Button Maker Price Comparison: American All-in-One Kits v Chinese 3-in-1 Button Makers

Welcome back for post #2 in our weeklong series discussing American-made button maker kits and Chinese-made button maker kits. Yesterday we provided an overview and debunked a few myths about Chinese 3-in-1 button machines. Today we are going to do a button maker price comparison, contrasting the costs of Chinese-made button makers to the costs of our American-made button makers.

First, let’s take a look at the hard costs as we dig into this button maker price comparison.

The 3-in-1 Chinese button machine kits, which are sold through a limited distribution channel in the states, typically come with three exchangeable dies, three different “plastic” paper cutters to cut-a-circle, and button supplies for 250 buttons. On average, such sets retail for around 20% more than ours. We have developed two deluxe wholly American-made button making kits, each of which includes our most popular button sizes: 1”, 2.25” and 3” at a discounted price:

The Deluxe Beginner Button Maker Kit

  • Includes a 1″, a 2.25″ and a 3″ Button Machine.
  • Adjustable Circle Cutter with 3 centering templates to cut out the 3 different button sizes.button maker price comparison
  • 250 complete pinback button sets for each size: 1″, 2.25″, 3″ pinback buttons.
  • Our Button Essentials Design CD and Artistic Creations Series #1 and Artistic Creations Series #2 Design Cds.

The Deluxe Professional Button Maker Kit

  • Includes a 1″, a 2.25″ and a 3″ Button Machine.
  • A 1″ Punch Cutter, 2.25″ Punch Cutter and a 3″ Punch Cutter to cut out graphics.
  • 250 complete pinback button sets for each size: 1″, 2.25″, 3″ pinback buttons.
  • Our Button Essentials Design CD, Artistic Creations Series #1 CD and Artistic Creations Series #2 Design CD.

Note: The primary difference between our beginner’s button making kit and the professional button making kit is the circle cutters. The beginner’s button kit includes one adjustable circle cutter, while the professional button making kit includes three individual advanced circle cutters that we call punch cutters. To learn more about punch cutters, and how ours are significantly better than those that typically come with Chinese 3-in-1 machines, go to the button making kit comparison page on the main ABM website.

The hard costs associated with Chinese button making kits and American button making kits, however, only tell a part of the story. Next up in our button maker price comparison, let’s consider the variable cost of supplies.

If you buy any type of button machine, obviously you need button supplies. The supplies necessary for use with a Chinese button machine are 3-5 times more expensive, with necessary being the operative word. While our button machines come with a lifetime warranty, Chinese button machines carry a warranty that is voided if you do not use their more expensive parts. Over time, this difference in supply cost can obviously add up to significant amounts especially if you are getting a button maker kit for business purposes and plan on producing in volume.

In addition, it is important to take into account the cost of time, especially if you are running a button-making business. While you could have three separate machines running at once making different sized buttons with the purchase of one of our deluxe button making kits, a singular 3-in-1 machine can only produce one size at one time. This means that a team working with one of our deluxe kits could make three times (if not more, since our machines are easier and quicker to use) as many buttons in a given time period than if using a 3-in-1 machine.

Why would you want to spend more money to support a non-American product that is of lesser quality?

Brighid Brown – Director of Blogging and All Things Cool at ABM