Business plan for an atelier for tailoring and repairing clothes from scratch

Every year, universities and colleges of the country produce ready-made specialists for the clothing industry. Immediately, or after working for some time in their profession, many of them decide to open their own atelier for tailoring and repairing clothes. There are good reasons for this:

the quality of clothes from the mass market no longer meets the requirements of the buyer;
there is a growing demand for designer, unique items and accessories tailored to a specific customer;
the choice of high-quality fabrics, actual colors for the production of clothing and home textiles, is diverse and affordable;
With the development of the Internet, the ability to find clients is no longer limited to the area where the atelier is located.

It is not necessary to be a clothing industry specialist to become an atelier owner. The sewing business develops according to the same rules as any other business. The ability to organize people, set tasks, look for customers and sales methods lead a business to success.

Tailoring and repair tailoring

Sewing workshops provide various types of clothing repair services and are engaged in tailoring certain items. Depending on their specialization, they are divided into two categories.

Narrow profile

They specialize in tailoring one category of clothing or accessories. For example:

Men’s suit
Wedding and evening dresses
Women’s clothing
Baby clothes
School uniform
Home textiles
Overalls
Leather clothing
Fur clothes
Outerwear
car covers
Underwear and swimwear
Hats
Bags and backpacks
Tourist and trade tents, awnings, canopies

wide profile

Larger sewing studios work in several directions, combining related categories of products presented above. Market analysis will help determine in which areas it will be profitable to work and develop.

Mistakes when starting a sewing business

So , you have chosen in which direction to work and what your studio will do. Now it is important not to make mistakes.

10 mistakes when creating a private atelier:

Start acting without a business plan ;
Borrow money from relatives;
Save on promotion;
Take everything upon yourself;
Lack of responsible qualified specialists in the team;
Expecting quick profits;
Embellishment of reality – be honest with the client;
Do not listen to the client;
Wrong pricing;
Do not separate business and friendship.

Market and competitor analysis

For a successful business, a cool business idea and a team of specialists are not enough.
It is very important to analyze the market and competitors. This must be done before you start investing in a sewing studio. How to proceed:

Determine competitors and their location using Yandex.Maps , Google Maps or 2GIS.
Examine the list of services provided by competitors. With the help of websites, pages on social networks or a personal request for a service.
Make a list of destinations that are not covered by competitors. These areas can be developed in your sewing workshop.
Check whether there will be demand for directions not covered by competitors. To do this, analyze whether there are potential customers in your city. What areas, industries, people could become customers. For cities where the average income is low, opening a premium men’s suit tailoring shop is likely to be a mistake.
Take a closer look at the studios that work via the Internet . For example: the sale of home clothes, underwear, children’s clothes, home textiles from exclusive, high-quality, natural materials by sewing workshops has long been gaining popularity on the Internet.

Choosing a studio space

Good ideas for premises for a repair and tailoring studio will be:

Premises in a shopping center (mandatory on the 1st floor);
A room in a fabric store;
Premises in community centers;
Premises in the city center (if the atelier is focused on tailoring for the premium segment)

In the case when renting space in the city center or a large shopping center is not affordable, you can consider an alternative option – open a collection and urgent repair point in a profitable place with an expensive rental space, and place the production itself in a residential area.The nuances of the sewing business:

To connect industrial sewing machines to the network, a voltage of 380V is required. The workplace of a seamstress must be lit according to special standards and they are five times higher than the requirements for living quarters.

Paperwork

It is convenient to register an atelier for tailoring and repairing clothes by registering as an individual entrepreneur. The procedure is standard. You need to contact the tax office.

Independently or entrust to an intermediary, pay for the service and not delve into the subtleties;
Decide on the OKVED activity codes. They are selected from the OKVED directory with a margin, in case of expansion of the activities of the individual entrepreneur. Suitable for a sewing studio – 95.29.1; 52.74; 17.40; 18.2; 18.22; 18.24; 18.24.4; 51.42.5;
Prepare an application in the form P21001. The application is signed when submitting documents, in the presence of the inspector;
Pay a receipt for the state duty for registration of IP;
Choose a taxation system, for beginners recommend USN
The Pension Fund and Rosstat receive information about individual entrepreneurs automatically from the tax service. Followed by:
Make a seal
Open a bank account
Buy an online checkout
Sign a lease agreement
Obtain permission from Rospotrebnadzor
Fire department permit. If you are renting a room, the landlord must already have it. Get a copy for yourself.

Equipment selection

Consider purchasing industrial sewing equipment from sewing shops. This is beneficial in that the price will be lower than for similar new ones. Establish connections with specialists, locksmiths who service these machines and know a lot about them.

The main set of equipment for the atelier for tailoring and repairing clothes:

Industrial straight stitch machine;
Overlock;
Steamer;
Iron;
cutter’s table;
Mannequins;
Consumables: scissors, needles, threads, pins, buttons, zippers;
Mirror in the fitting room;
Hangers;

When expanding production capacity, and to fulfill certain categories of orders, sewing machines may be required:

Chain stitch;
Lockstitch;
Furrier
Stitches zigzag, curly zigzag

Recruitment

The staff plays a leading role for a tailoring and repair shop. This is what the owners of the clothing business say. You will need tailors, a technologist.

Look for seamstresses and tailors on classifieds sites.
Write down the requirements, working conditions;
Offer piece-rate payment;
Enter into an agreement with the employee. Write down all the points. Requirements for work, work and rest schedules, deadlines for completing work, a system of rewards and punishments;
Conduct the interview in two stages. By phone, then in person;
Prepare questionnaires for collecting and storing personal data of employees;
Specify specialization. A good tailor will always name his specialty.
It is impossible to be a pro at everything;
Ask for reviews from previous jobs;
Give test tasks – pay attention to the speed and accuracy of the task;
Establish a probationary period for hiring;
Train your staff, practice mentoring;
Demand accuracy, diligence and courtesy to the client.

Consider bookkeeping. You can either deal with accounting on your own, or conclude an agreement with a specialist who will outsource accounting and tax reporting.

The main ways to promote a tailoring studio

At the initial stage, marketing is especially important for a sewing studio. Do not save on advertising, not only the first months, but also the first year. Having decided on tailoring, the client must know where to go.

Tell about yourself
A prominent sign with the name;
Advertising on the radio (for placement in the shopping center);
Social advertising networks;
Post flyers, distribute flyers (for studios in a residential area);
Develop a site;
Advertising in local media;
Discounts, bonus program;

Build contacts with potential clients. Looking for organizations, sections, shops where your services may be required.

After the client has come to you, your task is to make sure that he comes back to you. The staff must work professionally, quickly, accurately, efficiently.

Price list of sewing studio services

When compiling a price list for the services of a sewing workshop, be guided by the prices of competitors. Make them a little lower, at the stage of opening and promotion. This will attract customers. A sample list of clothing repair services:

Fitting to the figure of outerwear;
Fitting to the figure of everyday clothes;
Fitting to the figure of a men’s suit;
Shorten / lengthen the bottom of outerwear;
Zipper replacement;
Repair of leather products with liquid leather;
Sleeve repair;
Steaming;
Minor repairs.

How much does it cost to open

Let’s calculate the costs of opening a small sewing workshop
for tailoring and repairing clothes. Leased premises with an area of 20 sq.m, 2 seamstresses. This is a small workshop, it will not cope with a large volume of regular orders. It will be necessary to expand the range of sewing equipment, hire additional staff, in case of an increase in production volumes. We will take into account the costs of registering an individual entrepreneur, purchasing an online cash register, and making a seal.

professional sewing machine	30 000 rub.
household sewing machine	15 000 rub.
overlock	40 000 rub.
cutter’s table	5 000 rub.
dummy	3 000 rub.
2 workplaces for a seamstress (table, chair)	(2,500 rubles + 2,000 rubles) x 2
fitting room (mirror, hanger, curtains)	5 000 rub.
renovation of the premises 20 sq.m	50 000 rub.
expenses for registration of individual entrepreneurs, online cash desk, printing	10 000 rub.
advertising	30 000 rub.
consumables and other expenses	30 000 rub.
room rental	15 000 rub.
TOTAL:	RUB 212,000

Profitability of tailoring and repair studio

Speaking about the payback of the business, the owners name the period of 6-8 months. In such a short period, it turns out to return the funds that were invested. Then you can continue to develop your business, develop new specializations, attract new customers.

How to increase profit

Pay attention to clients with features of the figure. It is difficult for them to find clothes in the store and they use the services of an atelier;
Part of the orders can be transferred to seamstresses who work at home. This will allow to increase the volume of executed orders and at the same time not to pay for additional rental space;
Always follow the terms of the order and monitor the quality of work.

Correct accents:

The client appreciates the quality of service, efficiency, courtesy. These are the three main steps on the road to success.

Atelier for tailoring and repairing clothes, often becomes a family business. It has a fast payback. A small workshop does not require large financial investments. Services are in demand. It is important to select qualified employees and then business development will not be long in coming. This is a real business idea.