products you enjoy making, if you want to keep some production.
The risks to plan for
- Quality: a maker’s work may differ from yours. Test first.
- Timing: set the maker’s turnaround against what your customers expect.
- Platform rules: on Etsy, outside makers must be disclosed as production partners.
- Margins: the maker’s price and fees come out of what the customer pays. Do the math before you assign orders.
Test with one order
Pick one product and one maker. On Makers2Makers a sample order can go straight to you, so you can see the result before a real customer’s order depends on it. There is no contract and no minimum.
How handing an order to a maker works on Makers2Makers
- Connect your store once (Shopify, Etsy, WooCommerce, Wix, Square, eBay, Amazon, TikTok Shop, BigCommerce, Squarespace, Walmart or Magento). Orders come in on their own.
- Assign an order to a maker you already know, or open it to bids and compare price, shipping and past ratings.
- Files and personalization details travel with the order, and you can approve a file before production starts.
- The maker makes it and ships it. You buy the shipping label in the app at live carrier rates.
- Makers are paid every Friday once the carrier has scanned the package.
What it costs
Joining is free for sellers and makers, and there is no subscription. When an order is routed to a maker, the seller pays 5% + $0.30 on top of the maker’s price and the maker pays 5% + $0.30 from their payout. Nothing is charged until an order is made. Sellers pay for the shipping label.
Common questions
How do I pick a maker?
Assign orders to a maker you know, or open an order to bids and compare price, shipping and past ratings.
Who pays for shipping?
Sellers pay for the label. Labels are bought in the app at live carrier rates. Makers never pay for shipping.
Joining is free, with no subscription and no minimum. You pay 5% + $0.30 per order, and so does the maker.
Get started freeRelated
Makers2Makers is a competing option, so read this as one point of view. Descriptions of other companies are general, and their products and terms change, so check each company’s current details before you decide.