How to Start Your Own Home Sewing Business
By Rebecca Chan
Whether you are sick of the daily grind of an office job or simply are looking to try
something new, starting a home sewing business is an exciting and fun adventure as long as
you have your ducks in a row. Provided are some guidelines to follow when starting your
first home sewing business - love these guidelines, cherish them, keep them in a notebook
under your pillow. They will be a great help to you as you being this fantastic journey.
Insurance: One of those pesky little business things you need to consider is having
insurance for your home business. You will need to add a business liability policy to your
insurance because your homeowner's insurance will not cover any loss or damage to your
home business. Business liability insurance is pretty affordable and will keep you from
losing big in the wake of a disaster.
Business Licensing and Regulation: Before you dig out the needle and thread, check with
your local city and county government offices to see what the legal restrictions/licensing
requirements are for home-based businesses. These regulations vary from city, county and
sometimes state, so make sure to take care of this before you dive in. Your local
government officers will be able to tell you what you need to know in order to obtain the
materials for your licensing.
Along the same lines, you may need to inquire about a seller's permit, especially if
your state requires a sales tax. Your state Controller will have information about how to
get this and will mostly likely help you as much as possible.
Set The Steps!: Creating a business plan is essential to any beginning business. Your
business plan will help you prioritize what is most important to your business and what
things need to be taken into consideration when budgeting and things like that. Start
designing your plan by listing your goals, short and long-term, and what factors will go
into you obtaining those goals. What elements will go into your business?
You will absolutely need a fully-developed business plan if you are planning to ask for
any start-up funding for your business. Financers want and need to see that you are a)
going to profit enough to pay them back and b) are serious about your endeavor. If you
don't take this step seriously, neither will any investors.
Price Check: Many people who are first starting up their own businesses make the
mistake of charging too little for their time and services, thinking that because they're
new to the game, they have to build a reputation first. Nonsense! Do some research and
find out what the going rate is for your specialty and go with it. People are either going
to want your services or not and selling yourself short is not going to bring the bread to
your table. You are trustworthy and your skills are comparable to 20-year pros-charge accordingly.
Market, Market, Market: After you have that technical stuff down, it's time to let
people know who you are and what you are doing. Put your name out there, on the internet,
in a press release for the local paper, by flyer or brochure or craft fair. It doesn't
matter how you do it, as long as you do it. Anywhere you might meet a potential client or
customer, be ready to provide something with your name and services. Tell your family and
friends, keep a flyer at work, start a blog. Anything to start the fire. You can find
business card printing services online for a fraction of what it used to be, and business
cards are great because they already have all your info on them!
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