Embroidery as a Business

Embroidery designs have remained popular through the decades and have become a signature of exceptional style and elegance. Today, the commercial embroidery business is a $47 billion per year marketplace, and the niche for private entrepreneurs has been expanding drastically.

What’s even better; if you’re seeking to exercise your creative instincts and make money at the same time, then you might consider mixing your passion with profession, and starting a home-based embroidery business.

Whether you’re embarking upon your embroidery-based journey from the spare bedroom or planning to operate from a garage, it can be a very profitable move with no overheads involved.  All you need is a handful of fabric and a commercial embroidery machine; and thankfully, the machinery has never been more affordable.

In this blog post, let’s take a sneak peek into starting an embroidery business from scratch and explore the best embroidery machines for businesses, with pros, cons, reviews, and personal experiences.

 

Why Start an Embroidery Business?

Embroidery is a popular art practiced by people all over the world. That's why it comes as no surprise that turning this much-loved needlecraft into a business can be fun and rewarding!

Just imagine if you can go to work every day with a sheer passion for your work, can you really consider that as work? Finding something that you genuinely have a passion for and then working towards it is something that a lot of people can only dream of.

Second of all, starting your own home embroidery business does not require a lot of time or space. As good as it sounds, a small embroidery machine for business takes up very little space, and once it’s installed, you only need some space to do the work and to store fabric.

What’s even better; embroidery materials are much cheaper than other businesses. In fact, embroidering an average design costs only as little as $0.16 — including the total cost price of thread, stabilizer, needles, and bobbin!

On top of it all, it is the profitability of the industry that is your biggest opportunity. Customers can be found everywhere. More and more people and businesses are turning to embroidered merchandise such as jeans, handbags, and other creative wearables to bolster brand identity or to assert a strong brand presence in fashion and boutique markets.

 

What Embroidery Equipment Will You Need?

To get started turning your passion into an embroidery home business, you’ll need an embroidery machine, which makes the largest investment in your business.

Your embroidery machine will be your money maker and you do not want to skimp on this piece of equipment.  Choosing the wrong equipment cannot only hurt your finances but also cost your business operationally. That’s why the equipment side of your business is the area that must be researched thoroughly!

What’s more; you’ll also need access to a computer and a printer to digitize or outsource your embroidery designs. And if you choose to work with more intricate and complex designs, you’ll need digitizing software that helps you achieve professional and avant-garde design standards.

 

How to Choose a Commercial Embroidery Machine for your Business?

So, finally, we have arrived at the point when we will take a sneak peek at some key factors to consider before purchasing your perfect commercial embroidery machine. Remember as important is the decision to start your own embroidery business, as much you will need to pay attention to the main features of your key equipment. 

Hoop Size

One of the most important factors to consider when choosing an embroidery machine for business is the size of the hoop. The larger your design size is, the larger the size of the hoop you will need.

Please note that most embroidery machines for business will offer 4 x 4 inches hoop-delivery to start with; however, some machines may not have room for more. If you're looking to stitch a t-shirt, for example, then you might want to consider a larger hoop option at 5x7 inches or 7 x 12 inches.

Stitches per minute

Time is money and there is nothing more important than this when you’re working at your own home business. When you have projects to be completed as soon as possible, your machine needs to be able to work at speed— saving you both time and money! That's why it is important to choose a machine that offers at least 700 stitches per minute and can reach higher speeds when embroidering.

LCD Screen

While an LCD display tends to come standard across all the embroidery machines, the size of this screen matters a great deal. A larger size of the screen, for example, will not only make it easier for you to place the design perfectly, but it will also help you monitor metrics of the ongoing embroidery.

Pro Tip:  A smaller LCD screen would arguably reduce the cost of the embroidery machine; however, it can get quite difficult to use a small touchscreen, especially when you have to process large batches of designs.

Seamless Connectivity

To help the design processes work optimally, the makers load the embroidery machines with a USB port that allows for easy connectivity with other like-minded machines. With the advancement in technology, you can also expect machines with SD card sockets that are much more useful.

Pro Tip: The latest models are also loaded with the direct PC link, which works seamlessly to create real-time alterations, in addition to making different file formats easier to put into practice.

 

Which Embroidery Machine is best for Home Business?

Now, that we have walked through the main factors to look for in embroidery machine for a home-based business, let us review the best commercial embroidery machines on the market:

Ricoma EM-1010

• Heads 1

• Needles per head 10

• Maximum stitches 1000 SPM

• Maximum embroidery area 310 by 210 mm

• Control Panel 7-inch HD LCD touchscreen panel

• Number of hoops 4

Bring your vision to life with the Ricoma EM-1010, a 10-needle machine that makes even the most complex, multicolor designs a walk in the park. With four different sized hoops, this single-head entry-level embroidery machine is perfect for both starters and professionals. From baby clothing and tees to polo and robes, the lightweight machine is the ideal choice for all your embroidery projects.

Yet another perk of EM-1010 is the user-friendly and energy-saving 7-inch HD LCD touchscreen panel with easy to use icons and operations in 14 different languages. You can make any adjustments and edits to your design and even personalize using the machine’s ten different in-built fonts, 20,000 embroidery designs, and 200 more that you can load.

To make designing easier, a simplified rotating control arm is enabled so you can get the eagle-eye view from any direction. In fact, the machine practically runs itself at the maximum speed of 1000 stitches with a patented thread break detection system so you never have to skip a stitch.

The Ricoma EM-1010 is undoubtedly the choice of embroidery enthusiasts because of its affordability and versatility. Even more appealing is the choice of the finest servo motor that promises durability for years to come.

SEE IT HERE

Ricoma RCM-1501

• Heads 1

• Needles per head 14

• Maximum stitches 1200 SPM

• Maximum embroidery area 560 by 350 mm

• Control Panel 7-inch HD LCD touchscreen panel

• Number of hoops 11

Expand your business with the Ricoma RCM-1501. A single-head commercial embroidery machine that boasts of 15 needles and is capable of multicolor embroidering on flats, caps, denim, leather, and more. If you are ready to dive into the startup embroidery business, this portable machine bundled with 11 hoops is perfect as it allows you to create a wide range of designs.

To make navigation easy for embroidery enthusiasts, the machine is equipped with a 7-inch touchscreen panel. It has the storage for 20 million designs, some of which can be transferred into the machine through the Ethernet port. You can crank your creativity up a notch by adding 3D puff embroidery and applique using the precise one-step applique feature designed with your ease into consideration. 

Another appealing feature of this sturdy and portable machine is the addition of built-in LED light so you can better focus on the area that you are focusing on. This comes quite handy when you are stitching at the maximum speed of 1200 stitches per minute.

Carefully designed keeping the minutest details into consideration for the booming startup, Ricoma RCM-1501 is the perfect tool to summon your creative angel and execute unprecedented embroidery ideas. After all, the sky’s the limit!

SEE IT HERE

Ricoma CHT2-1504

• Heads 4

• Needles per head 15

• Maximum stitches 1000 SPM

• Maximum embroidery area 400 by 450 mm

• Control Panel 4-inch HD LCD touchscreen panel

• Number of hoops 10 per head

Trust Ricoma’s latest CHT2 Series to get your work done seamlessly and quickly in the first go itself. One of the models of the technologically advanced series, CHT2-1504 is a multi-head commercial embroidery machine with 10 hoops per head and is ideal for scaling the business of all sizes. From caps and flats to finished garments and bags, the machine speeds through to provide accuracy and precision.

With more machine power than ever, you will be able to maximize the effort and outcome with 4 heads. In fact, each head carries a 16” by 18” embroidery area so you can easily work on garments like jackets and bags. With the highest torque CHT2-1504 swifts through the most even the most difficult designs at the maximum speed of 1000 SPM.

That’s not all! The enhanced needle plate ensures that you do not have frequent flagging and needle breaks to interrupt your productivity. Additionally, you won’t have to hustle with inserting and removing screws from the reengineered embroidery frame positioning board. You just have to slide!

The Ricoma CHT2-1504 proudly displays the vibrant 10.4 inch HD LCH touchscreen panel with easy one-step functions in multiple languages to make stitching an absolute breeze. Equipped with dual LED lights right under the chassis and head, CHT2-1504 provides visibility in the low-light area.  You can make the most of all these features and more at low power- thanks to the Servo Motor 150W.

SEE IT HERE

Ricoma CHT2-1506

• Heads 9

• Needles per head 15

• Maximum stitches 1000 SPM

• Maximum embroidery area 400 by 450 mm

• Control Panel 4-inch HD LCD touchscreen panel

• Number of hoops 10 per head

Witness beauty and functionality become one with yet another model of the CHT-2 series that’s called CHT-2 1506. With six heads, the most innovative and extremely versatile machine is designed to effortlessly create embroidery on plenty of finished garments, bags, and luggage while saving time. And with 10 hoops per head, you are all set to fulfill different embroidery needs.

The state-of-the-art Ricoma CHT-2 1506 takes pride in its 10.4-inch HD LCD touchscreen panel that’s user-friendly and intuitive. The innovation also grants you to upload embroidery pattern using a USB port on the machine that reads both DST and DSB formats.

Like all other models, CHT-2 1506 has a couple of LED lights that provide visual assistance to streamline the focus on the design. The high-speed tubular multi-head embroidery machine also has an emergency stop button and a newly developed sewing arm for the finest embroidery on caps and small items to making stitching more convenient.

Wait no more and let the industry-leading machine guide you to the optimum creative reach.

SEE IT HERE

 

Browse our full range of embroidery machines and equipment online here:

https://www.directsewing.co.nz/collections/embroidery-machines

 

Or if you'd like some advice, send us an enquiry online here:

 

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Direct Sewing have more than 30 years of experience, with 8000+ happy customers across NZ. Please get in touch for more information about purchasing and payment plans. 

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