Tailors are a big part of a fashion design business. For most fashion designers in Nigeria, however, finding the right tailor to hire for their brand is a struggle. This greatly affects their business and the amount of output they can produce.
This week, we reviewed a video by Desola of Daisy’s Wardrobe on how to find a good tailor for your fashion design business. In it, she shares how she has been able to get good tailors for her fashion brand consistently. The video aims to help fashion designers to know how
This video review will cover;
- useful points fashion designers can learn from,
- the relevance of the information provided to fashion designers,
- important points missed out.
Useful Points for Fashion Designers
Generally, the biggest issue fashion designers face is hiring a good tailor. Fashion designers always want to know how to hire and manage a tailor because of the tailor problems they face. Here are a few things to help you with that;
1. Consider Your Personality
Before you hire a tailor, you need to consider the type of person that you are and the kind of personality you have. In doing this, be very honest with yourself. When you are honest with yourself, you will know who to employ when you are interviewing tailors.
Since your tailor will be working very closely with you, you must understand your temperament. It will go a long way in determining who you pick – a male or female tailor, and so on. In the process of your interview, whatever vibe that person’s personality is giving off is a point to assist you in determining if he/she is a good fit for you or not.
2. Ask the Right Questions
When you are hiring a tailor, you need to ask certain questions, it is not just about how good the tailor is. There are so many good tailors out there who have no work ethics, don’t know how to work with others, or understand that you are running a business. So many things are involved in hiring a tailor.
You must find out what their work ethic is like, where they have worked before, how they work under pressure, and how they work with others. You need to get satisfactory responses to these before you hire any tailor. It’ll save you future stress.
3. Decide which Hiring Mode Suits Your Brand
There are different ways to hire tailors in Nigeria. You can hire a tailor on a contract or commission basis. This way, they are paid based on their output. You can also hire a tailor on a salary basis which you pay them at the end of every month.
The way you hire a tailor depends on you and your business structure. You need to decide what is convenient and workable for you and go with it. There is no hard and fast rule when it comes to hiring tailors.
Whichever way you choose, make things clear between you and your tailor so they understand their employment with you. Also, find out if your employment method is convenient for them. If they are hesitant about your offer, find out why and how you both can agree on it.
“What has worked for me so far has been hiring on a contract basis. My tailor is paid based on the work she does. We sat together and agreed on what each clothing item will cost and she gets her pay whenever she does a job for me. Although I plan to his someone on a salary basis soon, a contract basis has worked quite fine for my business model for now.”
Oyindamola, founder, Le Miel.
4. Make The Lines Very Clear
When you are hiring a tailor, make sure they are no blurry lines, the lines must be very clear. This is a general rule for hiring staff to work for you.
What does it mean to make the lines very clear? What your business is, what you do, what you stand for, and what you expect to be done have to be clearly stated out. Your communication must be done properly in every situation.
5. Determine if You Can Afford the Tailor
Ask questions and make sure you can afford to pay the tailor you want to hire. There’s no point hiring a tailor and paying all the money you make from your business to him/her. One thing about fashion businesses is that the amount of money you make every month can never be the same. When you look at your average income per month, you need to determine if it can cover the cost for the tailor(s) you wish to hire.
If it cannot, you should go back to the drawing board and think of how to get other tailors that can do as good a job but won’t be as pricey. Along with their price demand, give them a sample to make and stay with them as they do so. Also, make sure to test it on a human body as well.
Important Points Missed Out
6. Get Recommendations from Other Designers
Sometimes, in looking for tailors to work for you, asking for recommendations from other designers can help too. Sometimes, they have had experience wig a certain tailor and know that that tailor is good. This saves you the stress of searching all over for tailors to apply to you job opening.
Referrals also put your mind and rest to know that this tailor has been tested and is trusted by someone you trust. It eases you of the stress of worrying over the tailor stealing from you or is managing your resources.
“What worked for me in getting the tailor that currently works for me was getting a recommendation from another tailor I know and trust. She told me about the tailor when she found out I needed someone and it has been great so far. I’ve had no issues with her wasting or stealing my fabric and she’s quick to take corrections. Referrals work.”
Oyindamola, Founder, Le Miel.
The Usefulness of the Information to Fashion Designers
The points in this video at quite strong and important. Understanding and acknowledging your personality, as a fashion designer, helps you pick workers that you can work easily with. It encourages you to look inwards in determining who will be a good fit for your business. Asking the right questions and making the lines clear are also important factors to ensure you don’t end up in disagreements with your tailors. Finally, knowing the basis of your employment and determining what amount of pay works for you both helps ensure that neither you nor the tailor is disgruntled at the end of the day.
Overall, the information provided in this video is very important for fashion designers trying to hire a tailor for their fashion business. By following the steps outlined above, finding a good tailor to hire for your business will be much easier.
