In this post, you will find some wonderful tips on how to start your own bag sewing business.
Last week, I had the AMAZING opportunity to interview an AWESOME entrepreneur and bag maker Jessica, from Sew Da Kine. I had been following Jessica for a while after I luckily stumbled upon her Production Bag Making Tips Facebook group.
I can’t describe in words how IMPRESSED I am with her work and especially her super down to earth, always-ready-to-help, and humble personality. She has a ton of experience in production style bag making and her advises and tips can be very helpful for anyone who is looking to start a sewing business.
Which is why I hopped onto a call with Jessica and I’m so thankful to her for all the wonderful information she agreed to share with me and everyone here.
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How to Start a Bag Sewing Business
A little about Jessica
Jessica is the owner of Sew Da Kine, a bag making business based in Hawaii, USA. She designs, makes and sells cork bags from the comfort of her home and has turned her passion into a thriving business which generates a full-time income for her family of three. Awesome, right?
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The interview
In the interview, we covered a lot of questions that a complete newbie might have when starting a home-based bag making/sewing business. Here’s the list of questions covered:
- How Jessica got into bag making?
- What are the things needed to start off with the bag making business?
- How long does it take to become an expert in making and selling bags?
- How much investment is needed?
- How to price the items you sew?
- How much can you earn from a home-based sewing business?
- Tips on selling at craft shows
- Tips on dealing with customers
- Wholesale suppliers for fabrics and hardware and
- Taxes
Here’s the audio file that you can listen to. TIP: There’s a ton of brilliant stuff shared by Jessica here, so you might want to get hold of a pen and notepad before you begin.
BEFORE YOU LISTEN: I sound very horrible and nervous because it was MY FIRST TIME EVER interviewing someone. Eeek, I feel embarrassed listening to myself. Please IGNORE MY VOICE. *hides*
Also, I couldn’t catch the first few sentences of the interview so the audio starts abruptly.
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The Summary
If you would like to have a quick summary of what we discussed, you can read these points.
- If you’re really planning on starting a home-based bag making business, it’s best to invest in a basic industrial sewing machine and good cutting tools as it saves a lot of time and time is money. If you spend more time, you would have to charge more, but there’s a limit to how much people would want to pay.
- It’s best to first understand the market. Do lots of research on what’s in demand in your area? What are people interested in?
- It’s better to sew for a designer first and gain some experience. Also, it will help you in earning some amount to invest in your own brand.
- To start making bags for wholesale retailers, you need to first develop a relationship with them, let them see the quality of your work which will take some time.
- Choosing the right place to put up your stall plays a crucial role in getting your sales. If you sell $200 bag at a farmer’s market, no one would probably buy it because your stall would be the most expensive one. However, if you set up a stall in an art show or somewhere where other people are selling much more expensive stuff, you’re more likely to make more sales.
- Use cards and posters around your booth to educate people on the details of your bag making process. What they’re made of? How they’re made? And, maybe share some fun facts about your brand.
- When dealing with customers, it’s better to provide them with a limited set of options to choose from.
- The place to buy wholesale fabrics from: Premiere Prints Inc., Wholesale Fabrics Direct
- The place to buy wholesale webbing from: Cheep Trims
- Lastly, to be able to earn a proper full-time income from making bags, you would need a lot of patience, persistence, and hard-work. It’s not a get rich, real quick kind of scheme.
The End
That’s the end of the post on how to start a bag sewing business.
Be sure to visit Jessica on all of her social media accounts and shop and thank her for the wonderful information she shared with us today. You can find her one of these places:
Lastly, don’t forget to share this post with your sewing friends on Facebook. Or you can even pin it on your sewing board for future reference.
WANT TO BOOST YOUR ONLINE BAG BIZ SALES?
Sign up for the FREE e-book “7 SUREFIRE ways to boost your online bag biz sales”
Just enter your name and address below and I’ll send you the guide right away!
Important note: All bag pictures in this post belong to Sew Da Kine and are used by the designer’s permission.
Thank you for the valuable information. I started a bag business and I like sewing duffle bags and weekenders. However, i realized with time that people around me are looking for small purses and kitchen accessories. ( which I find boring ) But if you want to sell you must provide something people want to buy.
The interview tips suggested sewing for a designer in the beginning. Are there any suggestions as to how to find designers in your area to work with?
I’ve enjoyed reading your helpful comments on starting up a bag business. I’ve only made 20 bags so far and haven’t set anything up to start selling. But if I sell on the internet at some point do I need a website? I am a little nervous about this and feel I wouldn’t be able to keep up if anybody wanted to order. Would my email address be enough? Maybe I should stick to craft fairs this summer. Can anyone help please?
Amazing post, thank you!