Scale:
Non-Union $840/week
Union $1080/week
Minimum 6-8 weeks for jobs, ideally 6-12 month or 5-10 year contracts
Meant to do a post about this, but CMT (cut, make, trim) rates appear to be set through 2027ish and SEAMS just belted out another 100 open bids for the normal job sewing stuff. Non-fashion people may imagine that sewing shops constantly make these crazy over the top art pieces for sale, but that’s two weeks a year for fashion week and an occasional fun client. 98% of the profits are realized via bread and butter accessory sales. Indy shops average $30-60/hr before tax or $18-36/hr billed weekly after taxes. Not millions. Small shops are generally looking for recurring income from corporate clients. This is especially true as live musicians come to rely more and more on custom merchandise for touring revenue. We’re going to go over some refresher basics here for businesses looking to use contract sewing.
Firefighters, EMTS, local government service organizations, hospitals, sports memorabilia, comedy shows, tournaments, there’s a lot of normal stuff you can buy and feel good about even at major retailers or large businesses will hire out year round just to have access to a shop. Sports teams are particularly well-known for this as they have a set season, but they’ll generally keep a shop on the payroll for the year to handle basic alterations at the beginning of the year and then as needed during the year because it’s cheaper for insurance purposes for everyone. During the off-season the stitchers might make team mascots or do charity fundraising events. Alternatively, a brand finds a small shop to do custom costumes for live events and embroidery or screen printing, then keeps adding in new blanks or tests out products. If you have a brand you want to support, think about buying a scarf, hat, bag, t-shirt, or jewelry. Many of those pieces are small runs instead of thousands of pieces so by default you are more likely to be supporting local artists. Small shops also get contracted for cut and sew for 6 or 8 week stints around fashion week to fill in gaps for larger brands or celebrities which generally runs around $5,000-7,500/person plus 20% for the agent for 2 months of work. It works out to either $840 or $1080/week depending on union or non-union job. Touring bands hire small shops during the off-season to convert costumes for quick changes to perform various sets on stage, which is its own separate topic, but the money pricing is the same so what a fashion shop is looking for is a work-for-hire pay scale. Longer contracts tend to be making basic items like t-shirts, bags, blankets, etc. Most shops will switch back and forth between the two on a weekly basis. One week it’s crazy over the top, the next week it’s t-shirts or totes.
Please note, CMT is just getting the stitchers or costume technicians paid. Brands will still need to pay for material separately and there tends to be a learning curve so give yourself a runway. Again, traditionally hospitals, sports teams, theaters, etc. start with alternations and then add in new products during down time as permitted. Or blanks if you’re planning to have a lot of t-shirts or bags embroidered or screenprinted. Or a performer gets custom outfits made for their live tour, then starts adding accessories. Think Sex Pistols and Vivienne Westwood. Typical brands and designers built themself up over years and decades. Which brings us to a friendly reminder that if you’re calling up a US cut and sew shop, there’s a set formula and expectations for how people are paid dating back 500+ years to Italy in the 1500s. If you’re not talking about weekly rates or piece rates, people have a tendency to tune it out, especially in theater, in favor of getting their bills paid for quality of life. Haus Page does give back in a number of ways to our local community with education and quarterly sewing bees, but at the end of the day our bread and butter is getting paid to make fashion products.
Now that we’ve covered the basics, let’s get on to some of the fun extras like teaching, retail windows, and community sewing bees.