Skip to content

Home
Blog

The Tailoq blog, page 2

Practical notes on running a workshop and a shop.

A grey-haired woman pinning a folded dark cloth beside a sewing machine, with a pincushion and three spools of thread on the wooden table.

PricingHow to build a seamstress price list from timed jobsRepairs and alterations are short jobs, so small timing errors add up fast. Time the work first, then let the clock write your price list.

A rail of long-sleeved garments on wooden hangers, running from cream through sand and lilac to charcoal and plum, each with a blank swing tag.

PricingHow to build a tailor price listA price list should come from your own hours and costs, in your own currency. Here is how to set one out, and how to handle the jobs that cause arguments at the counter.

A long cutting table with a roll of charcoal cloth, stacked cut pieces, shears, tied bundles and a folded finished jacket, with dress forms and sewing machines behind.

PricingHow to calculate garment cost per pieceFive lines give you a cost per piece you can trust: material, wastage, labour, outside work and overhead. Here is each one, then a worked example for a batch of 20.

A woman in a charcoal blazer writes in a notebook at a table laid out with fabric swatches, a tablet and a laptop.

SoftwareHow to choose tailoring software: the questions to askA feature list tells you little, because most vendors have the same one. These questions, and one real job run through a trial, will tell you more.

Two hands hold a tape measure across the back of a person wearing a cream shirt, from shoulder to shoulder, against a plain lilac wall.

Shop floorHow to measure for tailoring: a complete guideGood measuring comes from a fixed routine. Here are the tools, the posture and the key points for shirts, trousers, jackets, kanduras and abayas.

A woman in a grey shirt pinning a garment on a dress form beside a sunlit window, with plants on the sill and an old sewing machine on a wooden table.

Shop floorHow to start a tailoring business from homeA home workroom keeps your costs down, but your home has to do two jobs. Here is what to check first, how to set up the space, and how to run fittings without strangers wandering through your family life.

A tailor in a pale linen shirt guides navy fabric under the foot of an old metal sewing machine.

Shop floorHow to start a tailoring business in KenyaA plain guide to choosing your line of work, registering through the right offices, buying equipment and finding your first regular customers.

A royal blue robe with gold embroidered bands on a wooden hanger, with a blank orange tag, against a plum wall.

Shop floorHow to start a tailoring business in NigeriaPick the work you want to be known for, register properly, and set up your orders so a busy month does not sink you. This guide covers each step and names the authority to check with.

A man in a lilac shirt threading a needle at an old black sewing machine on a wooden table in a plain room, with a sofa behind him and light from a window.

Shop floorHow to start a tailoring business with little or no moneyYou will need a working machine and a little money for thread. Beyond that, a tailoring business can pay for itself one job at a time, if you pick the right work and take money up front.

A woman in a linen jacket folding deep purple cloth on wooden shelves stacked with fabric, with an old black sewing machine on the table in front of her.

Shop floorHow to start a tailoring business, step by stepMost of the early mistakes in a tailoring business come from doing things in the wrong order. Here is a sequence that keeps your spending low until the work is proven.

A digital scale holding a glass bowl of clear crystals, with small bowls of pearls and metallic sequins beside an ivory garment covered in floral beadwork.

MaterialsHow to track beads, sequins and crystals without losing them or the marginGrams or pieces, how to weigh, how to issue against a job, what to do with returns and wastage, and one worked example with all the sums.

Two tailors working at separate tables with a rail of part-made garments between them, below a large blank whiteboard.

ProductionHow to track garment production so you always know where each piece isStages, owners, outside work and QC returns, and the short list worth checking each morning. Most of it works on a whiteboard.