Price your first embroidery job

Start with a written job specification before calculating a price. A digitizing file, a stitched garment and a finished patch order are different deliverables. Record the quantity, finished dimensions, artwork, fabric or blank product, placement, thread colors and required date. Confirm who supplies the blanks and who approves the sample.

List any work outside the basic production run: artwork cleanup, digitizing, a new size, a second placement, special packaging or shipping. Write down which revisions are included and how an additional change will be quoted. Avoid treating an unclear brief as a fixed production commitment.

Practice: write a specification for ten shirts with one left-chest logo. Mark every unknown that you need to confirm before quoting.

Separate one-time job preparation from work repeated for each item. Preparation can include digitizing, artwork cleanup, testing and machine setup. Repeated costs can include blanks, thread, stabilizer, operator time, finishing and packing. Include the share of overhead you choose to allocate, and record reasonable allowances for spoilage or rework. Avoid counting a cost twice.

Time a sample of the real process. Machine stitch speed alone does not measure a job: loading, hooping, thread changes, stops, trimming, inspection and packing also take time. An hourly labor rate should reflect the labor cost you actually intend to recover.

Practice: make a cost sheet with the calculation and source beside each number. Label untested estimates so you can replace them with measured results.

Use the same cost basis when comparing pricing methods. Markup is (selling price minus cost) divided by cost. Margin is (selling price minus cost) divided by selling price. These percentages use different denominators.

For a simple illustration, cost 10 and selling price 15 leave 5 before any costs excluded from the calculation. That is a 50% markup and a 33.3% margin. A 50% target margin on that same cost basis would require a price of 20. These numbers are an arithmetic exercise, not a recommended market price.

For a separate break-even exercise, divide fixed costs by the difference between unit selling price and unit variable cost. If that difference is zero or negative, the simple formula does not produce a viable sales volume. Keep fixed and variable costs distinct, and do not count allocated overhead again.

Practice: calculate markup and margin for your estimate, then explain which costs are included.

Turn the cost sheet into a clear customer quote. Describe the deliverables, quantity, unit price or job price, setup charges, approval steps, delivery assumptions and any separately charged shipping or applicable taxes. State how long the quote is valid and what happens if the customer changes the specification. Confirm uncertain supplier costs before committing.

After delivery, compare estimated and actual material use, labor time, rework and other costs. A job that brings revenue can still lose money if preparation or corrections were omitted from the estimate. Use the difference to improve the next quote, not to assume every future job behaves identically.

Practice: keep the approved specification, estimate, sample notes and final cost review together. Use that record when the customer reorders, checking for changed materials or requirements.