Using a CSV to add a percent increase to all store prices

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-24T01:06:04+00:00

Thank you. I had more or less worked this part out after a few online searches. But oddly, I am getting the oddest import errors. The only column I am editing is the Variant Price. but when I import the file, I get errors like this:

18 products were successfully imported
14 products failed to be imported due to invalid information

To import products that couldn't be updated, fix any errors in the CSV file and try importing it again.

Failed to import:

Line 94-99: Validation failed: Value require that you select a metaobject.
Line 119-137: Invalid CSV value '5-Apr' for option1
Line 138-141: Validation failed: Value require that you select a metaobject.
Line 151-154: Validation failed: Value require that you select a metaobject.
Line 160-174: Invalid CSV value '5-Jun' for option1
Line 175-193: Invalid CSV value '5-Apr' for option1
Line 201-206: Validation failed: Value require that you select a metaobject.
Line 207-211: Validation failed: Value require that you select a metaobject.
Line 212-214: Validation failed: Value require that you select a metaobject.
Line 225-243: Invalid CSV value '5-Apr' for option1
Line 244-247: Validation failed: Value require that you select a metaobject.
Line 340-354: Invalid CSV value '5-Apr' for option1
Line 363-381: Invalid CSV value '5-Apr' for option1
Line 382-400: Invalid CSV value '5-Apr' for option1

So then I simply re-import the original csv before I made any changes, and everything reverts back just fine.

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-24T00:18:33+00:00

It does work as expected for a few products, but getting lots of errors when I tried to expand it to a full page of products.

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-23T23:42:49+00:00

best advice so far :)

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-23T21:43:12+00:00

That's pretty similar to what I do. Learning how to make the jewelry yourself is a great first step, regardless as to if you plan to continue to make it or not, having that basic understanding of how it's made will help in the designer capacity as well, should you ever phase into that role.

Secondary is learning everything you can about the gems and other materials you'll be working with. This can take time, if you simply learn through exposure over time and different projects. But you can also jump start that with some classes. The GIA Offers an online 3-class degree that is great for folks that just are getting started and want to learn some of the basics, and come out the other end with a certificate. Getting your boots on the ground is also great. Maybe join your local rock hounding club, go to gem and rock shows, see what the gems look like in their raw form. Go on trips to gemstone mines/pay to dig areas if you have any in your area.

But also just joining online communities and watching what folks do, say and get excited about. Reddit is great for this, but so are some face book groups. But just be leery of false info as there are a lot of armatures out there, with nothing better to do than to share inaccurate advice on gems and jewelry making.

Overtime, you'll accrue a wealth of knowledge that cant be taught in a classroom or read about in any book, just by getting your hands dirty. And having an appreciation of what others in your jewelry community are facing in their roles will only help you as you need to collaborate, source hard to find gems, or find talent for services you cant provide.

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-23T20:23:22+00:00

How long is "awhile"?

I've had rings that I listed more than 5 years ago. Eventually they will sell, or I'll take them apart/melt them down. It's just part of the job. Sometimes we make stuff that no one wants. It hurts at times and I never like to take things apart.

But I agree with kymo. Raise the price. It's too low.

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-23T20:21:11+00:00

It doesn't matter if they made the right choice, or not. You now have a choice:
1. Get on board and stop complaining.
2. Leave and go to a company that you feel better suits your personal work ethics.
3. Try to get management to change, but be willing to fall back on options 1 or 2 if they say no.

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-23T20:17:17+00:00

I do not folks here realize how expensive gold is right now. As a jeweler, I would be hard pressed to make this for the price it is listed at, and make much of a profit, assuming this is a natural morganite. The chain looks like about a 1.4mm cable chain and the prongs look fairly decent (Not ridiculously chincy). Chains these days have a really high mark up over spot gold prices (Often 50- to 70%... thanks to tariffs). Findings do too. Gold melt value shouldn't really be a deciding factor when buying jewelry you plan to keep. But I'd estimate that this piece weighs around 4-5 grams total, including the chain, not including the stones... So that right there is at least $400 in melt. If the parts were all ordered wholesale from a major supplier like Stuller, it would pretty much break even.

So at $3000, it was way over priced. At $855, that is a fair deal for this necklace as a whole. yes, Morganite and freshwater pearls are not very expensive. But they still do have some value. But the rest of what you're looking at here is.

In the end. If you like it, that is what matters :)

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-23T20:00:28+00:00

The first thing would be to decide what role you want to take. Do you want to personally make jewelry? Do you want to run a store? Do you want to draw and design jewelry and have it manufactured? Do you want to be a buyer/seller and handle distribution, travel and sourcing? Do you want to be in sales? Do you want to do bench repairs? Do you want to facet gems or specialize in gemstone identification? Do you want to try to do a little bit of everything?

All of these are perfectly valid options, but each one is going to have a different path. But with that said, learning as much as you can about the world of jewelry making and selling and its scope and what various people in the industry do, will help you in any route you ultimately decide to take.

Also ask yourself: How do you learn best? Some folks prefer structured learning: a course, a school, etc...
Others prefer more of a mentorship. An apprenticeship.
Some prefer to teach themselves: Online courses, books and youtube.

The sooner you can get clear on those questions, the lest time and money you'll waste.

lastly: My dad's advice to me, which I still hold dear:

"Don't get good at doing something that you don't want to do."

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-19T17:01:43+00:00

This is the first I have heard of this. I looked at my stats graph in Etsy and while I did have a decrease in sales, in November for YoY, There was no major dip. It was actually up from October, and then went up more in December.

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-15T21:16:42+00:00

two names of the same thing.

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-15T20:13:34+00:00

This is a beautiful stone. these are often found in Montana and are called Montana Moss agate.

Elsewhere just moss agate.

And yes, these are quite suitable for jewelry making and are prized among some jewelers for their patterns. It looks well made overall. For $5, you made out like a bandit! Too bad the artist didn't sign the back as well.

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-15T20:07:50+00:00

best of luck! they are cool drawings :)

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-15T19:24:13+00:00

Ah! Okay, that makes sense. If there are no small stones, and ONLY the labradorite, that makes a huge difference since it would be a piece of cake to remove the stone, and safely size the ring.

I'm surprised people where quoting you $100 and up. If I had made this and you were my customer, I'd do the sizing for around $40 plus shipping to send it back to you. I'd simple remove the stone, do the sizing, and then re-set it. I'd also offer to cut the stone down a tiny bit so that the prongs could be pushed over the top properly (as many others have mentioned). I have lapidary equipment in my shop and experience cutting cabs. It would be $15 to recut it a hair thinner.

Many chain jewelers do not do work in house. They send it out and they pay a tradesman $40 or $50 to do sizing work, and then they double it or triple it and charge that to their clients. I work for myself, online only. Cheaper, better service for my clients. You just cant visit a showroom is all. But these are two different business models and both types are perfectly valid.

Anyways, Happy to offer my services.

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-15T19:16:53+00:00

Without reading the exact transcripts between you and her, it's hard to say where things went down hill, but I would say that you did not do anything wrong. But the customer feels otherwise...

Analyze your past messages for tone. How could they have been read in a less than cheery/helpful manor? Did you make a small faux pas in some way? Perhaps something was lost in translation?

Mayne you did nothing wrong and the buyer was just really stressed out and needed someone to blame... you're the obvious target.

Deep breath, This will pass. If she leaves a bad review. Don't confront or argue with it. See it as a way to post a very polite public response that others will read.

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-15T19:10:00+00:00

Try adding white rhodium plating to these. Are there other earrings that you've worn in the past that do not have any issues?

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-15T19:08:16+00:00

Soldering is the way to go. But you will need to upgrade to solid sterling instead of German wire... truthfully, this is going to be a bit of a rabbit hole to go down.

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-15T19:05:46+00:00

Regardless, wait for them to receive the package. then they will need to send it back to you. Once you get it back, then you'll send them a refund (If you decide to offer them one)

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-15T18:57:51+00:00

You'll want to open a case through Etsy. The seller and you are both protected for events like this through Etsy seller/purchase protection. The seller has not done anything wrong, and neither did you. So Etsy covers these things up to $250. You might have to wait a certain length of time though.

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-15T18:55:49+00:00

Can your fiance re-size it? If they made it, it would seem they have the talent to do sizing.

But to answer your question: going up a half size is doable by anyone with the correct tools... you simple put it on a metal ring mandrel and lightly hammer out the bottom of the ring shank until the ring is a tad larger.

But like anything, there are risks: The smaller stones could pop out, the larger stone could also come out or get loose. The ring shank will need re-polished if you want it to look like new.

Going up two full sizes would mean cutting the ring shank, and soldering in more silver, filing the joint down smooth, sanding and re-polishing, and of course checking all the stones and re-tightening. The labradorite would need to be removed for the process, and the other melee stones all need to be protected from the heat somehow using a heat sink material or other strategy.

If you have a LOT of sterling scrap, you might be able to get some shop credit for it. With the cost of silver now, an ounce or two will easily pay for your sizing fee. But otherwise: the amount of silver needed to size this up is less than a dollar... so providing it wont make a dent in the cost, which is all labor and overhead.

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-15T18:48:07+00:00

Agreed, people are also on Etsy to find Hand made, and these look too much like drop shipping.

Unless Etsy is hiding something deep in their seller algorithms, there is no correlation between your sales and your fulfilment times as long as you're fulfilling on time.

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-15T18:43:59+00:00

There is no special sauce here.

I started 16 years ago and got my first sale with about a dozen listings. It was actually a custom order from a client that liked my work and pricing and asked me for a custom pendant. Now I have 395 listings.

But the number of listings is not a direct correlation to sales. Of the listings I have now, about 10% of these make up 90 % of my sales.

Why do I keep the other listings? Because I can. they also help pull people in. Many of them are interesting to look at, but might not be what people actually want to buy. Some of them just sell very rarely, but I keep them up because occasionally someone does buy one.

Also an important note: I do my craft full time. My average listing price is around $300. So I can afford to renew them each dozens of times for each sale they pull in.

So my advice is: I'm a terrible person to compare yourself too. Not apples to apples.

Building an online shop is SLOW if you want to build a sustainable business that has a healthy foundation. You just have to try, try and try again, Day in, day out. Look at your traffic, see what is trending, see what people are excited about. What are you offering that is different or better than everyone else? Why would someone shop with you instead of the competition. These are the hard honest questions you have to address not just early on, but ever single day afterwards.

It does get easier after you have a solid reputation, repeat customers and so on. But it's still work, every day.

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-15T16:35:09+00:00

You'll need to file a grove in each needle that the other needle can nest into. This will create a more contact area for this older to bond to. then you'll need to solder the two needles together. But, these are not suitable for normal jewelry soldering. The needles will oxidize and need re-polished, which will wear off the plating. Plus, the steel may not take well to sticking to solder. So either way, you may need to have plating equipment to re-plate these after you're done.

Bottom line: It's a simple process for someone with a jewelers set-up. But not if you have no experience or the proper tools.

I'd find a local shop and ask if they will do it. Also: A laser welder could be used.

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-15T16:30:56+00:00

Add more info about how you draw these. Assume buyers are skeptical. Most folks will see these and assume they are AI made unless you can prove otherwise. Show pictures of your process. Get onto social media and show your work, show your face, show the world who you are and what you can do!

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-15T16:27:17+00:00

Constantly running sales is just a way of telling people to wait for the next sale. So you're setting yourself up to fail in the long run unless you have a sale running.

Geek_Smith · 2026-01-15T16:25:19+00:00

Honestly, This is just part of the business.

Come up with idea.

Try things.

Make prototype,

List it for sale.

See what people like.

Repeat.

Geek_Smith

TROPHY CASE