I saw this question asked somewhere, “Does a business owner need a resume?”  (And in a way, a quilter is a business owner if she/he is utilizing the art in a way to earn an income.)
Immediately I thought, “No, only someone applying for a job needs a resume.”
Then I began pondering some more  and it’s application to quilters.  Customers/clients often ask for referrals.  This information may not be in the strict sense a resume, but will provide information that helps them make a knowledgeable decision, just as an employer refers to the traditional resume.
1. If you have a service type of quilt business…. making …read more

In a previous post, Would You Like an At-Home Quilt Bookstore?, I mentioned the idea of operating a bookstore for quilters, either from your home, online, or in conjunction with a quilt fabric shop.  Yvonne Russell,  of Grow Your Writing Business, who wrote a post about this on Home Biz Notes, also contributed information recently at Alzheimer’s Notes.
   She answered questions an Alzheimer’s Notes’ reader, Kathy of KnowItAlz.com, asked about obtaining books for such a venture.  Even though Yvonne specifically addresses Kathy’s question about Alzheimer’s books, the information she gives is universal for any bookstore.
So, if you’re considering this type of …read more

The copyright issue, concerning patterns and fabrics, affects most quilters, especially if they’re planning to sell their quilts and fabric art.  If you’re making quilts simply for your own use or to give as gifts, then it doesn’t come into play so much with your work.
I came across an interesting article at Quilting Business.com, titled: Quilting Copyright: Can I Sell My Quilts Made with Licensed Fabric or from Copyrighted Patterns?   These are two of the copyright issues confronting quilter and fabric artists site owner Chuck Smith has researched. 
Chuck also has a free e-mail mini course: 7 Unique Ways to Make Money …read more

Essentially, look before you leap before setting up your quilting or fabric arts home business.  I’ve mentioned before the need to check out zoning regulations pertaining to your home before you decide to set up a quilting business, particularly one that involves customers/clients coming to your home.   (However, online business might be affected, too, in some areas.)
 I just read a news item, License Denied for Existing Home Business, that concerned this topic.
Now this involves a lawn mower service business.  However, the same principles probably apply to any home business in that town.  The aldermen decided, according to the mayor’s statement ” they’re running a …read more

             Over at Home Biz Notes, guest blogger Yvonne Russell provides advice and suggestions for operating a home based bookstore, whether it’s one where customers come to your home shop or you sell solely online.  In Start Your Own Specialist Home Based Bookstore, Yvonne discusses how to research before starting your business, how and where to obtain your books, how to find a niche…in short, many tips to start you on the way to success rather than failure with a specialty bookstore.
So…have you decided your niche might be quilt, fabric art, and related books?  Perhaps you want to operate simply a …read more

Whether you collect sales tax for mail order and Internet sales or in a quilt shop, you may find yourself in a quandry at times. 
*What if you live in a no tax state but sell to customers in a state where there is a sales tax?
*What if you have a sales tax in your state and sell to someone in another sales tax state?
*What happens when you and your customer both live in the same state that has a sales tax?  Sometimes, too, sales tax will vary from town to town, city to city, county to county within the same …read more

Paying attention to your customers to ensure you have satisfied ones and repeat business becomes an important considerationn for quilting and fabric art business owners.
Yvonne Russell, of Grow Your Writing Business, pointed out to me concering this topic of return customers, “There is quite a bit of research on the fact that it costs a lot more in dollars and time to get a new client, as compared with doing ongoing business with existing customers/clients.”
So often business owners seem to think once they have a customer, that person automatically will return…unless you sell one-of-a-kind items that don’t lend themselves to repeats.  However, you …read more

  What happens to your quilting or fabric  business when you move? With the traditional quilting or fabric store that depends on customers stopping in to purchase, you lose business when you relocate.  An Internet fabric or quilting business, often operated out of your home, continues wherever you may move.
Of course, with a business that’s entirely operated on the Internet, like Dorothy Thompson’s,  with no inventory, or one like Mark Allen’s business with CafePress taking orders and handling shipping, there’s no question about continuing if you move.  However, what about the business where you do have inventory and physically ship out orders?
If …read more

The question of what to charge for our quilting services and products often is a quandry for quilt business owners, whether they sell items they’ve made, resell those purchased wholesale, or perform a service.  There are various formulas based on cost of materials plus operating expenses plus an income, yet there is no absolutely fixed one.  Much depends on supply and demand and your reputation as a quilter or fabric artist.
Yvonne at Grow Your Writing Business offers some insights in a post, Price vs Value – How Much Should Writers Charge?  Although Yvonne provides the viewpoint of a writer addressing writers, you …read more

If you’re involved in quiltmaking and fabric art as a business, you may want to check out my recent post, Being a Home Worker in a Home Business, at Home Biz Notes.  There I discuss my experience when I made samples and later the finished products for a customer who was involved in finding markets for patchwork items she designed.
She asked me to make her samples as she sought markets.  Then I began sewing for the orders she received.  So actually here, I discuss two types of quilting businesses.