Fashion,
no doubt has become a big business with new craze for looking
good. Most
Nigerian fashion freaks now prefer locally made fabrics, which are usually made to their instructions than the imported ones.What then does it take to venture into this kind of business, given the present economic situation in the country?
Nigerian fashion freaks now prefer locally made fabrics, which are usually made to their instructions than the imported ones.What then does it take to venture into this kind of business, given the present economic situation in the country?
- You can start the business in a small way right from one’s house, with N25,000 to N30,000, one can start a profitable fashion business, with the average cost of a sewing machine ranging between N12,000 and N15,000, and the cost of other accessories such as scissors, measuring tapes, sewing threads, machine oil, needles, are meagre.
- Any complex design can be taken to another designer who has a designing machine.
However, the fact that one will need the services of a designing machine
elsewhere at the outset should not discourage the starter since the
charges on the designing machines are often small.
The business is a lot more briskly if one combines the sales and
the design of the fabrics. The profits from the sales can be ploughed back into the
business to take care of the costs of some fixed assets in the
long-run.
- It is always better for starters to define their lines of businesses by focusing on either male or female designs.
A
male designer, George Nwachukwu, who plies his trade on the Lagos
Island and specializes in male designs, says he makes an average profit
of between N15,000 and N20,000 per week between the months of February
and October.
But as the year winds up, towards the Christmas season, George says he nets at least N10,000 as profit in a day. The Managing Director, Gwando designs, Gloria Durotoye, also based in Lagos, recalls how she started:“
I started out by selling fabrics just in bits. People would buy them
from me, after which I would spend time drafting and helping them to
create styles. They would then take them to their tailors. Then, I was
only making clothes for a few friends and myself because there was
little capacity to do so on a large scale. I had to make do with what I
had – my machine and a few fabrics. With time, the demand for my work
became high such that I had to open a workshop. I was excited and
motivated by my pool of clients who had already fallen in love with my
work. I was very passionate with the little I had and to God’s glory today, I
am amazed at the level of achievements I have attained. What started
very small in my bedroom eventually received attention in Paris where I
represented Nigeria at the UNESCO fashion show. I also came second at
the 2005 Nigerian Fashion Show, as well as the 2005 Best Fashion
Designer in Port Harcourt,” she says.
A lesson to learn from this, is that one should focus on making customers happy.
A lesson to learn from this, is that one should focus on making customers happy.
-
Don't be bothered by the immediate gains at the outset, but concentrate more on making your customers happy, passion for the job will naturally attract profit.
- You must know that tailoring has gone beyond just knowing how to sew if you must excel and remain in the business.
- You must know how to handle your customers by way of understanding then and be patient with them.
- You must understand the stature of your customers before interpreting and recommending styles for them. A customer may see a good style and impulsively want to have it not minding whether it fits him or not.
- You must avoid the popular ‘African time’ syndrome. Learn to keep to time given to customers.
- You must be creative and be willing to learn new things.
- You must have an eye for fashion if you must dress others properly.
Some of the few challenges often encountered in the business
include inconsistency in power supply and government tax force on
revenue collection. These often discourage starters with
little profit. There is also the tendency to hire the
wrong people (that is, people not capable of understanding and
interpreting designs effectively), which often times show up when the business becomes larger.
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