This is all SO SO helpful! Thank you so much!
I think the business I would like to run would involve having a very small core line (maybe one core dress made in four different plain colours - navy, black, grey, camel) and then limited editions of other designs and fabrics. All machine washable with sleeves and pockets and below-the-knee hemlines! I will pitch at £200 for the core line and £300 for the limited editions, aiming at city-type women. I am aware that I will need to have a spectacular product for people to want to spend that. All sold in standard sizes (no custom fits!) but by bust/waist rather than 8-10-12 (personal crusade of mine...) I will provide extensive guidance on how to take those simple measurements!
So, the sketchy plan is as follows...
- Chase down my friend to see if she would like to get into the business/marketing side of it. If not, I have a backup friend. If neither, have a serious talk with myself about whether I want to do this on my own.
- Decide what kind of financial investment I'm willing to make up front (for: materials, sewing, photography, packaging for posting)
- Spend a loooooong time developing an absolutely brilliant first dress, cutting the pattern and sourcing materials
- Hire a photographer to take some awesome photos (I have a friend who might model for me)
- Make a small run of them in one colour (I know how I can get in touch with some freelance sewers through my current work) --> either by having them made upfront or by getting all the fabric and notions in and having them sewn up to order. I should not do the sewing myself because it will stress me out hugely and I will mess it up because of the pressure. If I can find somewhere to cut out, I could cut out myself.
- Do website (probably on shopify - I have done websites before so am confident I can do this myself)
- Sort out email list and maybe some social media (I suck at social media, I should not attempt it personally)
- Make sure I can ship to Canada and the US :)
- Start shouting and see how it goes! Try and get feedback from everyone possible. If it goes well, roll the profits over into making more colours of the core dress and/or a limited edition (and more sizes if there's the demand! I reckon I'd start with 32/34/36/38 - sorry, larger ladies), rinse and repeat.
I would totally buy a dress like what you described, for me it would have to be comfortable, flattering, modest enough for work but not frumpy, pockets are a huge plus, and easy to care for (machine washable, no ironing). Ideally something I could bike in too.
What makes a dress bikeable? Length? Skirt width? Something else?
Sometimes I'd cut the pieces out for them, in which case they got paid a bit less (I think I paid $30 for me doing the cutting, $50 if they did it -- cutting is a pain in the ass). I told customers to expect their dresses to ship in about 2 weeks and almost always made the deadline.
How complicated were your dresses? By which, in a roundabout way, I mean: how much did they make per hour? I feel like what I'm going to design will take a while to make up (all them pockets!) and I'd like to pay piecework not by the hour so I know how much it will cost me, but I'd want to set a fair rate.