Reupholstery of furniture
From Startup
Re-upholstery of chairs, seats and crafts
Basic skills in textiles and sewing have a wide number of applications. One of these is in the re-upholstery of chairs, and in crafts.
This business plan is based on an idea implemented in Porterville, Western Cape. Most personal information has been stripped from this business plan but much of the specific information relates to Porterville.
[edit] Description of the business
A range of business ideas come from the skill of reupholstering damaged and degraded upholstery:
- re-upholstering of motorcar seats
- designing and manufacture of photo frames, jewelry boxes, mirrors with upholstered frames, and so on
- re-upholstery of chairs seats, ironing boards and so on
What exactly is it that is going to be sold or done?
The best way to start is by building a reputation with domestic services: re-upholstering house-hold furniture and producing a small range of cushions and other upholstered items. Once a reputation is secured then you could move on to the more technical, time-consuming and expensive business of re-upholstering motorcar seats.
What skills are needed to do this? Where is this taught and how much will it cost?
The business owner would need skills in textiles manufacturing and design as well as some apprenticeship or work experience. Basic business skills are also important.
What tools or equipment are needed? Where can they be bought, and how much will they cost?
- hand-staple gun + staples = R 200
- sewing machine = R 500
- tag hammer + tags = R 150
- needles + piping = R 50
- stainless steel ruler = R 6
- tape measure = R 10
- scissors = R 20
- set square = R 10
- circular needles = R 3.50
- upholster shears = R 50
- material = get free offcuts for small jobs
Suppliers include:
- Kehl’s Upholstery Suppliers in Maitland, Cape Town
- Kaap-Agri in Porterville
- Fox Tool Suppliers in Piketburg
How much space is needed to work from? A single small room at home will do.
Where will the space be found, and how much will it cost to rent?
Rental costs at home can be minimal except for any rates, electricity, telephone and water, as well as the rental.
What sort of people will buy the product? Who are they and where do they live?
This product is aimed at working-class people who want to extend the life of their household furniture but can’t afford to buy new furniture.
How much and how often will they buy? Will they come to the shop or will it be necessary to deliver?
There are many craft markets on weekends that can provide a good supplemental income to the business.
Otherwise clients can place orders by phone or visit the store. A good idea is to go door-to-door and introduce people to the idea. This way you are also able to give an immediate quote should anyone be interested in re-upholstering their furniture.
[edit] Upstream Businesses
A list of businesses and ideas that provide the services and products that this business needs.
[edit] Downstream Businesses
A list of businesses and ideas that this business could provide products for.
[edit] Competitors
What major competitors will attract clients' spending away from the business' products?
There is one other re-upholsterer in Porterville.
What prices and products do these companies have?
Porterville is in an agricultural area and so the competitor focuses on motor- and tractor-seats for the agricultural sector. They charge between R 1 000 and R 1 500 per vehicle. The re-upholstering of settees is more expensive and costs R 1 200 to R 2 000 per set.
What makes them popular / unpopular?
This particular business targets high-end customers with a high quality product. It is unaffordable to poorer customers.
What do they do to attract customers? Specials? Interesting marketing / advertising?
They advertise in the local press.
Which of the competitors stand out as being particularly good at what they do?
Susan’s Upholstery Services
What can be done to stand out against them? What can be done that is more exciting / more interesting?
- take personal interest in customer’s needs
- keep prices affordable (but still profitable)
- small give-away with every major order (e.g. a photo frame)
- delivery of goods
- high quality finishes
[edit] Marketing the business to clients
What sort of people will buy the products and how important is product consistency to them (e.g. must every loaf of bread be identical)?
This business will aim at the lower income customers with products and services aimed at their needs.
How seasonal or fashion-dependent are their buying habits (do they buy only in summer, only over Christmas, etc.)?
These people are especially sensitive to income fluctuations and this is built around the fruit harvesting season.
Do the clients want the products to be the cheapest or the best (low price / low quality or high price / high quality)?
These clients are more likely to want to repair furniture and the like since they will want goods to last longer, but they are very price sensitive. They will accept a lower quality but won’t accept being ripped off.
How do the clients decide where to buy the products? What sorts of advertising / promotions attract their interest?
Clients are likely to be referred by friends who have had a good experience, or through direct door-to-door sales. Some advertising with flyers or newspaper advertising may help.
What can be done to attract the first clients (the most important and most difficult to get)? How much will it cost?
A stall in a flee market can attract a great deal of attention amongst value shoppers. A promotion could offer the first five customers something free. Special discounts offered to friends can get them through the doors and help in word-of-mouth advertising.
[edit] The business inputs and outputs
List all of the inputs (products that are required to produce the products):
- material = R 150
- foam = R 75
- webbing = R 25
- string = R 20
- cotton wool = R 60
- tags = R 12
- needles = R 20
- plastic wrap = R 68
- scissors = R 20
- upholstery shears = R 50
For a total of R 500
List all of your outputs (products created by your business):
- cushions
- photo frames
- mirrors with upholstered edges
- chairs
- jewelry boxes
- ironing board
- linen boxes
What sort of prices can be charged and how much profit will can be made on each item (a rough estimate)?
- cushions = R 25 each (profit = R 10)
- photo frames = R 20 each (profit = R 10)
- mirrors with upholstered edges = R 60 each (profit = R 25)
- chairs = R 30 each (profit = R 10)
- jewelry boxes = R 20 each (profit = R 10)
- ironing board = R 30 each (profit = R 10)
- linen boxes = R 80 each (profit = R 30)
Do the outputs have a shelf-life? Must they be sold within a specified time limit before they go off / can't be sold? Which ones?
Items don’t go off, although fabric may become unfashionable.
[edit] Setting up the business
List everything that needs to be done to prepare the business to be ready (list everything needed to have as well, both equipment and stock):
- market research
- setting up workplace
- equipment needs to be purchased (sewing machine, tape measure, carpet knife, staple gun, square, needles, pins, tag hammer, chisels, scissors, pliers)
- stock (material, foam, string / cord, staples, tags, varnish, cotton, zips, pins, wood)
How long will it take to get all of these things and how much will they cost to get?
It can take a week to secure these items and will cost between R 5 – 600.
List all the fixed costs to be paid every month even if nothing is sold (things like rent, electricity, telephone, staff wages):
- electricity = R 50
- transport = R 150 to R 200
- telephone = R 30
Total amount for fixed costs: R 300
How many staff will be needed and how much will each of them be paid (wages must be included in the fixed costs above)?
This business will be started with only the owner but, as the business grows, then additional staff will be hired.
What training will they need, how long will it take and how much will it cost?
Staff can be trained on the job.
[edit] The manufacturing or production process
List every step, from start to finish, to produce the product
- measuring and cutting of all material / parts needed
- plundering of old material
- possible repairs to broken parts / frames
- preparation:
- fitting of webbing
- stitching of material
- cutting of foam
- fitting of cushions with foam / cotton wool
- fitting of finished material
- put finishing touches to work done
Allocate each of the manufacturing steps to a process and a process to a staff member (e.g. all manufacturing steps A to process 1):
This will all be done by the owner.
What possible problems may happen during each step of the manufacturing process?
- wrong measuring and cutting of material if not clearly marked at the beginning
- broken needles (need plenty of spares)
- weak string used for sewing snaps
- wrong kind of materials used
- wrong design used for particular job
What solutions can be identified for these problems? How much will they cost and how long will they take to fix?
All the equipment must be maintained and replaced where necessary. This will cost about R 350 per month. It is essential to ensure that there is enough material in stock to complete any job and not to take on jobs that are too large for the business at the beginning.
What is the maintenance program for all the equipment?
All equipment to be checked once a week.
What safety requirements are important for production?
- tools and equipment to be handled with care
- tools to be kept in a safe place
- tools to be kept sharp
- broken tools / equipment to be removed and replaced quickly
- safety clothing essential
How will quality control and client feedback be handled?
- make use of strong materials to avoid problems
- check all work before delivery to client
- ask customer to check work before payment
[edit] Costing and bookkeeping
How many of each of the stock items can reasonably be sold each day (and month)?
It should be possible to sell at least two items per day at R 20 per item (i.e. 60 items per month)
Will sales volumes be a similar number of each item each month, or is there seasonal variation (cold months, hot, or festivals)?
There will be better sales over Christmas, as well as during the harvest season.
What sort of pricing strategy will be chosen (cheapest or best)?
This business will attempt to be the cheapest.
What profit margin will be chosen for the products
An average margin will be about R 10 per item (on the target above, about R 800 per month).
Write down the cost prices plus the margin for each stock item you will sell, and the selling price
- cushions = R 25 each (profit = R 10)
- photo frames = R 20 each (profit = R 10)
- mirrors with upholstered edges = R 60 each (profit = R 25)
- chairs = R 30 each (profit = R 10)
- jewelry boxes = R 20 each (profit = R 10)
- ironing board = R 30 each (profit = R 10)
- linen boxes = R 80 each (profit = R 30)
Set out the products, costs, margins and selling prices:
|
Item |
Daily Target |
Monthly Target |
Cost Price |
Margin |
Selling Price |
Total per Month |
|
cushion photo frames mirrors chairs jewelry boxes ironing board linen boxes |
0.5 0.5 0.3 0.5 0.5 0.05 0.05 |
15 15 10 15 15 4 6 |
R 15 R 10 R 35 R 15 R 10 R 20 R 50 |
R 10 R 10 R 25 R 15 R 10 R 10 R 30 |
R 25 R 20 R 60 R 30 R 20 R 30 R 80 |
R 375 R 300 R 600 R 450 R 300 R 120 R 420 |
What trends are included in the projections?
- fixed costs are a bit more than budgeted for
- the cost for purchases has been increased
- total sales are reduced from what is expected
- no credit sales are taken into account (including losses from credit sales)
- there are more job opportunities during the summer due to seasonal work
- sales increase towards December
[edit] Running the business
What is the process for running the business on a typical day? Who will be responsible for each step? Link this back to the production process.
06h00 - 07h00: wake up and get ready 07h00 – 08h00: arrange equipment, tools, materials 08h00 – 08h30: open workshop and check orders 08h30 – 12h30: production 12h30 – 13h30: lunchtime 13h30 – 17h00: production 17h00 – 19h0: deliveries and take in new orders
Who will act as backup should the person responsible not be there? What do they need to act as backup?
- ready-made items available for sale will help smooth out daily production
- the business owner’s mother will be available should the owner not be present
What weekly processes need to be performed? Who is responsible, who is backup and what tools are required?
- equipment needs to be maintained
- purchases for stock need to be made
- deliveries (younger brother to be back up)
What monthly processes need to be performed? Who is responsible, who is backup and what tools are required?
What is the schedule for training and motivating staff?
What processes are required for maintenance and new product creation? Who is responsible and what tools do they need?
[edit] Before beginning
List some of the support services available (legal, business and other) that might be needed
- Bergriver municipality
- Local business owners
- West Coast Business Centre & Red Door Support Centre
- Business mentor
What major laws concern the business, and which government departments should be called to keep up to date (list phone numbers)?
Informal trading regulations are controlled by the Bergriver Municipality in Porterville (phone them at 022 931 2100)
[edit] Related articles
Insert links to articles on Wikipedia or other Wikis that may be useful (such as recipes, legal discussions, accounting articles, and so on)
[edit] External links
List links to outside websites that may be useful for anyone starting this business
[edit] Business Trials
List your name if you started a business based on this plan, where you started the business, and how you did Links to case histories - you are welcome to develop these and insert them in your personal page (create this by developing a personal profile)
