How to keep every trial and delivery date you promise
By Loomton · Updated
A late garment costs more than the stitching charge: the customer came for nothing, and tells others. Late deliveries are rarely about slow stitching. They come from promising dates without seeing what is already promised.
See the day before you promise it
Before giving a date, look at what is already due that day. If ten garments are due on Saturday, the eleventh should go to Monday, or the customer should be told the truth.
Wedding season and festivals fill up weeks ahead. Decide how many garments your shop can finish in a day, and stop booking a day when it is full.
Work backwards from the delivery
- Delivery date: the day the customer collects.
- Finishing: buttons, hemming and pressing, the day before.
- Trial: a few days before delivery, with time left for changes.
- Cutting: as soon as the cloth and measurements are in.
Every morning, look at three lists
- Trials today: garments that must be ready to try on.
- Deliveries today: garments that must be finished and pressed.
- Late orders: anything whose date has passed. Call these customers before they call you.
Tell the customer when it is ready
A short call or message when the garment is ready saves the customer a wasted trip and brings in the balance payment sooner.
