Going into embroidering

nametags

Here is what happens in my area with this situation, and has happened recently as a matter of fact.

A couple of women started their embroidery business in their home. They moved to a store front within 2 years. One toyota and baraudan machine. They traded out their work schedule and embroidery schedule, 6 days a week, 12 hour days. They tired of it quickly.

They hired a lady that had a machine at home, that was familiar with their machines, to do just the embroidery. Five days a week, 8 hours a day, $8 an hour. Now, the owners only work 3-4 days a week, alternating. Now they're open on sunday. The lady does "hobby" type stuff, no real production or sales.

In 6 months, the lady is now very proficient with their machines, and their software enough to do some advanced stuff, but not all.

Then, the machine operator, says she now wants $10 an hour, and 4 days a week. They say "no". It's october, the holidays are coming.

The lady quits, buys her own big machine, a baraudan, sets up in her garage, gets a face book page, puts a few ads in the local paper, and now is in shape to start up her own business.

The original ladies now have no embroidery operator, and have to go back to work themselves, which they do but with great dislike for it now.

Customers, not knowing the circumstances, come into the shop, buy stuff, and bring stuff in, to be embroidered. They can't/wont' handle it. Guess what. They call their former employee, and contract to her...

After the holdiays, long story short here, they close up, as neither wants to now put in the effort to go back to the long days, neither wants to go through the operator process again, and they got lazy not having to work.

The lady in the garage,,,,,still sewing and selling.

Hope this helps.

leye2004

Hello my name is Ade, also newbie to embroidery......however I have been doing it for the past 3 years with the help of other people. They are a nice family and are trying to sell their business to me. I have been supplying Uniforms to about three Jails here. This family help me to do the patches and the names on the shirts. I have told them , how much I love the business and they are willing to sell the business as they're a bit elderly. Currently, I go to their shop for training every now and then. I have come to a realization that there is a big market for this business hence am trying to develop myself to get to know how to operate the machine and get to know other technicalities involved. My question is, am not so sure of how old the machines are and how much to pay for the whole business.
Also this is the first time am posting something on this site....really I just want to say something, so am not sure if my question actually make any sense.
Thanks

aardvark7

First, even if it is very hard to do, you have to ignore 'being nice'. I don't mean you should suddenly be angry, ill-mannered, or try to cheat, but you do need to look at the situation with a cool detachment.

This is a business and business only works if you can earn more than it costs; pure and simple.

So first look at the costs: simply ask for the details of the machines (the serial numbers should be sufficient if you have to contact the manufacturers, but the owners should know) and then research places like here to see how much equivalent machines are fetching.

Then how much business do you do and what turnover might you acquire with the new business? Do they have long running contracts?

Are you capable of maintaining capacity, or might you let customers down because you couldn't cope with numbers?

There are many other issues, but if you can guarantee the work, and the money it brings in covers all the costs and more, then it would seem like a decent proposition.

However, you need to be brutally honest with yourself (and I mean BRUTAL) and to go over all the books of the business with a fine toothcomb. I'm not saying the other people are conmen, but making sure about everything won't affect them at all whereas not doing so could cost you everything.