Opening this type of business is not so difficult. It does not require particularly complex inspection permits. A tailoring studio is not such a simple business; it requires special skill and an adequate pricing policy in order to win the love of the client, and so that he returns again and again. Before opening a tailoring shop, you need to consider the following steps, and then decide which business option is right for you.
Who should think about how to open a tailoring studio? It should mainly be opened to sewing professionals. Or have excellent organizational skills who can find and unite specialists in this field.
What will the tailoring studio specialize in?
This is the very first and most important question to answer. The mistake of novice masters is that they can grab any orders in order to earn money, but this does not always play a positive role. Each area requires specific equipment and specific professional skills.
Not every tailor and fashion designer who specializes in sewing light women's clothing will be able to perfectly sew a coat or fur coat. What specializations can there be:
- production of special clothes and uniforms,
- engaged in sewing curtains, bed and table linen,
-covers for furniture and cars,
- fur and leather products,
- children's soft toys
— there is mass knitwear production
– individual tailoring for light and outerwear
- sewing men's suits.
-evening and theatrical costumes
- wedding dresses.
Also in the atelier there are often masters who work only with women or men.
There are many specializations, but if you plan to form a professional team, then you need to outline the main directions. Of course, in addition to sewing, repairs of products are also possible and this should not be neglected. The client’s love must be won, and high-quality repairs can encourage him to order more expensive items.
You may want to not only sew according to customer orders, but also invent something yourself, sew it and sell it. There are a lot of options, you need to choose which one is more professional.
How to open a studio: which premises to choose?
When choosing a room, you need to take into account its location. If you plan to do individual tailoring, then you need to choose a place with a lot of people, for example, near bus stops, shopping centers, markets.
The central areas will be the most convenient, because... it will be convenient for the client to get there from any area. Although in residential areas there are also people who need to sew something, and rent will be cheaper than in the center.
Having decided on the area, we choose the premises itself.
Mini repair studios can be located in shopping centers with literally 10 sq. m. For a larger studio, 60 sq. m will be enough.
The most important thing is to have good lighting: natural daylight or artificial. 
What equipment is best to buy?
1. When opening, a lot of money is required at once, so some people decide to save on equipment by purchasing a household-type sewing machine from the studio. Is this bad?
Not bad, but a household machine cannot work with all types of fabrics, unlike a professional one. If the specificity of the tailoring studio is not aimed at working with dense thick fabrics, then this option is quite acceptable at the initial stage.
Also, household machines are equipped with additional decorative stitches, sometimes completely unnecessary, which over long-term use can reduce the quality of the stitches. Remember! The fewer lines, the more reliable the machine and the better the quality of the lines.
Therefore, in a professional production machine there is only one straight stitch. Experts recommend buying a professional machine right away, even if it’s not a new one. 
2. The second important machine is the edge overlock machine. Here the simplest 3-4 thread is sufficient.
3. If you plan to sew knitwear, then there must be a separate machine for knitwear.
Nowadays, a hybrid is being produced on the market to save money, the so-called carpet machine, which contains the functions of an overlocker and a knitting machine. This option is convenient for sewing at home, it saves space, and when there is a small flow of products, there is time to reconfigure the machine from one function to another.
In the atelier, time is valuable and constant reconfiguration is not appropriate. Therefore, buy separate machines, each for its own functions.
4. Ironing table and steam generator, and if funds do not yet allow, then a good iron with steaming.
5. It is very important to have wide cutting tables.
This is perhaps the most expensive capital equipment.
But the list of necessities does not end there; you also need smaller tools such as patterns, drawing paper, tracing paper, tailor's scissors, paper scissors, needles, pins and other consumables and accessories.
Personnel team: how many employees to hire?
If you know the sewing craft, then at the initial stage, most likely you will actively sew or cut yourself, but assistants will be needed. The team must have at least:
2-3 seamstresses
- cutter - tailor
- fashion designer
— managing administrator
When choosing professionals, be prepared to pay a decent salary. Clients need quality, which depends on the well-coordinated professional work of the team.
When will the profit come?
How to open a studio so that you can immediately make a profit? Is it possible?
This business is seasonal and this should be taken into account when opening so as not to fall into the dark months.
An atelier specializing in custom tailoring should be prepared that January and February may not be profitable months when the wave of clients subsides. Therefore, we need to prepare for them in advance, collect orders for casting “extras”.
From March, clients begin to prepare for the spring-summer period and update their wardrobe for the season. In the summer, ateliers take orders for school uniforms.
In September, the second wave of seasonal tailoring begins, now they are already preparing to update their wardrobe for the autumn-winter period, and then outfits for the New Year.
December is considered the busiest and most profitable month.
The payback time is from 1-1.5 years. To manage risks, calculate the daily minimum income that will lead to the break-even point of the enterprise. From this we can build the rest of the planned indicators to obtain excess profits.
The idea of opening a sewing studio naturally comes to the minds of experienced craftswomen, and even more often - graduates of specialized lyceums and universities and avid fashionistas with entrepreneurial fervour. We present expert opinions, and also calculate costs, risks and possible income.
Atelier from scratch: personal experience
After the crisis year of 2014, sewing workshops became extremely popular both in megacities and provincial towns of Russia. Incomes fell, prices in stores adjusted to the dollar, and trading floors were empty. Then practical and experienced Russians remembered that clothes can be repaired and altered.
According to Rosstat, the increase in the number of clothing tailoring and repair shops in our country is 10% per year. Half of startups close after a few months of operation, but new ones open immediately. And these are important arguments for those who are thinking about opening their own workshop.
Structure of orders based on a survey of owners of ten Krasnoyarsk studios:
The average bill for clothing repair is 350 rubles, and for a residential area these are reasonable prices. It was precisely for residents with low incomes that Irina Lapina opened her atelier in Vologda. The startup cost her family 112 thousand rubles. And we managed to return these investments after a year of work.
Irina’s story is quite typical: she studied at a vocational school, then worked in a small studio, where she gained experience and professional secrets. When the family council decided to open their own sewing workshop, the first thing they did was start doing the math. The start-up capital was used to purchase equipment and modest premises.
To open a sewing workshop, a businessman needs not only start-up capital, but also professional experience
Cost estimate for opening a studio
The total costs will be 112,000 rubles.
It is important to take into account all the costs of business promotion
At first, they opened an office in their residential area. The first clients of the new workshop were Irina’s regular customers. After several months of intensive work, the owner of the studio realized that it was time to expand - and hired another tailor.
Types of sewing workshop services
According to 2GIS Krasnoyarsk, now in any residential area of the city there are from 1 to 5 sewing studios. As a rule, each specializes in 2-3 types of services, which allows you to occupy your own business niche and reduces competition. Ateliers most often provide the following services to the population:
Even at the planning stage, Irina decided that the studio would only engage in clothing repair and custom tailoring of suits. And she guessed right: in the residential area these services were in demand - hemming a skirt or trousers, mending a jacket, sewing a dress for a prom or anniversary.
The aspiring businesswoman looked for new orders through the VKontakte group, and in the evenings, when Irina was walking with her child, she posted leaflets near the entrances. She did not miss the opportunity: she participated in city fairs, exhibitions, and gave small advertisements in magazines. And these low-cost advertising methods worked.
“I had a very low price tag for the city. For ordering a wedding dress, I gave a gift - I released two doves: the clients were pleased.”
Irina LapinaA year later, monthly revenue was already 230 thousand rubles, and corporate clients became customers: neighboring stores and dance studios. They had their uniforms and smart suits made by Irina. When it became clear that there were not enough workers, the tailors found larger premises, purchased machines and expanded their staff.
Now in this Vologda studio there are 4 craftswomen sewing orders and doing repairs. But the owner herself takes measurements from clients and prepares patterns. The studio's monthly income is now about 90 thousand rubles, and this allows us to plan the development of the enterprise.
Everything should be ready when customers arrive
Table: financial indicators of the studio 2 years after opening
This real story clearly shows: opening a sewing workshop will not be difficult or costly, but it will require precise calculations, great desire, courage and a lot of effort. This is exactly what a business plan serves.
Business plan: simple rules
First of all, a detailed and honest business plan is needed by the owner who is investing in a new business. Entrepreneurs underestimate this simple rule. According to businessmen who started from scratch - opening a stall at the market or a workshop for repairing household appliances, and without any plan: most often this first experience becomes the business plan for the next - working business. It turns out twice as expensive!
Meanwhile, writing a business plan will not be difficult for anyone who knows a business thoroughly. Or I’m ready to study it - in the process of writing a forecast plan for my future company. Before you start spending investments on a sewing workshop, you will first need to sort out the upcoming expenses to the nearest ruble.
Take the time to develop a business plan: these efforts will pay off handsomely
Main sections of a business plan
The main document, according to which a businessman will have to work in the next few years, consists of six parts:
Customers are increasingly choosing repairs and custom tailoring
Industry Analysis
To put it very simply, an industry analysis is just a “passport photograph”: strict size, nothing superfluous. First, you will have to study the entire legislative framework for the sewing business and in the field of consumer services: federal laws, industry SNIPs and Rules. Here is a list of the main documents:
In this section of the business plan, you need to decide who will be the main customer of the new atelier: age and gender, occupation and income, preferences in choosing clothes and regularity of requesting sewing services. The conditional portrait of the client is considered the target audience, and all the work of the enterprise, namely the work schedule, prices, list of services, will have to be built taking into account the interests of these consumers.
To assess the competitive environment and the demand for sewing services, you need to study the business of your competitors. On the website of the Statistical Office you can find information about the number of ateliers in any city or town in the region. The 2GIS system will also produce comparable figures. Call your potential competitors as a client - both market leaders and neighbors in the area of your future office.
It is important to find out: what types of services do business colleagues earn, prices for these works, deadlines for completing orders, whether additional services are provided, discounts for pensioners or corporate clients.
It’s better to visit several studios from the list of your closest competitors. Assess the size and furnishings of the premises, the number of employees, opening hours and service rules.
Original solutions, picked up from competitors, will help you attract paying clients from the very beginning of your work.
All collected data should be entered into a comparative table. This will make it easier to understand what niche to occupy, as well as to navigate the location of the studio and the organization of its work. The market share is considered approximate. This information will be important when planning business development.
Table: clothing industry - comparative characteristics
Organizational plan
Every business plan requires the same amount of effort as planning a vacation, for example. In this case, first choose a direction, then a vacation spot, taking into account all your wishes: that the hotel be in the city center and near the sea, and that the room be spacious. And finally, based on such tasks, the budget is determined.
In the business plan you also need to think through the sequence of opening a sewing workshop and write down all the little things: then this will be a guide to action.
We solve organizational issues and write down the answers in the business plan:
Production plan
The future of the atelier is the production of household services. And like any technological enterprise, it must work taking into account the requirements and standards established in the industry. At this stage of preparing a business plan, you will have to study and select specific models of professional sewing machines and other equipment for the full production cycle, as well as draw up an estimate.
The master's tailoring is afraid
To understand how many customers the new studio will be able to serve and what production plan should be laid down, technological standards are taken into account. For example, sewing one skirt requires a certain amount of time and operations, and so on for all types of work offered by a new sewing workshop.
Based on the number of tailors and the estimated production plan, production volumes per day, per month and per year are calculated. Moreover, experts advise making a forecast plan for such output for the next two to three years. Data is also included in the business plan. And even if these numbers are conditional, they will help you navigate the mathematics of business.
Financial plan
The financial section of the business plan is the main one. It allows you to calculate in advance the prospects for the success of a new sewing studio. In fact, in one table he takes into account the forecast production plan, minus costs and tax deductions, and then demonstrates the financial result.
Everything is like in every family’s budget: there are salaries and bonuses, income from part-time work, expenses for utility bills and apartment rent.
Break-even point: a volume of production that replenishes costs and does not bring either profit or loss, which indicates the stable operation of the enterprise.
The return on business is calculated using a simple formula:
Example: the cost of a new store amounted to 900 thousand rubles. per year, revenue - 2.1 million rubles, net profit for that period - 830 thousand rubles.
900,000: 830,000 = 1.08 years
It turns out that the store will pay for itself in about a year of operation.
Now let's calculate the profitability of the business - in other words, the profitability of the enterprise. The formula is also quite simple: divide net profit by annual revenue.
830 000: 2 100 000 = 39%
Conclusion: the average store profitability is 39%.
You need to understand that a business plan, as a rule, takes into account the easiest to understand formulas, and the forecast will change several times during the work process. But the planned figures give a completely reliable idea of the financial capabilities of a particular business.
If business conditions change during the course of work, adjustments should be promptly made to the existing financial plan
Marketing and advertising
This section of the business plan addresses the question of where and how to look for your new clients. To do this, you will need to take into account information collected about competitors, as well as your own marketing and advertising ideas.
We analyze and make decisions:
Risks
It is not difficult to calculate possible risks. To do this, they need to be identified: through surveys of competitors and their clients, studying information about the reasons for the ruin of the studio - now such reviews and expert opinions are easy to find on the Internet. It is better to write down all finds.
Measure seven times, cut once
Table: risks and countermeasures
Studio space
Property space is a convenient option, but it should be a profitable location specifically for a sewing workshop. Therefore, most often before purchasing an office, the studio moves several times until a successful option is found. Here's what experienced studio owners advise:
Rent bright and well-ventilated premises for your studio: this will allow you to comply with the requirements of technical regulations and reduce energy costs
Individual entrepreneur or LLC: choosing a business form
There are two forms of business organization in the clothing industry - individual entrepreneur and LLC. There are no problems with online registration of a business on the tax service website. In any case, the algorithm is simple: fill out the application, pay the state fee, provide originals or copies of the required documents, and that’s it. If you made no mistakes when filling out the forms, you will receive your registration certificate in a few days:
Comparing individual entrepreneurs and LLCs
Individual entrepreneur: it is easier and cheaper to register, and fines in case of violations for individual entrepreneurs are much lower than for LLCs. But for the losses of the enterprise, the individual entrepreneur is liable with all his personal property. In addition, regardless of the financial result of the year, the individual entrepreneur is obliged to pay insurance premiums for the year, and the amount is not small: about 20 thousand rubles.
LLC: registering is more troublesome - more expensive, the package of documents is heavier. But the same charter of the enterprise can be found as a standard one, and there is no need to have the signature on the application certified by a notary when submitting it yourself. An LLC can only pay taxes on what it earned. And he is responsible for the company’s losses only with his authorized capital (usually 10 thousand rubles). But society pays fines many times more than individual entrepreneurs.
The legal address for an LLC can be home if the director and founder of the LLC resides there.
Equipment selection
To start a sewing business from scratch, it is enough to make do with the necessary things - this can be seen in the example of Irina Lapina’s atelier (Vologda). Depending on the profile of the workshop and the number of employees, the set of equipment can be expanded. Sewing professionals know which machines are better and more reliable.
To start a business, experienced businessmen are advised to negotiate the purchase of used sewing equipment, overlockers, cutting tables, other furniture and equipment with the owners of the largest sewing shops or factories: there, if necessary, there are knowledgeable mechanics. New equipment should be purchased when the enterprise is already on its feet.
Before purchasing equipment for a studio, it is better to make a floor plan with the arrangement of furniture and machines: this will help avoid misunderstandings, especially if the areas are small.
A good sewing machine will not let you down
Recruitment and remuneration
Owners of sewing studios say: at the first stage it is worth hiring only experienced workers. Do not neglect the rule of getting feedback from their previous place of work: it is especially important that the seamstress is non-conflict with customers and disciplined.
It’s worth going to a couple of seminars on personnel records in order to correctly fill out documents for workshop employees.
Remuneration for seamstresses includes a salary and a percentage bonus on output. This is the only way to motivate employees to increase the number of completed orders. The owner of the studio should pay attention to sharp fluctuations in revenue, as well as the presence of receipts for accepted items, in order to avoid unaccounted orders.
The reputation of an atelier depends on the experience of the seamstresses
Home studio
Individual entrepreneurs and LLCs can also work from home if this is the legal address of the Company. There is no direct prohibition in the legislation. But if neighbors complain about constant noise, littering of common areas with sewing waste or other inconveniences, then an inspection cannot be avoided.
According to the requirements of the law, when opening a sewing enterprise, the owner is obliged to notify Rospotrebnadzor and Gospozhnadzor about the start of activity. On the websites of departments you can download sample applications and even tips on how to fill them out, as well as make an appointment at a convenient time.
A good milliner never goes out of style
Table: comparison of a studio in a non-residential premises and a home workshop
When deciding to open a sewing workshop, an entrepreneur risks money, reputation, time and life plans. But without determination there is no success. British billionaire Richard Branson, for just such a case when thoughts interfere with actions, argued: “Throw away doubts: take it and do it.” With calculation, assertiveness and a thorough study of the matter.
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The clothing business involves making clothes and household accessories. A business in the clothing industry will definitely bring profit if you have a creative approach. You can open a salon of designer clothes, a production of soft toys, or a workshop for the production of workwear. The possibilities are limited only by your imagination.
When opening a sewing enterprise, determine the direction of production:
- clothing - household, special, everyday, children's, adult;
- fabric toys;
- home textiles;
- other accessories.
Plan production volumes - the starting investment in the business, the size of the premises and the number of personnel will depend on the chosen figure.
Industrial workshop for mass tailoring of clothing
Having chosen the direction of work, register a commercial structure - LLC or individual entrepreneur. The list of documents for registration is presented in the table.
Table: lists of documents for registration of LLC and individual entrepreneur
Applications are reviewed within five working days. Based on the results, you will be invited to the local tax office and given a package of documentation for a legal entity or entrepreneur. After registration, open a bank account and order a company seal.
OKVED codes suitable for clothing production:
- 18.2 - sewing textile clothing and accessories;
- 18.21 - creation of workwear;
- 18.22 - sewing outerwear;
- 18.24 - other clothing and accessories.
When drawing up a business plan, take into account the legal requirements for production premises, make a list of equipment and plan the hiring of employees. Calculate the costs of starting production and monthly expenses. Analyze demand and draw conclusions about possible sales volumes and business returns. Below are examples of business plans for a production workshop and a mini-atelier.
How to choose the type of business - small, medium or large
There are three types of manufacturing enterprises: small, medium and large.
Small enterprise for the production of exclusive clothing models
To open a small enterprise, it is enough to have premises and 400,000 rubles. for the purchase of equipment and consumables. The average production volume is 25–50 products per day. A small-scale sewing business is suitable for entrepreneurs who have limited capital and want to produce exclusive items and sell them at prices above the market average.
To organize a workshop with a capacity of 150–200 products, costs of about 5,000,000 rubles are required. At the same time, a powerful workshop pays for itself faster due to wholesale sales of products to large retail chains.
Analyze the regional specifics of the market and identify possible buyers. Find out in what volumes sellers purchase goods on the market, and in what volumes - chain stores. Think over the range of products, focusing on the needs of customers and your resources.
Sewing technology
The process of manufacturing garments consists of the following stages:
- model design;
- designing and transferring the model to fabric;
- fabric cutting;
- sewing, finishing of the product.
The fashion designer draws an image of the future item, and then forms it from fabric on a mannequin
A fashion designer does the modeling. He draws up a sketch of the future product, selects colors and types of fabrics. The designer converts the sketch into a drawing, calculates the dimensions of the parts and the amount of material. He also produces patterns and technical documentation. In an atelier or sewing workshop, the functions of a fashion designer and designer are performed by a cutter - he communicates with the client, takes measurements, cuts out parts, and brings the product into compliance with the specified parameters. The cut parts are sent to the sewing workshop, where they are turned into a finished product.
Opening a garment factory or workshop to produce goods for sale
In garment factories, products are produced in batches for wide consumption. The workshop is equipped with one or more production lines. The advantages of a workshop over a home workshop are the ability to set affordable prices and sell large quantities of products.
Premises requirements
So, you have decided to open a clothing workshop. Now choose a room suitable for production. The workshop area depends on the number of goods produced. So, to produce 100 units of product, 60–70 sq.m. are needed. area. Before renting a premises, invite fire and sanitary inspection authorities to inspect it and obtain permission to operate.
To ensure that the room complies with fire safety standards, equip it with a fire alarm, emergency exit and fire extinguishers.
Equipment
Having finished renting the premises, proceed to purchasing equipment. Make a list of required units, including:
- sewing machine;
- overlock;
- machine for cutting fabric;
- household iron;
- steam generator;
- cutting knife;
- button apparatus;
- tables and racks;
- consumables - threads, tailor's scissors, chalk and others.
Overlock is a machine for processing the edges of fabric, one of the key ones in the sewing industry.
The total costs for equipment are 250,000 rubles, for fittings - 50,000 rubles.
Required Personnel
The success of the clothing business depends 70% on the level of personnel training. When opening a small production, hire:
- two cutters;
- three seamstresses;
- cleaning lady;
- order taker.
At first, the designated number of employees is sufficient. Later, you will be able to involve fashion designers, designers, and highly specialized seamstresses in your work.
To save money, hire 60% experienced employees and 40% beginners - perhaps students. Having gained experience at your enterprise, they will work there for many years.
Pay your staff according to the “salary + interest” system. Create a production plan and reward employees with financial bonuses for achieving their goals.
Raw materials and consumables
Explore the wholesale databases of fabric manufacturers. Select suppliers based on the price-quality ratio. If you can negotiate direct contracts with the bases, you will save on supplier markups and reduce production costs.
While studying business, ask questions on forums, look for successful entrepreneurs in your region and learn from their experience, make acquaintances, including with suppliers.
Ideally, find a mentor willing to accompany your business. He will tell you where to find high-quality fabrics and accessories, how to purchase equipment and organize the sale of goods.
What is better to sew: assessment of options for making children's, women's clothing, workwear and other types
To find out what products will be in demand in the region, work in several directions simultaneously. Combine the tailoring of evening dresses with the production of fabric souvenirs, and the production of workwear with the production of accessories for the garden. Make sure that the combinations are not absurd - it is strange when a company that produces hammocks and canopies produces chiffon scarves.
After selling the first batch of goods, analyze the demand again and clarify the portrait of the target audience. Review your pricing policy if necessary. So, if you sew summer sundresses of a simple cut, and your consumer is young mothers, you should not inflate your prices.
In any region there is a stable demand for children's clothing - if you can get a certificate for sewing one, consider that you have found a “gold mine”.
Study not only demand, but also supply in the market. Look into competitors' stores, see what they produce and at what prices they sell. Don't try to steal the ideas of other entrepreneurs - use your own ideas to attract buyers.
To prevent your business from burning out at the very beginning, calculate your income and expenses. Determine the payback period of the business. An example of calculations for a workwear sewing workshop with a productivity of 75 products per day is given in the tables below.
Table: initial investment
Table: monthly expenses
Table: Projected Income
The level of income and profit of an entrepreneur depends on the volume of products produced, consumer demand, the availability of a client base and partnerships in the field of trade.
Sales organization
Possible sales channels for clothing products:
- Network shops;
- private entrepreneurs;
- direct sales;
- trade via the Internet.
At the initial stages, agree with the owners of small stores about the supply of your goods for sale. Later connect large networks and then create your own online store.
Video: master class on sewing production
Where to start opening a mini-atelier or workshop at home
Opening a home studio is easier than opening a sewing workshop. To do this, you just need to have a modern sewing machine and equip a room in your apartment as a workshop. To develop your business, purchase equipment and organize an advertising campaign. Print and distribute leaflets, create an advertising website or group on a social network. Study fashion magazines and try to find a “zest” for your products to attract customers who value exceptional things.
A workshop equipped in an apartment must be organized
Premises, equipment, personnel
When you're ready to expand your business and move into rental space, create a business plan. Choose a room of 60–80 square meters. m., meeting the standards of the SES and fire inspection authorities, with good ventilation and a 380V electrical network.
Buy 2-3 sewing machines, racks, an overlocker, a couple of tables and mannequins. Hire employees if you are willing to provide them with wages. The key workers of the atelier are the administrator, the cutter and the seamstress.
Starting capital and payback forecast
Below are tables calculating the costs of opening a mini-atelier with the number of employees - 3 people and output - 1 product per day.
Table: costs of starting a business
Table: monthly expenses
Table: projected income and payback
As you can see, a small studio quickly pays for itself, but does not bring much profit to the owner. To increase your income level, you need to expand your business or focus on producing exclusive items at high prices.
How to promote a sewing business
To make your studio successful, establish a work schedule that is clear and convenient for clients. If you are located in a shopping center, keep the opening hours consistent with the center's opening hours.
Create a business card website with a clear description of your services and a group on a social network to maintain contact with customers.
If you sew clothes, pay special attention to customers with a non-standard figure - once you please them, and they will come back for new wardrobe items regularly.
Comply with the deadlines and quality of order fulfillment. The best advertisement is the conscientious work of the staff and polite customer service.
If you are concerned about the question of how to open a sewing shop from scratch, we will describe in detail how much such an undertaking costs and draw up a business plan based on average indicators. But to achieve success in this type of activity, you need to apply not only organizational talent, but also a creative approach to finding your niche.
For a beginner in business, it is important to go through the whole process step by step, tackling issues gradually. And so as not to forget anything, we will describe each point in detail. And since opening a sewing workshop for tailoring clothes has its own characteristics, we will dwell on the nuances and distinctive characteristics of this enterprise.
Where to begin?
Before you start organizing any business, you need to look around and study the market in a particular region. Assess the demand for various types of textiles, clothing, soft toys and other things that you could offer to the end consumer. Establish the number and level of main competitors in the selected industry. This is the only way you can decide whether it’s worth doing something like this and whether it’s profitable.
It is very important to decide on the product range. Some types of clothing, for example, are provided on the market in too large quantities and at an affordable price, which will be difficult to compete with. Other goods may be in short supply, but the demand for them is extremely high. This is the best market segment to conquer.
Only by coming up with a unique and profitable idea of what exactly you will sew, you can achieve success even with minimal investment. But this will require time and imagination. After all, it’s not worth reducing the cost of your products due to low quality fabrics or poor work of inept employees. You must offer something needed, of high quality and at an affordable price for the buyer.
It is very important to take into account not only the wishes of future clients, but also your own capabilities, mainly financial. By drawing up a competent business plan with calculations at the very beginning, you will know exactly how much it costs to open a sewing shop of the desired size and how quickly your investment will pay off.
Business registration
To act within the law, you will need to go through the bureaucratic part of organizing your enterprise. First you need to register as an individual entrepreneur (individual entrepreneur) or LLC (limited liability company). In the first case, you submit the following documents:
- a receipt for payment of state duty in the amount of 800 rubles;
- application in form P21001;
- copies of all pages of the civil passport;
- you clarify the taxation system, for example, when choosing the simplified taxation system (simplified scheme), or you remain on the general one, which, in principle, is unprofitable for small businesses.
When organizing a legal entity, you will need a little more documents:
- Receipt for payment of a fee in the amount of 4,000 rubles.
- Similar application to the previous one, but form 11001 is selected.
- If there is a single owner, a decision to create a company is submitted. If the enterprise has several co-founders, then an opening protocol is drawn up.
- An LLC charter is also created.
- Copies of passports of all owners of the company.
- Statement on the chosen taxation system.
When opening an individual entrepreneur, the number of days for reviewing and issuing relevant documents is much less than when creating a legal entity. All you have to do is wait for a response from the tax service.
It is important to clarify the code of the selected activity of the enterprise in the documents. It could be:
- 21 – when sewing workwear;
- 22 – if you settled on outerwear;
- 24 – indicates other types of goods and various accessories.
A separate stage will be obtaining permits from the SES, GPN and Rospotrebnadzor. To avoid any problems with these authorities, you need to find out in advance the full list of their requirements for organizing the workplace and arranging the sewing workshop in order to bring the premises to the specified parameters.
Production volumes
How much money is required at the start, the number of staff, the size of the premises, the sales market and much more will depend on your ambitions. Therefore, it is advisable from the very beginning to think about what volumes of goods you intend to produce and sell.
If this is a small enterprise, then the number of finished products produced per day will be limited to 25-50 units. To open such a business, an investment of 400 thousand rubles is enough. At the same time, you can concentrate on some unique and exclusive offer, and set prices above market prices.
If you have the desire and opportunity to create a large enterprise with access to the wholesale market and for sales throughout the country, daily production turnover increases to 150-200 products per day. In this case, the starting capital must be at least 5 million rubles. Not everyone can afford this.
But the result of the activity will not keep you waiting long. Even with the cost of finished products at a minimum level, due to large quantities of goods, you can quickly achieve payback and make a significant profit in a short period of time.
Find your niche
As already mentioned, you should decide what exactly you will sew. There are the following directions:
- Clothing, which, in turn, is divided into women's, men's, children's, outerwear, sports, special (uniforms), home, holiday, business, etc.
- Fabric toys.
- Various textiles (curtains, towels, etc.).
- Accessories (scarves, bags), etc.
In accordance with this, it will be necessary to find workers who know how to make just such products and purchase special equipment. In order to expand the range and create interesting offers for customers, you can sometimes combine some of the options. For example, when sewing children's clothing, we can also produce various accessories for mothers or toys for babies.
Technological process
Every seamstress knows what stages clothes go through before they can be used for their intended purpose. Nevertheless, we will list the main stages of work in order to more rationally organize the production process and distribute the premises into zones.
- At the initial stage, the style itself is invented and the future product is designed, a sketch is drawn. This is what a fashion designer or designer does. He thinks over not only the silhouette, but also selects the color scheme, suitable material, etc.
- Next, you need to transfer the idea onto the fabric with a certain accuracy and make calculations for each detail. This is the work of a designer who creates a drawing to implement a creative idea. He develops patterns, specifies the dimensions of the future product, draws up technical documentation and calculates the amount of material that will be needed.
- Cut out the fabric itself.
- Every detail is processed and the finished product is sewn together.
If your atelier is small, with a limited staff, then the functions of a fashion designer and designer can be performed by a cutter. He communicates with clients, clarifies their wishes, takes measurements, cuts out details and controls the entire process. Separately, in the sewing workshop, they process the fabric according to the instructions and connect the parts of the product to each other.
Choosing a room
The location of the workshop itself is not of fundamental importance. It will be more profitable if it is located somewhere on the outskirts or even outside the city, in industrial areas. So, the rent will be lower, which will save your costs.
But the size of the studio is of great importance. The documents indicate that one employee must have at least 7 sq. m. of free space. Therefore, depending on the expected production turnover and the number of hired personnel, it will be necessary to accurately calculate the dimensions of the building.
In addition to the sewing workshop, there should be other areas, such as a warehouse, a cutting room, ironing areas, staff rest areas and a bathroom. Taking this into account, the minimum dimensions of the rented premises are approximately 60-70 square meters. m. It is important to take care of sanitary standards, lighting, ventilation and heating. Remember that the building must meet all the requirements of regulatory services.
We buy equipment
The most expensive part in the process of organizing a business will be the acquisition of specialized equipment, tools and other equipment. In this case, it is very important to make an accurate calculation of what equipment and in what quantity you will need.
Also pay attention to models, power and other parameters, since the speed of production and the quality of finished products will depend on them. You should not save on important equipment, because its breakdowns and repairs will lead to downtime. And poor-quality equipment will ruin expensive fabric.
You can pay attention to domestic car models, as they are of high quality and affordable cost. If you purchase used equipment, you need to evaluate its condition so that you don’t have to deal with unexpected costs later.
So, for small production volumes you will need:
- Cutting tables.
- Straight stitch machines.
- Overlocker and cover stitcher.
- Steam generator.
- Several irons.
- Special ironing press.
- Working surfaces for basting parts and smoothing fabric.
- Button apparatus.
- Shelving.
- Tools – knives, scissors, chalk, pins, needles, etc.
Staff
You will definitely need to hire a certain number of people to perform the various stages of sewing products. The result of the business will largely depend on the level of their training, since experienced craftsmen will be able to work faster and more accurately. But here you will need to masterfully think through the ratio of price and quality.
So, to save money, it is profitable to hire about 60-70% of highly qualified specialists, and hire recent students for the remaining jobs. As a result, the former will teach the latter all the intricacies of the business, the team will work harmoniously, and you will partially reduce wage costs.
If we talk about the specialists that will be required, then these should be:
- cutters;
- seamstresses;
- cleaning woman;
- a person responsible for receiving orders or selling products in bulk, for example, a manager.
If you plan to immediately start with large volumes of production, then additionally hire a fashion designer or designer, as well as an accountant. If the focus of the business is narrow, attention should be paid to the appropriate specialization of each seamstress. To motivate key employees to fulfill the production plan, set payment for work on a “salary plus interest” system.
Consumables
In order for the manufactured product to be of high quality, you need to purchase appropriately good fabrics, threads, decorative elements and accessories. To do this, find a reliable supplier, or even better, cooperate directly with textile manufacturers. When purchasing raw materials from the factory, you will significantly save on this type of cost.
You can also search for the desired fabrics and other components at wholesale stores in this area or study offers on the Internet. The main thing is not to get lost in your priorities - by trying to save money by using cheap and low-quality raw materials, you will ruin the reputation of your company.
Even before the launch of the first batch of goods, it is advisable to worry about where you will sell the finished products. And although it does not have an expiration date and almost does not deteriorate, it is still not recommended to keep textile products in a warehouse for a long time. Firstly, they will go out of fashion. Secondly, over time the product will lose its attractive appearance. And thirdly, the business will not develop, and you will be left without profit.
The whole idea of organizing a sewing enterprise is to sell the goods produced. Therefore, you need to find a permanent market for your products. For this purpose, you can enter into agreements with private stores, retail chains, pavilions selling textiles or clothing. Some entrepreneurs, if they have enough finance, open their own stores.
To promote your business, you can use the available advertising methods:
- Through the media.
- Ads.
- Internet.
- Create your own website with photographs of the main models and prices for them.
- Make business cards.
- Conduct screenings.
When sewing workwear, it will be enough to conclude a cooperation agreement with plants, factories and other industrial buildings. Then you can fulfill their orders on an ongoing basis.
When sewing exclusive products, you need to pay special attention to finding customers. For example, by providing high-quality and beautiful items to fit a figure with non-standard sizes, you can be sure that such customers will return more than once.
Mini studio at home
For those who do not have enough finance to immediately open a full-fledged clothing workshop, we can suggest starting with smaller volumes. In this case, it is enough to equip one of the rooms as a small workshop, where you will independently sew clothes, textiles or toys to order.
This method of organizing a business is justified when creating a limited number of exclusive and unique models. To do this, you just need to come up with unusual products and find your buyer. And only by creating a sufficiently extensive client base can you expand, rent premises and purchase specialized equipment.
Financial part
But that is not all. After all, considerable sums will be spent monthly on the maintenance of the sewing workshop.
Depending on the volume of production, as well as on the set prices and the number of buyers found, the entire income will depend. For example, per month you produce on average about 500 finished products from purchased raw materials. Price per unit – 1500 rubles. Then the revenue will be 750,000 rubles. Net profit – 375,000. As a result, full payback is achieved within two months of productive work.
But you need to understand that you may not reach such speeds right away. At first, the quantity of goods sold, even with established production, will be significantly lower. Experienced entrepreneurs say that payback is most often achieved within six months of operation of a small company.
Video: how to open a sewing production?