Surely every person who knows how to sew or model clothes came up with the idea of starting their own business. And what does the studio business plan look like? What documents will be needed? Can a sewing workshop really become a profitable business?
Is it profitable to open an atelier?
Everyone who is thinking about how to open a clothing repair studio is surely interested in potential profit. Could such an enterprise become profitable? Of course, such a business has every chance of success, but only with the right approach.
After all, repairing clothes is something that every person needs from time to time. For example, you need to hem too long trousers, change a broken lock on a jacket - who at least once in your life has not encountered a similar problem? But before opening the studio, you should take a real look at things and think about what kind of customer flow you can count on.
Determine the range of services
There are several types of services that the studio can offer.
- Clothing repair is by far the most sought after. Surely most often people with minor problems will contact you. Someone will need to change the zipper, someone to alter the buttons, and someone to adjust the size of the clothes. These services will always be in demand. On the other hand, and they cost not so much.
- Sewing clothes is another opportunity for making money. For example, every woman wants to have at least one exquisite thing in her wardrobe - with this problem, of course, she will turn to you. In addition, custom-made clothes are also necessary if a person has non-standard sizes, and therefore it becomes impossible to buy clothes in a store or on the market. If your studio will offer this service, then it is worth taking care of experienced employees.
- And, of course, the most profitable, but at the same time the most difficult thing is modeling and designing clothes. In such cases, it is hardly possible to do without an experienced and talented designer. You yourself will make a profit by selling unique wardrobe items.
What documents need to be issued?
Of course, in order to open an atelier for repairing clothes (or sewing), you will need to collect a package of some documents. And first of all, a novice businessman will go to the tax office. It is best to register as an individual entrepreneur, but a limited liability company is also suitable.
In addition, you need to get permission from the SES and go through a fire inspection. An inspection of the labor protection service is also pending. In most cases, collecting documents takes up to two months.
We select a room under the studio
Renting a studio is one of the first problems an entrepreneur faces. Where is the best place to open such an enterprise? In fact, there are many options. For example, a clothing repair shop is best opened near large clothing stores, and ideally even in the territory of a shopping center. Here, there will be no shortage of customers, because many people need to shorten or fit the just-bought thing in shape.
And if you are sewing clothes and household textiles (sheets, curtains), then you can open an atelier next to the fabric store. In the event that you create and sew your own models, you can rent a room somewhere in a busy part of the city.
In extreme cases, you can always remove it somewhere on the outskirts of the city, but in this case, the main emphasis will need to be placed on advertising.By the way, it is better to open an atelier where there is no such company yet - the competition will not be so fierce.
It is worth considering that there are some requirements for the room. Must be connected to water, electricity. Mandatory is the heating and ventilation system. Do not forget about the bathroom. Part of the room should be reserved for the dressing room with a large mirror, where customers can try on clothes, and the seamstress can see if more changes are needed.
What equipment will be needed?
Of course, the business plan of the studio must necessarily include the cost of equipment. What equipment will be needed to open an enterprise?
Of course, the main tool in this case is a sewing machine. It is best to take a multifunctional quality model that is suitable for working with different types of fabrics. At first, one machine will be quite enough, but if the business goes well, you will have to buy additional equipment.
It is also advisable to have in your arsenal a hemming machine, which is most often used to hem the bottom of trousers. Naturally, you will need to buy an overlock, without which high-quality tailoring and repair of clothes is simply impossible.
It is worth taking care of the required amount of furniture - these are cabinets for finished products and clothes waiting in line, as well as bedside tables and chests of drawers where it is convenient to hold buttons, threads, fabric samples, etc.
A professional studio should also have a pattern table, an ironing board and a steam iron - do not give wrinkled clothes to customers.
Consumables: we plan costs
What else is worth adding to the list of costs? First of all, fabrics. Of course, some customers will come to you with ready-made material, but quite often you will need to choose the fabric yourself - in this case, you should agree with the suppliers. The same applies to small parts, including buttons, ribbons, locks, etc.
And, of course, the business plan of the sewing studio should include the costs of threads, needles, pins, crayons, paper, rulers, measuring tapes, etc.
Qualified workforce is the key to success
In fact, the success of your enterprise depends on the quality of work of employees. After all, if your seamstress dishonestly do their job, it is unlikely that a person will contact you again. Therefore, experience, professionalism and a desire to develop are the main qualities of employees.
By the way, since they have to work with people, they must have sociability. In the initial stages, two seamstresses will be sufficient, and as development develops, it will be possible to hire additional staff.
If you are going to create your own models of clothing, then you will need a talented designer. By the way, if you managed to attract really good specialists, you should not save on wages. If money is still not enough, set some minimum salary, and add to it a percentage of the revenue for the work done - this is a great incentive for employees to find and fulfill new orders well.
Enterprise Advertising
Atelier advertising is extremely important. Indeed, in order to create an influx of customers, you need to make people know about your company. What is suitable for disseminating information in this case? Virtually everything.
To get started, you should come up with a sonorous name and order the appropriate sign. You can hang several banners around the city inviting you to visit your atelier.
You can always negotiate with neighboring clothing and fabric stores - even if for a small fee they recommend your atelier to customers and give out business cards. Local newspaper ads and small radio commercials will also be helpful.
The discount system will help to build up a regular customer base. And before some seasonal events, you can distribute flyers around the city - for example, in the spring you can distribute tailor-made tailor-made advertisements, etc.
Atelier business plan: summarize
Of course, before opening the studio, you should calculate all the costs and think about increasing profits. So, the studio’s business plan should include, first of all, the cost of renting the premises, which will be from 10 to 60 thousand rubles, depending on the location and area.
Professional equipment will also cost a lot. For example, a good sewing machine costs about 40-60 thousand rubles. The price of a professional iron and board ranges from 6 to 10 thousand rubles. Overlock on average costs 15 to 20 thousand rubles.
In addition, it is worth considering the cost of furniture. Of course, in the coming months, the main expense item will be wages - depending on the number of employees, they will range from 25 to 60 thousand rubles.
With such expenses, the number of customers should be large - this is the only way to develop a business or at least recoup expenses and achieve minimal net profit. Of course, loud advertising, quality work and pleasant service will help to make the company popular.
But you always have the opportunity to do more complex as well as seasonal work. For example, you can sew bedding, curtains and other household items. In the spring, you can do sewing prom dresses, and in the summer you can start working on a school uniform. Sewing and selling wedding dresses will bring good income.
