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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

Did she take the piss deliberately or am I being U?

151 replies

Oopsydaisyy · 14/07/2019 23:33

Got my first customer to do ironing for as I'm venturing in an ironing business. I advertised per black bin bag for £15, 4/5th full, not to the brim just to undercut a few companies. She gave me a huge sack that wasn't even a black bin bag and it has 50 items in it, very creased tops and long thick dresses and shirts as it has all literally been twisted and bunged in. So I worked all day for 30pence per item! I am a bit miffed. Can anyone tell me what to do in future to make a profit at least? What are you willing to pay? If you iron or have an Iron Lady, how much do you charge/they charge? I feel so silly and have shot myself in the bloody foot

OP posts:

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BarrenFieldofFucks · 14/07/2019 23:35

Well, sounds like you needed to clarify with her before you started tbh.

clpsmum · 14/07/2019 23:35

Barge lee item I think you'd be better. People will be willing to pay I'm just not sure what sorry

ChequersDog · 14/07/2019 23:36

Did you agree the price with her? If not then say there were several black bin bags worth of clothes and charge accordingly. Maybe you could put a maximum on the number of items in the bag.

SilverySurfer · 14/07/2019 23:37

Can you charge per item or by weight rather than for a bagful which could be almost anything? I think she was taking the piss and wouldn't do her ironing again unless as I suggested.

Merryoldgoat · 14/07/2019 23:38

Mine charges by item, but, as an estimate a washing basket full costs £20 - sort of mounded and loosely packed, not piled high.

Secretlifeofme · 14/07/2019 23:38

I would charge by weight or by number of items, because you are almost inviting people to cram loads into the bag if you do it that way.

Stompythedinosaur · 14/07/2019 23:39

I think you need to price more clearly. It's pretty normal for people to try and get as much as they can for their money.

Hellosunshine30 · 14/07/2019 23:39

Sounds like she was chancing her luck with you.

Original poster

Oopsydaisyy · 14/07/2019 23:41

I will charge per item this time. I doubt she'd come back again after I tell her I'm changing the prices as it is too much to iron for very little money. I'm just to blame as well I suppose but I would at least think about the other person and how much ironing and time it would take for them to do. Wasted my entire Sunday for £15

OP posts:

pigsDOfly · 14/07/2019 23:41

Is it usual to charge by the bin bag for ironing? Seems way too open to abuse/interpretation to me. Surely it would be better to charge per item.

Yes, I imagine she was taking the piss deliberately.

Jemima232 · 14/07/2019 23:42

Well that will hopefully be your worst customer ever.

She was a CF and no mistake. Good luck with your new enterprise and maybe charge per item?

Original poster

Oopsydaisyy · 14/07/2019 23:46

Is 40p reasonable? Or should I go a little higher? I am completely clueless but I do a grand job and I work hard to make sure it is up to standard. I do feel cheated slightly but this will be considered as a learning curve

OP posts:

BentBaastard · 14/07/2019 23:48

I pay £2 per shirt to be washed and ironed if that’s helpful at all.

Flyingkites123 · 14/07/2019 23:49

Could you charge per hour? Or have a container (like the airport ones where you check to see if your luggage will fit in the cabin) and charge customers say £20 per container's worth.

Jimdandy · 14/07/2019 23:49

I pay 50p for jeans, tops and jumper type items and a £1 for maxi dresses/going out dresses.

I’d charge per item if I were you

FusionChefGeoff · 14/07/2019 23:51

How quickly can you iron?? I'd want to work out an average ratio that gets me NMW per hour really. Can you time yourself in the next basket / load then work out what that would give you as a per item based on nmw rates.

Littleblurry · 14/07/2019 23:54

What is an item though? Shirt? Dress? Sock?

Can't you charge by the hour?

Original poster

Oopsydaisyy · 14/07/2019 23:56

@FusionChefGeoff I can iron quickly as I have done it for years but the niggling problem I had with this is she gave me very creased up tops so it took me a lot longer to iron out so I would say for what I charged and how much I had to iron, worked out about five pound an hour which is a lot less than NMW. Will never do it like this again. Per item is the way to go for sure.

OP posts:

BoronationStreet · 15/07/2019 00:00

What the whaaaaaat? I absolutely HATE ironing and I would've paid you £15 to iron my 3 trousers and 5 tops that I had to iron earlier. 30 pence per item is ridiculous.

BoronationStreet · 15/07/2019 00:01

Also I'm in the Midlands and things tend to be cheaper here.

Davros · 15/07/2019 00:03

I used to pay by the hour which worked well. You could buy some bags from Poundland or somewhere, charge for the bag which becomes theirs

BoronationStreet · 15/07/2019 00:03

Where are you OP? I'll hire you and pay you £15 per hour...because that seems fair, as it took me an hour including breaks and watching TV.

lyralalala · 15/07/2019 00:04

You need to at least specify the size of bag. The woman that does mine does per bag, but she has a size limit (can’t remember off the top of my head) and she brings the bag(s) with her when she collects. So if people have bigger bag she instantly can say it needs split into two.

Bookworm4 · 15/07/2019 00:05

Here’s a price list of one I’ve used

Did she take the piss deliberately or am I being U?

Bookworm4 · 15/07/2019 00:06

Again!

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