Affordable + Available + Reputable = Impossible?

The Xenith presented an interesting marketing issue. With a price point so affordable, from a reputable maker, and it's readily available, how could the Xenith be of any quality? The price immediately raised doubt as historically they have always been inversely proportional—you can’t have both at the same time. I knew that once enough Xenith’s were sold that these initial reservations would disappear.

Once concept that I’ve used for guidance is the Iron Triangle. The idea is good, fast, cheap; you can pick two. Good and fast, it’s not going to be cheap. Fast and cheap, it's not going to be good. Cheap and good, it's not going to be fast. The Iron Triangle can be very discouraging for both consumers and companies and I think it has quietly plagued the world of handpans since its inception. Quality takes time. Moreover, learning how to make something of quality takes even more time.

The first arc of my career can be framed by making something good, which meant it was going to take time and wasn’t going to be cheap. It took me a year and a half until I felt like I even had something that was quality enough to sell. This however built up my reputation as someone who spent time on making something of quality. The second arc of my career was looking for a way to make something that good but that I could make quickly. Hydroforming played a big role in this but it was still time consuming to make and resulted in needing to be expensive. The third arc of my career was finding a way to make something of quality, that I could make quickly, and sell for a much more reasonable price. As time progressed and the greater world of handpans evolved, I felt that there might be a more accurate Iron Triangle specifically for our market.

I would pick the following three words: affordable, available, and reputable. Affordable and reputable typically means it's not available—some type of waitlist. Reputable and available usually means it's not affordable—pay a premium to not have to wait. Available and affordable usually means not reputable--maybe it's a new maker who’s still making a name for themselves or an unknown maker/tuner with no reputation.

The Xenith is my attempt at conquering the Iron Triangle, both the original and the aforementioned adapted one. My hope is that the Xenith satisfies the original: good, fast, cheap. Moreover, I do think the Xenith satisfies the adjusted: affordable, available, and reputable. Or *almost* does.

So what’s the issue? The market demand still outpaces our much quicker production rate! From a business perspective, this is a good problem to have—an in-demand product! From the perspective of someone who is trying to put the Iron Triangle in a headlock, it can be frustrating! And as a consumer, it can mean there can still be some waiting.