sewing patterns with a clean, sophisticated vibe
Thank you for your interest in Make Your Day Designs. If you have any questions about the information provided or any of the projects, please do not hesitate to contact me. I appreciate your business and want you to know I care about your customers and want to help you foster strong relationships within your community. Please let me know if there is anything else I can do to help!
Research - Ask yourself these questions to help gain a better understanding of your core strengths and weaknesses. You need to understand your community dynamic because no two communities are the same, keeping your finger on the pulse of your community will allow you to create strategic alliances and create value for your customers.
What is your neighborhood dynamic?
What companies/industries are doing well?
Where are the people?
Who are your customers, age, gender, etc?
What is of the moment, a trendy new coffee shop, or perhaps a new sophisticated wine bar?
What are your strengths/company strengths? Ask clients, the best clients, one-time clients and former clients.
Why should someone spend money at your shop, what value are you adding, what’s in it for the customer?
Am I approachable, do I provide an environment fit for collaboration?
Plan of Attack – After you have figured out who your customers are and what is going on outside of your shop, it is time to put pen to paper and create a plan. Without a strong plan of attack you will not know when you have arrived and accomplished those goals. Strategic plans are a living breathing document and they need to be referred to often, a lot like your mission statement!
Set goals, without them, you won’t know where to go and you can’t plan on how to get there! Short-term goals should be attainable in 1-3 months, long-term goals should be attainable in 1-3 years out, and stretch goals should be just that, an ultimate goal 3-5 years out that you may or may not get to, but can push towards.
When writing goals make sure they are clear cut, a good example would be increase sales 15% with repeat customers by 12/31/2010, while a bad example would be increase sales. Having the right goals will give you the right outcome.
Once you have goals list 2-4 ways you are going to make sure you reach those goals and assign dates to them. Again, be specific, the more specific you get, the better the odds of reaching your goals.
Demonstration vs. Class – You may want to consider this if you are looking to introduce new individuals to sewing. This is a non-committal way to get individuals who have been interested in sewing but scared about the initial investment, one step closer to beginning. You can use demonstrations for several of the projects below, be sure to make an instant gratification project, Clutch, Lucky No. 11, and Serendipity would be perfect.
Modern Class Inspiration – Inspiration can come from anywhere, you just have to listen to your instincts and know what will work in your area, that is what all that research was for!
Bliss Yoga Mat & Belt: Perfect opportunity to cross-market with a yoga studio or fitness center. Great way to target a new demographic, this demographic would be more prone to organic fabric and products.
Fly With Me Carry-On: Do you know a church group in your community getting ready for a mission trip? How about a group of young woman getting ready to head off to college, or camp? Someone want to make a special gift for their husband, make it in men’s suit fabric and you have a winner! People are looking for value and this bag allows customers to avoid baggage fees when they travel!
Athens Clutch, Clutch, & Lucky No. 11: If you have been looking for the right event to get younger sewers into your shop, this is it! Who doesn’t love prom and homecoming? Is there a local sorority group who is looking for fun event? Is it wedding season, because these patterns are perfect for bridesmaids. How about a special birthday party? These are the patterns that will give you a home-run.
Biarritz Bag: This bag is an opportunity for any idea you have been waiting to try. This pattern can lend itself to a wide range of demographics. You can market this class and pattern for the beginning of summer, as you get ready for the beach or pool weather, or a toy catchall for taking the kids on the next road-trip.
Café Apron: An opportunity to partner with a cooking club/class, caterer, or specialty food shop. This project would be an excellent way to introduce new people to sewing. A fun event would be sewing and appetizers, make it into a recipe exchange. You could offer to have a specialty food shop come in and talk about new trends in holiday parties.
Everyday Bag: A great option for a book club. Book clubs are everywhere and a lot of them are looking for new places to meet. This is also a great incognito diaper bag, for someone who is looking for a smaller sleeker version of a traditional diaper bag.
Getaway Bag: Who doesn’t love a girl’s weekend. For your next upcoming sewing retreat this is the pattern, it will give your students a sense of accomplishment and pride when they are finished. If you have had that special piece of fabric you have been waiting to showcase, this is the pattern for it!
Nesting Bowls: This is an opportunity to showcase and experiment with embroidery. If you were doing a demonstration this would be a quick project that anyone can do. This is also the perfect gift for father’s day, something for his office!
Serendipity: This pattern holds countless possibilities, Mommy-and-me class, Mom keeps the necklace and daughter keeps bracelet, homecoming or prom workshop, host a sorority or girl scouts group, let your imagination run wild.
Toulouse Baby Bumper & Crib Skirt: Host a private baby shower and get all the guests involved by helping create the baby bedding. This could be a truly special event where a family gets to create something truly special for the newest member of the family. If you have experienced sewers you can have multiple projects including the Toulouse Baby Quilt, and the Everyday Bag, giving mommy-to-be a day she will never forget!
Toulouse Baby Quilt: Have a mom in the nesting faze, this is a great way to introduce her to sewing and to give her a creative way to make a family treasure. This is the perfect project to reach out to a Lamaze or pregnancy yoga class. Give mommy’s-to-be a way to create a special project for baby during that special time in her life.
Wine & Wallet Bag: An opportunity to partner with a local wine club. An excellent idea would be to have the wine tasting done in the shop while they learn a new skill, sewing. You could also return the favor to a local wine shop and have this class with regular sewers and have a wine tasting afterwards.
Make It Your Own Series: Personalize/customize what you have, people want to make the most of what they already own, help them/provide value by basing a series of classes on making it your own, from tailoring clothing to adding embellishments on purses and belts.
Giving Tree Open Series: With Christmas right around the corner why not give back! This project can also be done with a women’s shelter. Sewers and quilters are some of the most generous people I have ever met; why not provide the opportunity to give back. Contact your local county office and ask for a list of items needed this Christmas season, typically the will provide gender, type of item asked for, and age. Place all items on a Christmas tree and let customers make something special for someone in need. A homemade gift is full of love and will be cherished forever.
Summer Series: Want to update or redecorate a room, how about get ready to head off to college, or a house warming party, why not make your home your own. An opportunity to make pillows quilts, nesting bowls, iPad covers, coasters, potholders, etc.
Team Building: Who doesn’t want to build and foster a stronger team, from a local volleyball or cross-country team to a family, everyone wants to grow stronger together. Pick projects that have lots of pieces that come together to make one beautiful piece, perhaps a quilt. Make sure to break out the pattern and get everyone involved. You will want to create a questionnaire to get a sense of how much or how long of a project is realistic.
After Class Ends – Relationships are the most important part of your job, without them you can’t succeed. Those who can manage relationships the best will win. Remember customer relationships are like dating; don’t move too fast but be attentive to their needs!
Have kits without pattern available at the end of class. People who love their class may be so excited to make it again for a friend or family member, make it easy for them to grab it and go at the end of class. Or offer a discount if they come in within x days after their class.
Send a hand-written thank you to your customer thanking them for coming and suggesting another class or project they may like, take your time and get personal. Relationships are where you build your business for the long haul.
Take-away cards. This could end up being one of the most valuable tools you have. Here are two examples, business card size and recipe card size. Have key terms and techniques covered during class, i.e. Real Simple Magazine back page. Put your branding on the card and list upcoming classes or open house information.
You could put together an entire display with all cards/techniques near patterns so someone thinking about stretching their skills can have the confidence to take the card and give it a try. This lets the customer know you care and want them to have easy access to information. Providing information on new skills is providing value!
Suggested Reading – Tipping Point-Find those individuals in your community who are connectors.