Just Opened Up Shop -- Knot Tied Down -- Would Love Feedback!

[Alex1]

I think you have some nice looking ties. The background is a little annoying, especially in close proximity to the merchandise pictures though.

Is the seersucker tie just a striped tie, or is there some actual pucker to the fabric? You might want a close up shot in any case.

I know this is not going to be popular with the Dappered audience, but I think you should raise your prices. With such a low price, I'm very skeptical about quality. Unfortunately, there is nothing on your site that addresses the quality of your ties. That's a huge red flag to me. If you do good work, then why not talk about it? Where are they made? What kind of lining do you use? How are they folded? There's no way I would buy any of your ties until I see lots of positive reviews. The fact that I have to pay for return shipping makes me even more skeptical.

I don't want to discourage you, but you might consider offering more information about your products to assure people that your ties won't fall apart after one or two wears. When a business doesn't volunteer information, then I assume the worst. For example, shoes that are made from "leather" are almost always corrected grain. If you use full grain leather, then you should say so. Some well established businesses can get away with not saying this because that information is easy to find elsewhere. Low cost doesn't equal value. Value is exceptional quality for the price level. I just need some assurance that you put as much effort into constructing your ties as you do in selecting them.

[Spex]

I know this is not going to be popular with the Dappered audience, but I think you should raise your prices. With such a low price, I'm very skeptical about quality. Unfortunately, there is nothing on your site that addresses the quality of your ties. That's a huge red flag to me. If you do good work, then why not talk about it? Where are they made? What kind of lining do you use? How are they folded? There's no way I would buy any of your ties until I see lots of positive reviews. The fact that I have to pay for return shipping makes me even more skeptical.

I don't want to discourage you, but you might consider offering more information about your products to assure people that your ties won't fall apart after one or two wears. When a business doesn't volunteer information, then I assume the worst. For example, shoes that are made from "leather" are almost always corrected grain. If you use full grain leather, then you should say so. Some well established businesses can get away with not saying this because that information is easy to find elsewhere. Low cost doesn't equal value. Value is exceptional quality for the price level. I just need some assurance that you put as much effort into constructing your ties as you do in selecting them.

I don't think there would be much to boast about in terms of quality of construction and materials if a tie can be sold for $12.

[Alex1]

I don't think there would be much to boast about in terms of quality of construction and materials if a tie can be sold for $12.

I have to agree with you. If I bought a tie for $12 and it fell apart, draped poorly, or didn't tie a very nice knot, then I might complain, but there wouldn't be much sympathy. I bought a silk Lands End tie for about $25 IIRC and some of the threads have come undone after only a couple of wears. So, I know that cheap ties can be poor investments in the long term (as measured by cost per wear). My Lands End silk knitted tie is actually pretty nice, but it cost considerably more.

I just need enough objective product information to decide how these ties compare to any tie at the next price level (e.g., Tie Bar). Otherwise, Tie Bar is the absolute cheapest that I am willing to pay for a new tie. There are lots of cheap ties made in China and sold on Ebay. You have to have some quick way to filter out all the crap that is being sold out there, and the only way I know how to do it (without any other info) is to ignore any tie being sold for less than $20, with maybe used ties being the exception.

[LosRockets]

I just need enough objective product information to decide how these ties compare to any tie at the next price level (e.g., Tie Bar).

Right but most people searching for cheap ties in this price range on Google don't. Does it look like a tie? Is it not pre-tied? Is it cheap? Flashy? <$20? Buy.

[BillN]

Hi guys,

We'd love to get your thoughts on our recently opened tie shop: www.knottieddown.com. Positive or negative we'd love to hear it.

The site is well laid out and easy to navigate.

The 2 inch lapel pins seem WAY too large for most people (the 1.5 inch are better, but still pushing it for me).

The tie-bars look like novelty items; I can't see anyone wearing them seriously or in a work environment.

As a non-everyday tie wearer, who prefers slimmer ties, I like the width, but don't have much use for or need of cotton ties; you mention Monday-Friday ties, and these all strike me as Friday or casual wedding ties, not something I'd wear for normal work day or more formal events. The knots in the photos look sloppy. How a tie knots up is one of its selling points, and these knots don't sell the tie.

At your price point, I'm a solid target, I don't normally spend money on ties because I wear them so infrequently, but that doesn't mean I want all my ties to be "fun." I like the patterns on the bow ties much more than the regular ties, but I'm not s big bow tie guy.

How are the ties constructed? I assume the worst without being told when they're $12 each.

The pocket squares are all a bit busy for me; I agree with the idea of color edged white squares being something to look at.

Not a personal fan of the English Laundry socks, but I did see them at Nordstrom Rack recently for more money than you're charging.

Shipping rates seem fair.

[krad54]

So just looking through things quickly, I had a few things to note:
1. First off, congrats on starting the site!
2. While a lot of people here are fans of the wider ties, I'd say, for me at least, 2.75" is a perfect width. I'm taller, and have narrower shoulders so I prefer narrower ties that don't get into the absurdly slim territory.
3. As some suggested, it would be a good idea to throw some more staples into the necktie category.
4. As far as bowties go, I noticed that there aren't any measurements for width there, so I'd throw that up there. Also, it would be cool to see some cotton bow ties or diamond tips.

I'm not sure what type of crowd you're trying to target right now, but it would probably be easier to stock ties if you had a specific age group or career-type in mind.

Krad

[Knot Tied Down]

Hey fellas,

Sorry for the late response(s), it's been a hectic night last night (wedding) and day today (golf and house chores..ha) but I'm back.

LosRockets - thanks for the comments. We'll be getting our silk stock and silk knitted stock this week. Like I said earlier, they couldn't arrive in time for our soft opening. They'll come in lower than your price range, but they are 100% silk, handmade. As for the knots, I completely agree, but I took all the photos myself and that was a whole weekend affair so it was daunting trying to get each knot perfect. Noted for the future though -- thanks again and I sent you a PM with a code .

fencedwall - yes, we'll be getting more traditional silver tie bars (hopefully this week as well). I was leery about colored tie bars as well at one time, but they actually look great as a subtle accent for more casual occasions. The frost white is great for this. As for the "A Tie Shop" we wanted to make sure people knew immediately what we sold especially since Knot Tied Down is a play on words that doesn't indicate that we sell neckwear straightaway. Anyway, I really appreciate your comments and I PM'd you with a code as well, thanks!

[Knot Tied Down]

Will you be bringing in regular white pocket squares, preferably with colored edges? I wouldn't mind picking up white pocket squares with the following colored edges: burgundy, grey, forest green, black (I already have a navy one, but you should offer that as well).

Also navy ties with polka dots in a variety of colors (light blue, white, grey, pink, etc) would be something I'd also be interested in.

For tie bars, matte tie bars and a tie bar in silver. Like the previous poster, they're a bit too bright for my tastes. Almost clownish.

Hi devastitis,

Pocket squares are one area that we need to increase our inventory. Our focus has been ties to get an understanding of our clients' preferences, but thanks for letting us know your tastes, we'll keep it in mind for the future. PM with a code will be sent in a moment, thanks!

[Knot Tied Down]

I completely agree with those that immediately thought "The Tie Bar", as the ties also remind me of those. It seems that you are competing on price. With respect to the idea of offering a smaller selection to make shopping quicker, in the Tie Bar's defense, in 2 clicks you can display all of their solid blue ties. Two more clicks and you have the width of your choice and the material.

All in all, it's good to have more competition in the market place. However, for me personally, I've moved away from both ties that are less than 3" wide, as well as ties that are on the lower-end. I also have little use for cotton ties. Good luck to your business and I wish you all the best.

Hi Spex,

Thanks for the comments. Yes, size is one of our research points right now. We want to carry different sizes in the future, but 2.75" is kind of our starting off point. I'm sending you a PM with a code now, thanks again!

[Knot Tied Down]

I think you have some nice looking ties. The background is a little annoying, especially in close proximity to the merchandise pictures though.

Is the seersucker tie just a striped tie, or is there some actual pucker to the fabric? You might want a close up shot in any case.

I know this is not going to be popular with the Dappered audience, but I think you should raise your prices. With such a low price, I'm very skeptical about quality. Unfortunately, there is nothing on your site that addresses the quality of your ties. That's a huge red flag to me. If you do good work, then why not talk about it? Where are they made? What kind of lining do you use? How are they folded? There's no way I would buy any of your ties until I see lots of positive reviews. The fact that I have to pay for return shipping makes me even more skeptical.

I don't want to discourage you, but you might consider offering more information about your products to assure people that your ties won't fall apart after one or two wears. When a business doesn't volunteer information, then I assume the worst. For example, shoes that are made from "leather" are almost always corrected grain. If you use full grain leather, then you should say so. Some well established businesses can get away with not saying this because that information is easy to find elsewhere. Low cost doesn't equal value. Value is exceptional quality for the price level. I just need some assurance that you put as much effort into constructing your ties as you do in selecting them.

Hi Alex1,

Thanks for the review. Price is important to us because we want to keep it at a point that makes it affordable to our target audience. But a lower price does not necessarily mean worse quality than what you're used to. Of course these aren't seven fold of the heaviest silk weight. But in our case, because our overhead is low(er), we're passing savings on to our customers. Aside from that, I completely agree with the more objective info comment, and that will be forthcoming. Anyway, sending you a PM in a moment, thanks again for you comments!

[Knot Tied Down]

The site is well laid out and easy to navigate.

The 2 inch lapel pins seem WAY too large for most people (the 1.5 inch are better, but still pushing it for me).

The tie-bars look like novelty items; I can't see anyone wearing them seriously or in a work environment.

As a non-everyday tie wearer, who prefers slimmer ties, I like the width, but don't have much use for or need of cotton ties; you mention Monday-Friday ties, and these all strike me as Friday or casual wedding ties, not something I'd wear for normal work day or more formal events. The knots in the photos look sloppy. How a tie knots up is one of its selling points, and these knots don't sell the tie.

At your price point, I'm a solid target, I don't normally spend money on ties because I wear them so infrequently, but that doesn't mean I want all my ties to be "fun." I like the patterns on the bow ties much more than the regular ties, but I'm not s big bow tie guy.

How are the ties constructed? I assume the worst without being told when they're $12 each.

The pocket squares are all a bit busy for me; I agree with the idea of color edged white squares being something to look at.

Not a personal fan of the English Laundry socks, but I did see them at Nordstrom Rack recently for more money than you're charging.

Shipping rates seem fair.

Hi BillN,

Glad to hear that the site is easy to navigate. I came up with tons of renditions before I decided on the present one. As for lapel pins, we only have one 2 inch lapel pin, the rest are 1.5 inch. Of course everyone has their own preference, but I personally think a 1.5" - 2" lapel pin is subtly noticeable, but not so minute that you can't notice it without being up close (again my personal opinion, not trying to sell ya...ha). As for our tie variety, as I said above, we'll be getting more business appropriate ties this week. I'll drop you a line to let you know when we get them, thanks again and PM will be sent.

Ryan

[evanparker]

You don't have any information on how thick the blade of the tie is, or how your bartacks are finished, or how the margin and tipping are handled. you should definitely have pictures of each tie's rear side, the tags and keeper styles. ties are right up front and personal with everyone i meet, so i don't want to have some poor tie with bright pink tipping and a piece of ribbon for a keeper all showing everyone how cheap I am.

All the bowties are missing information about their width, and the profile of the ends. You also need should have a picture of them flat, both sides. You need information on what variety of adjuster your ties have, and how it works on the bowties.

i feel like it's not responsible to leave off what country the ties were manufactured in.

You should have a page about how the ties are constructed. You need to tell about what kind of inner lining your ties use, and how they drape.

In the internet clothing business these days the burden is on you to provide all of the information people want to see about an object. Quite simply, since they can't see the object, you need to tell them about it. Besides that, since people see so many other places that they already know where they can buy ties and other do-dads all day, the burden is on you to have detailed information on your website. Why would I try a place when I know 10 places i have accounts with already? right I wouldn't.

You having a terse or incomplete description will lose you lots of business.

[GWL3]

First off, congratulations and good luck to you. Like most here, it would be nice to see a wider selection of ties especially solids (red, navy, black, ect.) 60in. length for ties seems a bit long to me. I always thought most ties were either 57in. or 58in. and the extra long were 60in. Would also like so see more solid color pocket squares or white with a trim.

Having a larger selection of tie bars in both 1.5" and 2" I feel will be beneficial.

The midnight blue and red tartan tie looks very appealing, especially with fall approaching. i also like the fact that the website is easy to navigate.

[Ttysonmcneely]

I agree with most of what has already been said.

Website layout is great, easy to navigate and clean.

I love the 2.75" width, that is my ideal size.

The designs/colors, I'm not really a fan of. I don't think I'd buy any of the ties currently offered, they are a bit too out there for me. I know you are looking for "fun" ties, but some of the designs such as red contrast medallion, I find quite garish and ugly. I would wear light blue contrast tartan and red tartan, but probably not something I would buy. Seersucker ties don't really do it for me, I'm struggling to think of an occasion where I could wear them. Wedding or maybe a derby party, but I feel like there would be better options for ties.

I'm not a big fan of the pocket squares, I don't like the paisley and silk patterned ones. Pink polka dot is not my cup of tea, but it looks pretty good and I could see that looking good with the right outfit.

I'm not a big bowtie guy, but your "fun" designs seem to look better on the bowties.

I'm not sure if I'm your target demographic, I'm a 34 yr old man. I find a lot of the product a little too out there for me. If you sold something like a silk sky blue chambray tie for a reasonable price, I'd definitely give it a shot, but I'm not sure if a tie like that would be too conservative for you or not. I have nothing against bold colors, etc, but the designs aren't really doing it for me.

[Alex.C]

Agreeing with most others here, website looks good, and seems user friendly, both on my iPad mini and my laptop. Selection is decent, but I'm far from a cotton tie guy. Will definitely pick up a couple of your pocket squares though. Looking forward to seeing your silk tie selections.

Good luck on your endeavor!


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