Nic Juice Cost/Serving Analysis

[KnurledNut]

We recently purchased our first 1000ml bottle of nic juice. The prices are quite varied with regards to nicotine percentages (24mg-100mg) so the wild red head (re:wife) broke down the cost versus servings. Personally I thought this was a bit obsessive but thats the accountant in her

Anyways, we are making 30ml bottles of juice with a 18mg nicotine ratio. The cost of 1000ml bottles ranged from $43-140 depending on the nic percentages. I was amazed by how many bottles (servings) we could make from just one liter. The total bottle figures will vary depending on your nicotine percentages, but I think you'll get the general idea. We used MFS as our supplier.

Basically, with a small investment, the cost per 30ml of DIY juice is under a buck. More money for mods and such!

1000ml Bottle:

24mg $43
36mg $56
48mg $69
60mg $82
100mg $140

Breakdown: (nic% = ml nic juice per 30ml = # of 30ml servings per 1000ml = cost per serving):

24 = 22.5ml = 44 = 97 cents
36 = 15ml = 66 = 85 cents
48 = 11.25ml = 89 = 78 cents
60 = 9ml = 111 = 74 cents
100 = 5.4ml = 185 = 76 cents

 

[dannyv45]

That's what I've noticed myself. 60mg Nic seems to be the most cost effective purchase.

 

[Racehorse]

Breakdown: (nic% = ml nic juice per 30ml = # of 30ml servings per 1000ml = cost per serving):
24 = 22.5ml = 44 = 97 cents

So if I'm reading this right, there is about a 1,000% mark-up on vendor juice?

0.97 x 1000% = $9.70 which is the lowest i've seen 30ml of juice go for......well maybe more like 900%....

 

[AthensGa]

So if I'm reading this right, there is about a 1,000% mark-up on vendor juice?

0.97 x 1000% = $9.70 which is the lowest i've seen 30ml of juice go for......well maybe more like 900%....

There's probably a bit more involved than just the cost of unflavored nicotine when it comes to selling e-liquid.

 

[Train2]

I ran a quick down/dirty version of this calculation when there was a Cyber Monday sale from Nude Nic, for 50% off - but only on "up to 36 mg/ml". Ended up buying some, then ALSO bought some 60 mg/ml from MFS.

We recently purchased our first 1000ml bottle of nic juice. The prices are quite varied with regards to nicotine percentages (24mg-100mg) so the wild red head (re:wife) broke down the cost versus servings. Personally I thought this was a bit obsessive but thats the accountant in her

Anyways, we are making 30ml bottles of juice with a 18mg nicotine ratio. The cost of 1000ml bottles ranged from $43-140 depending on the nic percentages. I was amazed by how many bottles (servings) we could make from just one liter. The total bottle figures will vary depending on your nicotine percentages, but I think you'll get the general idea. We used MFS as our supplier.

Basically, with a small investment, the cost per 30ml of DIY juice is under a buck. More money for mods and such!

1000ml Bottle:

24mg $43
36mg $56
48mg $69
60mg $82
100mg $140

Breakdown: (nic% = ml nic juice per 30ml = # of 30ml servings per 1000ml = cost per serving):

24 = 22.5ml = 44 = 97 cents
36 = 15ml = 66 = 85 cents
48 = 11.25ml = 89 = 78 cents
60 = 9ml = 111 = 74 cents
100 = 5.4ml = 185 = 76 cents

 

[Train2]

It's a big markup, you're paying for know-how and craftsmanship and stuff - but not THAT big.
The flavorings cost more per ml than the nic. And there's a bottle involved...

So if I'm reading this right, there is about a 1,000% mark-up on vendor juice?

0.97 x 1000% = $9.70 which is the lowest i've seen 30ml of juice go for......well maybe more like 900%....

 

[Wow1420]

With nic, PG, VG and flavor, I've figured my cost of ingredients at just under 6 cents per ml or $1.80 for 30ml.

 

[michealprater]

I also did this analysis on this, except I included multiple vendors. I can tell you , you will not find a better price per serving then the liter of 100mg from heartlandvapes.com at 99.99

 

[we2rcool]

It's a big markup, you're paying for know-how and craftsmanship and stuff - but not THAT big.
The flavorings cost more per ml than the nic. And there's a bottle involved...

Quote Originally Posted by Racehorse View Post
So if I'm reading this right, there is about a 1,000% mark-up on vendor juice?

0.97 x 1000% = $9.70 which is the lowest i've seen 30ml of juice go for......well maybe more like 900%....

Being a small (home) business owner, I just need to throw in some very valid info for consideration:

What IS the cost of selling nic or e-juices?

--Do you want these being mixed in someone's house? If not, the building rental, utilities and insurance are likely going to be a minimum of around $1500 - $1750 per month.

--'Think the cost of shipping is high for small parcels? Sometimes the shipping cost on large volumes of heavy fluids is 30-40% of the cost...especially if there's a "run on product" (due to many factors that are out of ones control), and the liquids have to shipped quickly (rather than wait 2 weeks for less expensive shipping). Many times we're talking international shipping, which leads to...

--how much do I need to have on hand so that I don't run short? Order too much, and you end up throwing it away (and using up desperately needed storage space) - and that's money lost (or not available). Order too little, and you're "out of stock" and losing business (and people are starting all manner of rumors as to why you can't keep product in stock) on top of "get it quick" international postage.

--Waste & loss from mistakes & errors

--Shipping supplies & bottles

--Accepting PayPal and credit cards = 3-4% of TOTAL transaction, and a possible "per transaction" fee

--Cost of website, security, and all things related - can easily run up to $250 monthly

--Lab equipment (these sellers can't be filling bottles with 10 ml syringes, one by one, eh? and then there's the mixing vats, safety equipment, sterization equipment/chemicals, etc., etc., etc.). Most vendors are gonna have to take out loans for the various equipment needed. $500-$1000 a month? (???)

--Top quality printer, labels, paper & ink (and waste thereof). Let me tell you...omg, it's crazy-more than you'd ever expect.

--Shelf units, storage bins, office supplies

--So, these vendors deserve a salary, eh? How much we gonna give them for putting in 12-18 hour days? $15 an hour? $25 an hour? $50? $100? I know my education, experience & knowledge is worth AT LEAST as much as "Mr Goodwrench"!

--Accountants, lawyers, and assorted other professionals "as needed"

--Health insurance (don't even get me started)

--Employees (if/when they can ever be afforded) And not only are the typical costs for them, but there's the ENDLESS costs of their mistakes, training & retraining, and lack of integrity. And when an hourly person costs you a customer? or damages your reputation? The cost is immense.

So add up all that monthly, and divide it into the "amount of bottles sold each month" and tack that onto each bottle (or divide it out by mls), and you'll find the profit isn't nearly what we quickly estimate.

 

[Racehorse]

Hey we2rcool, nobody said small businesses don't deserve money, or that they don't have expenses.

I think this topic is about saving money, and people were just computing prices of DIY, and a comparison to what they were spending letting someboy else make it for them.

I have a lot of friends in retail and restaurant biz, so I am clear about markups and how people have to make a living. Seems to run in the 100-200% area, does that sound about right?

 

[we2rcool]

Hey we2rcool, nobody said small businesses don't deserve money, or that they don't have expenses.

I think this topic is about saving money, and people were just computing prices of DIY, and a comparison to what they were spending letting someboy else make it for them.

I have a lot of friends in retail and restaurant biz, so I am clear about markups and how people have to make a living. Seems to run in the 100-200% area, does that sound about right?

I didn't mean to imply anything about anything/body - I was just adding info for consideration to the posts about "high profit".

As far as the "100-200%" thing - ya know, that's always been my basic understanding (or at least, what they teach in business school for buy/sell operations), once a certain/stable level of sales are achieved. But I just don't know if it holds true any longer...and I've never known the formulas for companies that include "production of end product" in various ways/levels.

Agreed - my response drew this off-topic from the OP. 'Sorry about that.

 

[Road_House]

With nic, PG, VG and flavor, I've figured my cost of ingredients at just under 6 cents per ml or $1.80 for 30ml.

That's what I came up with in my cost analysis buying bulk/wholesale. Cost of all ingredients, glass dropper bottle, shrink wrap seal, label and shipping came in at $.06 per ml. The bottle alone contributes .02/ml to the cost.

For the Joe average DIYer who pays retail but reuses their bottles you can do it for around .07/ml (in your kitchen )

 

[Racehorse]

That's what I came up with in my cost analysis buying bulk/wholesale. Cost of all ingredients, glass dropper bottle, shrink wrap seal, label and shipping came in at $.06 per ml.

Yes, somewhere in the *neighborhood* of $0.06-$0.07 cents per ml is what most DIYers say they spend.

 

[michealprater]

The profit margin on juice is around 65%. No where near 900%.

 

[Crunktanium]

I just added up what it costs me to make 30ml based on 18mg from 60mg base nic at 18mg with 20% flavoring. Roughly $2.20 just for the juice and 30ml bottles not including all my other expenses. I would say my true costs as a small DIYer is probably around $3 in total. My startup investment was $500 for nic, pg, vg, mixing supplies, and flavorings. Might sound excessive to some but I do sell juice very cheap to a few people and I have given away probably over $100 worth of juice. Plus my health is worth it and many of us have blown $300 or more on cigs bi-monthly.

 

[Road_House]

The profit margin on juice is around 65%. No where near 900%.

How do you figure that? A vendor can easily produce a 30 ml bottle for $2 and if they sell it for $24, which many do, that's a 1200% markup. If you meant 650%, yeah some vendors do sell for around $13 so it's possible.

 

[michealprater]

Markup is a consumer term. Profit margin is what matters. No one uses markup to determine cost vs. sale price.

 

[michealprater]

At least know one that knows anything about marketing and pricing that is....


This may help.
3 Ways to Calculate Gross Profit Margin - wikiHow

Using markup makes it sound way more profitable than it actually is.

 

[Barbara21]

How do you figure that? A vendor can easily produce a 30 ml bottle for $2 and if they sell it for $24, which many do, that's a 1200% markup. If you meant 650%, yeah some vendors do sell for around $13 so it's possible.

All you're taking into account (30mL/$2.00) is the cost of raw ingredients (nicotine/PG/VG/flavoring). That's not counting any of the other costs involved in making something and selling it to others.

Simple example - I re-use my bottles multiple times. Why not, they're just for me. But I wouldn't want to buy juice from a vendor that washes out bottles he got from who-knows-where. So the vendor has a cost (bottles) that I don't have as a private individual making juice for myself.

There are lots of these additional costs. Lots and lots of them.