Author: Sean Ongley

  • From Clearance to Caveat

    From Clearance to Caveat

    Real Life and Small Business

    Last July, I launched a clearance sale, and the follow through from that sale was going to be an updated line of products replacing the old designs and stock.

    The plan continues to hold that way, only it now has a different timeline because real life and small business can lead to big caveats. Held Gear is truly small. Tiny. To support myself, I need other income.

    At the end of July, there was a family emergency, and in that moment all the plates I was spinning came falling. Sometimes you can break the plates and incur no blame.

    My Father passed away and this led to a deep meditation before I had to spring to action, fly to Arizona and help my Mother through it. This is life. Suddenly one big plate comes and it’s the one you have to focus on. Let alone grieving, I am back to spinning plates in Philadelphia, and Held Gear continues to receive sales and traffic from search engines. It’s a tiny business, and it’s okay if it is.

    That said, I want to make stronger impressions when new visitors find the website. I want to spend more time building it out and improving the whole presentation. I’ve got it so close!

    Real life is the income part. Until this provides my income, it’s always just a small plate in the routine. This routine is coming to a climax, however. One by one, I am setting them down, and by the end of the year, this business will be a stronger focus.

    How I’m doing that is for me to know and you to find out : P

    A customer from five years ago came around a couple of weeks ago and bought two belts on Etsy, one for herself and her husband. She even paid the excessive Canadian shipping. The fans of this brand are few, but they are real. And I need to highlight their testimonials on this very website. My to-do list never ends, and that’s great!

    There is not presently any advertising, all sales come from past customers, or random searches. The fact that customers come back after five and ten years tells me that Held Gear is worth keeping up with. Whenever I want to accelerate sales, I will do that.

    The clearance items will remain on clearance until they are gone. Those prices are at least 50% off.

    All of those products are good, they just didn’t work out as desired. For example, the Snow Ermine is nice and durable, and people gravitate toward its timeless style. However, the strap is very firm and kinks when wrapped in a circle. I will replace that with a 2-ply strap, instead of 3-ply. It’s amazing how much more pliant the 2-ply is. There are also alternative white straps in the catalog that I want to consider.

    The Groove will probably come back with modest design changes. The Sky belts are gone, however, I will select a new blue strap to replace it. Also, a green will be coming. I really want all the colors of the rainbow, but it’s expensive to build and inventory these things.

    A successful clearance sale means there is more room in the product closet, and cash available to invest in new materials. Then I have to work harder to create the demand.

    Real life, once again, comes back into it. At this time, I leave it to be continued. The caveat of making Held Gear a stronger focus later is to right now do the bare minimum for a while longer.

    I’ll be back with more news soon. Thanks for checking in.

    -Sean

  • Flash Sale! And what shall come from it.

    Flash Sale! And what shall come from it.

    Today, I launch a flash sale, in hopes of raising capital and awareness for the brand, to pave the way for some important steps toward turning this into a full time business.

    Over the last year, I have put my available energy into the backend, like the website, product photography, graphic design (especially for advertising), and more. I began to scramble when I saw a declining sales trend. Although it’s traceable to Etsy algorithm changes mostly, I had to confront myself in this process, accepting criticism and feedback, looking objectively at my presentation (from photography to packaging) and where it needs improvement. I’m still in the midst of the process.

    I have been wearing my Held belts every day since 2009. At first, I only had the Classic black belt, and it was my everything belt: work, play, and formal wear. After taking over the brand in 2022, I absorbed four different designs that I rotate for all occasions. I certainly believe that you should only sell a product you stand by, and use for yourself.

    Over these last two years, I have sold about one hundred units online, earning more 5-star reviews on Etsy. Dozens more have sold at markets.

    I really haven’t been receiving negative feedback. Sometimes silence is what you pay attention to for implicit feedback. In other words, I want more positive reviews, and I will do what it takes.

    I keep this brand going because I receive orders from customers going back more than a decade, finally replacing their first belt. Shark-like business-people will say that’s terrible, you can’t make a product that people won’t replace for ten years.

    I don’t care. I will wait for you. Sometimes your silence is a good thing.

    I have learned a great number of lessons about business, marketing, presentation, design, and competition. I didn’t realize how many fashion brands were out there hoping to become the next big thing. Either that, or someone has no passion for design and durability, they just want a no-name entity to pump out cheaply made product that nobody will ever never seek out a replacement for. These brands will position their products in places where shop owners, who also have no passion for style or quality, will just buy it because it’s cheap and immediate and they know they can move it.

    The principle of Held Gear is to make a product you remember, that you keep and care about. That idea is to be extended far beyond belts, if successful. It doesn’t matter how long it takes, I’m just taking it all one step at a time.

    With a successful clearance sale, I want to order some new materials for new designs, and spend on marketing. However, I have a few more steps to take to improve the design and presentation. When all of these preparations are made, I hope to find new customers with some cleverly targeted advertising.

    I believe this can be a full-time business, one that employs a handful of people, and stimulates American manufacturing.

    Let’s start with this flash sale.

    Please take advantage of these deals now and find your new favorite belt today!

  • How to Size Your Belt

    Held belts are designed to fit you just right, at the middle notch. It is easy to order the wrong size, that’s why this video makes it easy to get the ideal fit.

    You can triangulate your size with dressmakers tape, a correct pant size, and an existing belt. If you only have one of those three, you can still wager a good guess.

    Refer to Your Pants

    If you have absolutely no way to measure, observe your pant size and match it or round up one inch.

    If the pant size is an odd number, round up one inch. In this video, the pants are loose from age, even though my waist is larger than the size on the tag. I know, it’s weird.

    If the pants fit quite nicely at an even number, that is the belt you want, and it is probably your measurement too.

    Women’s pants do not correlate to waist size, so this point applies mostly to men’s wear.

    Fit an Existing Belt

    For this method, you can use any belt that notches up tight on your waist. After that, you need a yard stick or measuring tape.

    The distance between the buckle’s prong and the notch that fits you is approximately your waist size.

    Official Held Belt Sizing Chart

    Measure Your Waist

    This is the absolute best way to measure for the right belt, but it does require dressmakers tape.

    See the video to understand where to measure. It is important to measure at the hip bone, as this is where pants and belts traditionally rest.

    You can substitute dressmakers tape with rope or string. Simply mark the point on the string that meets back up to your hip after wrapping around, then measure that with a yard stick or measuring tape.

    Ordering The Right Size

    If you have all three of these numbers, then you are surely ready to put in your next Held belt order.

    The tightest notch on your belt should be equal to or one inch smaller than the actual measurement of your waist.

    Standard issue designs are made in small batches to keep an inventory ranging between sizes 28 and 38, accommodating waists from 26 to 40 inches.

    Custom tailored orders are always available, just contact the shop directly.

  • How to Change Your Buckle

    Standard Held belt designs feature a single or dual snap set that allows for the free exchange of buckles.

    Once you have removed the buckle and you are reinserting it, it can be a little confusing. This video offers pointers within the demonstration to help avoid mistakes.

    For example, the ring keeper must go in first, this piece holds the strap down after it is notched.

    A center bar buckle extends in a full circle and self-contains the strap, eliminating the need for a keeper ring.

    Not all buckle types are interchangeable. Especially flat panel buckles require a different type of design with smaller notches.

    Look for additional buckles available in the shop as an add-on at checkout.