Do you love working on clothing and helping people look really good using the clothes they already have? If you have sewing and alteration skills but don’t want to get into the highly competitive field of actually making clothing, the alterations business might be the perfect answer. If you ran your own alterations and clothing repair business you can earn as much as $60,000 a year after building up your client base.
What Skills Do You Need Before Getting Started?
Basically, you need to have sewing, alterations and clothing repair education. You should have at least 6 months of real world experience before trying to start your own business, even if you went to sewing school.
You should know how to replace buttons, how to do original hem hemming, how to replace zippers, how to taper clothing, how to adjust clothing sizes, how to repair seams and so on.
Equipment Necessary to Get Started
The crux of your business rests on your sewing machine. You’ll want to have one main sewing machine that you use day to day, plus one cheaper machine just in case your main machine runs into technical difficulties.
Professional grade sewing machines run anywhere from $150 for a simple used machine to a $5,000 unit with all the bells and whistles. High end equipment isn’t necessary for success, but can help you cut down on work time.
You’ll also need to purchase a range of other supplies. You’ll need needles, markers, thread, clothespins, tape, measuring tape and rulers for your day to day work. You’ll also need rack space to hang clothing from, plus clothe hangers.
In addition, you’ll also need to invest in a business license and incorporate your business. When everything’s said and done, expect to add about $2,000 on top of your lease and sewing machine costs.
Location, Location, Location
An alterations business is primarily a local business. It’s unlikely that someone will drive 50 miles to come to your alterations business rather than one in their local mall. Therefore getting a good location is tantamount to your success.
Ideally your location should either be in a high traffic area like a shopping center or a busy street, or it should be near a popular laundromat. Try to locate yourself near residential areas.
Building a Client Base
One of the best ways to build a client base quickly is to partner with laundromats and dry cleaners. Anytime they have clients that need alterations, have them send the clients you way. Pay them about 10% for the referral.
You can also advertise in the yellow pages, or online on local websites like Yelp or Craigslist. Special offers to local customers on printed flyers can also work really well when distributed in residential areas.
affiliate, and you pay them say $25 a lead, keeping $5 a lead for yourself.
