Below
are some excerpts from our seminar “Our First Years in Business.” We hope you find a few useful tips to help you plan your new embroidery
business adventure!
What we did right
Have a
business
plan. Know what
you want to accomplish, base further decisions on the original mission
statement.
Have
adequate
finances to see you through the first year or two.
Read all of
the
magazines. Attend the beginners'
seminars to get an idea of what the business is all about.
Even after you are in the business, keep reading and attending seminars
to see how much more you understand now that you are part of the industry.
Buy
digitizing
software. You don’t have to
use it from the beginning, but you want the flexibility to edit and design. It
will help you understand what your machine is doing if you can see how designs
go together.
Have or get some general computer experience prior to starting this
business. It is too much to learn
computers, embroidery and garments all at once.
If you have a good background with Windows, office programs, and
preferably graphics programs, you will slide right into the digitizing program.
Buy all of the thread of
one
manufacturer. Thread is the least expensive part of the embroidery equation,
and you need the full rainbow of colors to satisfy your customer.
Start with one machine. Choose a
manufacturer that you can grow with. Check
to see that the software that comes with the machine is user friendly.
Is the training adequate? Get
a follow up training course (you would be amazed at how much you forget!).
Stitch lots of samples as practice - including every bit of clothing you
own.
Always wear embroidery. You are a walking billboard. How can anyone ask
you about your business if they don’t know you have a business? How can
you ask others to wear embroidery when you don't?
Have lots of designs on display. Customers will buy designs if they see
them on display. Plus color adds to
the ambiance of your shop.
Buy a
standard
collection of designs. Find the
one that's right for you. In addition to the number of designs in the
collection, consider these factors:
Does the collection reflect your customers’ interests?
Does the collection come with a functional index, both on paper and
computerized?
Can you upgrade the collection on an annual basis? For what cost?
How many catalogs come with the collection? Are they laminated?
(Customers are hard on catalogs!)
Take on "challenges" as a way of teaching yourself new tricks.
This can be fine lettering, appliqués, large
banners, complex designs, hard to hoop garments, etc.
Practice prior to stitching on final garment. Don’t consider it a money
maker the first time you do it. Consider it an education, and take your time.
Have a relationship with a large embroidery shop to farm out jobs that
are too large for you. Know what his capabilities are, time frames, prices,
quantities, thread selection, etc.
Learn from other embroiderers
Stitching
on real garments is not the same as stitching on fabric squares
Payments are not automatic. You have to ask for the money, you have to be clear what
terms you are willing to offer, you need to hold the goods until customer pays
or makes arrangements suitable to you.
Customers need boundaries. Otherwise they will take advantage of you.
If you do not tell the customers specifically when you are open, when
they must pay, what type of goods you will work on, they will push the limits
without even realizing it. Do not
assume that just because something is unreasonable, improper or in poor taste in
your mind that the customer has ever considered such a thing.
Everyone who calls based on the yellow pages considers all vendors the
same. You should turn the
conversation around so that you are interviewing the caller. Is this the project
you want? If so, give them reason to abandon their line of questions and get
them into your shop. If this isn't the type of customer/project you want then
politely conclude the phone call as quickly as possible, so you don't waste your
time on a project that won't make you money.
The "quality triangle" is a universal law of any successful
business decision involving a vendor and a customer.
Draw a triangle and label the three points with price, time and quality.
In any business decision, the customer chooses two and the vendor gets
the third. A customer who comes in
asking for the best quality and he needs it right now (time and quality) should
fully expect to pay the highest possible price. He has no right to ask for a
discount for the best quality project on a rush order!
And you cannot give him a discount while you and your staff are working
overtime to produce for him. Try
the triangle, you will find it is always right.
Now listen carefully to what your customer is saying. His concerns are not always price, no matter what he says!
yellow pages
little league banner on main street
past orders - include a freebie with a large order
tags in garments
business cards
web site
send freebies to friends, relatives - be creative
cold calls
private company yellow pages
third party references
generic requests for bids from schools/government
If
you have any questions regarding this material, or would like to discuss it
further, please send us an email
.
Good
luck in your new business!