Our dynamic DIY duo, John and Erin, take stock and look toward the future of their intrepid little company. -- Gareth

Magnolia Atomworks, part 4: The aftermath, lessons learned, and the future By John Edgar Park and Erin Kelly-Park

Laser cutting the Phi symbol on the original Mystery Box. Phi is the golden ratio, which are the box's dimensions.

The greatest lesson we learned through this whole process is that everything costs money: you can't add a single item, feature, idea, person, or process without it digging into your bottom line. If you want to make the most money, you've got to do everything yourself. We realized early on that, in our case, we wanted to make a little money on the side, not burn out trying to do everything ourselves. We had minimal expenses in starting our business, so if we can recoup the cost of the laser cutter we bought, within a few years, we'll be pretty happy.

Prototype of a laser-cut absinthe spoon. It works! And, it may find its way into the Makers Market at some point.

Sales of the Mystery Box have been good. The Maker Shed sold out before Christmas, and we just finished fulfilling their first re-order. This is great, because we didn't have to do any additional work, just place a re-order with our cutter. Renewed sales are the dream for this sort of business, because it leaves us free to design new things.

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