There was a recent post on cottage vendors that seemed to inflame people but I am hopeful mine will not. I have thought about becoming a cottage vendor (not in the near future or even in the next couple of years, most likely). However, there is no way I would start selling products without understanding the legal, ethical, and branding issues my cottage business would face. Several questions cross my mind:
1. Incorporation - I'm no lawyer, but I believe incorporation protects individuals from having their personal assets taken in litigation/bankruptcy, so I assume this one is a no-brainer.
2. Liability insurance - for what products would it be necessary? A backpack, tarp, or quilt? I doubt it. It would take a very creative lawyer to sue a business for harm done by any of these items.
On the other hand, suspension-related items, hammocks, and even stoves, maybe so. There's a reason Boy Scouts don't allow alcohol stoves. Then again, the Boy Scouts take cases to court as much as they're taken to court so forget the Scouts.
3. Patent infringement - I've heard from forum members that Tom Hennessy used to be quite litigious, but I haven't heard any legal activity recently. Is there a list of hammock-related patents somewhere on this forum? I'm sure it's probably wise to avoid making a Hennessy knockoff, but are there other patents of which one should be aware?
4. Poaching ideas - now this is one that really fascinates me, because so many people on this forum put out ideas for which they seek no monetary recompense, but are simply trying to share ideas with forum members to enrich the community.
Many of these ideas, or designs, are known by the person who first suggested a design that forum members could make themselves. However, what if someone wanted to profit from these unpatented ideas? What are the ethical obligations of the cottage vendor that will keep him in good standing with HF members? After all, the reputation of a cottage vendor is all he has.
a. For example, the GrizzBeak was an idea by Grizzly Adams that is now sold by a cottage vendor (forgive me Grizz for this example but I love Grizz Beaks and I assume, for this argument, they're unpatented). Did the vendor have to get permission from Grizz to sell an unpatented idea that was given to the HF community? Is it just courtesy to do so?
What if another cottage vendor started selling Grizz Beaks, but Grizzly Adams didn't approve since he had already given permission to one cottage vendor to profit from something using his HF screen name?
If Grizz didn't approve, the cottage vendor could just call them tarp doors, but everyone on HF would know that there is a subtle but discernible difference between a GrizzBeak and a tarp door.
b. I can think of several other examples like the Knotty mod. If I decided to make and sell a hammock with a Knotty mod, and Knotty PM'd me and said, "Don't use my HF screen name for your capitalist ventures," then ethically, I should probably heed his desires, even though he probably has no legal grounds to complain about me using an idea he gave away, with an HF screen name (Knotty) that is not copyrighted/patented or legally protected in any way.
c. What if I sold an underquilt called the Frankenquilt? Would I have to ask Shug for permission to use the name even though he has no legal rights to the name?
d. What if I made a PeaPod even though only one vendor that I know of makes a PeaPod? Would I alienate the HF community by even using the name or is it public domain?
As a cottage vendor, I wouldn't want people sitting around the campfire at a group hang calling me a ripoff artist, or bashing me that I stole their idea for profit.
5. Serving your customers
I'm sure a lot of cottage vendors get this - somebody buys a product, falls in love with the quality and the customer service, and then says, "Gee, when are you gonna start making quilts? If you made one, I'd buy it in a heartbeat." So the cottage vendor is pressured by their own customers to start making products that other vendors already make.
If I was a quilt vendor, and I had customers clamoring for me to make tarps 'cause they love my work, I might hesitate 'cause there's not much new going on in tarps right now (from what I can see) and it might be hard to differentiate myself from other vendors.
And if I incorporated ideas from other tarp vendors, would I then be accused of stealing their ideas?
These are just things I'm thinking about in anticipation of the day I might start making products for this wonderful hobby. A cottage vendor's reputation is worth its weight in gold, and any insight you guys can provide on how to preserve that is greatly appreciated.
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