I recently attended an event where the collective business participants produced exceptional quality and value (pretty rare to see both in the same vendor) and still came up empty-handed on the sales of their respective products.  Now follow this… great location, ample potential buyers in their target audiences, with solid and marketable products… NO SALES.
The old saying “the true value of something is what someone else is willing to pay for it” is a universal truth.  In a prosperous market, one which there is sea of prospective buyers, the merchandise seems to follow the quality and service level just barely above the minimum acceptable level to attain sales.  On the other hand, in a market where the buyers are few and far between, the product quality, service levels, etc.  increase to complete for the available buyers.  So what do you say to the provider of top quality goods, exceptional service, and consumer support when there simply isn’t a buyer for their product?  Many vendors and suppliers have put additional effort, energy, and expense in putting their “best foot forward” to gain the attention of the buyers… adding to their overhead.  I was in these exact situation just days ago.
My advice:  If they wanted to compete and duke it out with the other vendors and suppliers in the market, they would have to lower their product cost to the point where the market would be enticed to purchase.  If they could afford to warehouse their product until the market came back, they could also stop, or slow production and bunker in for the financial “winter” ahead.
Should they opt for this latter choice I cautioned them to consider their holding cost in the equation.  For example, if a business owner or supplier of products has to warehouse the product in a storage facility with a climate controlled environment, they would have to calculate the cost of the heating/cooling, the cost of the facility space, any breakage/transport, etc. to find the true financials to back their decision.  Just a tip that what may appear as an initial protection of your profit margin will ultimately turn out to be a loss situation when the goods are finally sold at a later date.
Bottom line: Always be evaluating your product or service for its current market value to avoid having to make decisions that severely affect your bottom line.  Better to have a firm grasp on your understanding of your client market to anticipate such decisions that can be made today and prove to protect you and your business in times of financial fluctuation in the market.

Randy Noxon
Freelance Columnist/Business Owner