Embroidery services are a highly sought-after offering in the textile industry, and appropriately pricing your services is crucial to your business's success. In this comprehensive guide, we will discuss how to effectively price your embroidery services and establish a profitable business model.
If you would like more support in starting your embroidery business, check out our comprehensive guide
Understanding the Basics: Factors to Consider for Embroidery Pricing
Before diving into the nitty-gritty of embroidery pricing, it's important to understand the factors that influence the cost of embroidery services. Here are some key aspects to consider:
1. Material and Supplies Costs
The cost of materials and supplies, including thread, backing, stabilisers, and needles, should be taken into account when pricing embroidery services. Ensure you calculate these expenses accurately to maintain a healthy profit margin.
2. Labour and Overhead Costs
Labour costs include the time it takes for your employees to complete embroidery tasks, while overhead costs encompass expenses such as rent, utilities, and equipment maintenance. Both of these factors should be factored into your pricing.
3. Machine Running Time and Efficiency
The efficiency of your embroidery machines will impact your pricing structure. Consider the time it takes to complete a design, including stitch count, colour changes, and trim times, to determine an accurate cost per design.
4. Market Competition
Research your competitors' pricing to gauge the market rates and ensure that your embroidery services are competitively priced.
A 10-Step Formula for Profitable Embroidery Pricing
Follow this 10-step formula to establish a profitable embroidery pricing structure:
Step 1: Calculate Your Monthly Breakeven Point
Determine your business's breakeven point by calculating the monthly costs required to cover overhead and labour expenses. Divide this figure by the number of hours your business operates per month to find your breakeven point per hour.
Step 2: Convert Breakeven Cost to Minutes and Seconds
Convert your hourly breakeven cost into minutes and seconds to more accurately calculate the cost of each embroidery service.
Step 3: Evaluate Process Costs
Assess the time and cost of each embroidery process, such as hooping, steaming, and packing. Multiply the time spent on each process by the cost per minute or second to calculate the production cost.
Step 4: Determine Total Production Cost
Add the cost of each process to find the total production cost per minute, excluding stitch count running time.
Step 5: Calculate Daily Breakeven Point
Multiply your cost per minute by the number of hours your business operates per day to determine your daily breakeven point.
Step 6: Assess Machine Running Time
Determine how long your embroidery machines run per hour and adjust your breakeven point accordingly.
Step 7: Time Design Execution
Calculate the time it takes to execute a design on your machine, considering stitch count, colour changes, and trim times. Multiply the running time by your cost per minute to determine the cost of each design.
Step 8: Combine Stitch Count and Production Costs
Add the stitch count cost to the production cost determined in Step 4 to find the true cost per design based on stitch count.
Step 9: Apply Markup for Profit
Add a markup to the design cost to ensure a profit margin. This will help you grow and expand your embroidery business.
Step 10: Create a Price List
Develop a price list for your embroidery services and items for sale, factoring in distributor costs, shipping fees, markups, and embroidery costs.
By following this 10-step formula, you can establish a profitable pricing structure for your embroidery services that considers all costs and factors, ensuring your business's success and growth in the competitive embroidery market.
Pricing your services in the UK
A suggested starting price for embroidery services in the UK could be £16 per 1,000 stitches. This price takes into account material costs, labour, overhead expenses, and a reasonable profit margin.
To calculate the price for a specific embroidery job, you can use the following formula:
Total Price = (Stitch Count ÷ 1,000) x Base Rate + Additional Costs
In this formula, 'Stitch Count' represents the total number of stitches in the design, 'Base Rate' refers to the price per 1,000 stitches (£16 in our example), and 'Additional Costs' include any extra expenses for customisation or special materials.
Using this formula, you can easily determine the cost of any embroidery service, adjusting the base rate and additional costs as necessary to remain competitive and profitable in the UK market.