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I have a full time job that allows me to only work 14 to 15 days a month and I have the rest of the month off. I have been dabbling in taxidermy for about 10 years, mainly doing ducks and geese for myself. Probably close to 30 birds under my belt. I have gotten pretty good, not a professional by any means. The area i live in is covered up with hunters and alot them are my friends and coworkers. I love taxidermy and I am constantly reading and watching videos and I have been slowly ordering tools and paints and manuals and DVDs and trying to learn as much as possible. I am thinking about getting my license and starting up a business from my home garage and taking full advantage of the tax breaks while I continue to learn more about whitetails and small mammals and eventually turkeys and polishing my waterfowl skills. I am confident that I can get more than enough work from people I know (by more than enough I mean 20 to 30 animals, nothing like some of you do) because I tell them up front it may turn out great and it may not. I would offer this service at a discounted price just for the fact that it wouldn’t be top quality work at this time because of my lack of experience. I know some people may get upset by me offering this but the people I would be working for would not take these animals to get mounted if it wasn’t by me. By this I mean they wouldn’t have the money for a $275-$350 duck or a $400 to $550 deer or it may not be quite big enough to pay that for a mount. So I would do it for a little cheaper and get some more experience and they would get a mount that they otherwise wouldn’t have done. Keep in mind I have no intentions of becoming a full time taxidermist, but I would love to have a nice side business and in due time offer top quality mounts while doing something I love and taking advantage of the great tax benefits of running a small business from home. Also keep in mind that I have spent alot of money out of pocket over the years just playing around and I intend to keep doing so even if this whole plan falls through. Like I said I really enjoy doing taxidermy work. Kindof obsessed with it really. I just really would like to learn more and do something I love, but I would like to have alittle break come tax time while I am learning. Any advice or words of wisdom or words of anger or any response is appreciated.
September 26, 2011
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I would not recommend charging a lower price until your work gets better. I think you are just digging yourself into a hole you can’t get out of.
If you have a good full time job already, charge a higher price for your work and extend the turnaround time so you can put the time you need into each piece.
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aaron stehling wrote: i would not recommend charging a lower price until your work gets better. I think you are just digging yourself into a hole you can’t get out of.
If you have a good full time job already, charge a higher price for your work and extend the turnaround time so you can put the time you need into each piece.
x2………dc
tax benefits? tax break? if your current employer comes up and cuts your pay what are you going to say? does the meat market cut prices because you can’t pay 9 dollars a lb. ? no , take pride in your work and yourself. that alone will bring you more work than you can do as a part time taxidermist. if you set your prices low, everyone will swamp you with work and quality will go the way of your low price. out the door! get half down on all your work just to cover you materials. let people pay a little each week. when the mount is finished the balance is not out of reach. i have not had any problems with getting half down nor do i have any problems with people not picking up mounts. they know my price is fair. they know my work is good. I’m sorry if this sounds like a angry old mule skinner i just need to vent when someone talks about LOW PRICES. pick up a supply catalog and check out all the low prices on deer forms. i through b@#%#ing.
A good way to learn is to attend any taxidermy competitions you can. They offer seminars which are well worth the money. The videos will help as well. You might want to take a bird-mounting seminars/classes as well. Should you go to a show, go ahead and submit your work for judging. Start out in the Novice or Beginner division. Don’t worry about winning ribbons, enter because you will get the chance to let a judge go over your work and tell you your strong and weak points. Also, many times there are people at shows (members of your State taxidermy association, for example) who will be glad to give you some pointers.
Best of luck! =)
October 14, 2011
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Pretty much what Vicki said. Good advice given.
Chief Editor of The Taxidermy Journal~TTN News Contributor
December 1, 2021
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March 22, 2022
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Oh, speaking of trading crypto, I’ve heard that it’s pretty profitable. Well, I’m thinking about joining this field one day, but I don’t think I’m skilled enough. Right now, I’m trading foreign currency on http://usforexbrokers.com/reviews/ig/, and even though it’s a great source of additional income for me, I believe that trading foreign currency is quite interesting.
