That fucking guy's archetype brings about unions. Or he gets dragged out in the middle of the night and beaten to death in front of his family. I don't know what it is about the maritime community, but it sure does attract a disproportionate amount of grifters, scammers, total jerkwads.
this post was submitted on 22 May 2025
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I run a cut/sew shop specializing in marine canvas. I'm a one man shop but have worked for tyrants in the industry. Sounds like this guy is another dictator of his empire of dirt. Buy yourself a good walking foot machine and seize the means of production.
In all honesty, a simple box cushion should take about an hour and a half. I charge $100/hour. If I was to sub it out I have a sewer who would do it for $40/hour. I hate cushions with a passion and would tell the customer I was subbing it out but would still charge them $60/hour at least. Experience equals speed equals profit, and education is expensive. I'm sure you'll sew the next ones faster, but that doesn't mean you'll get paid extra to learn.
But fuck that guy. He will always pay the smallest amount possible and look for ways to keep his foot on your neck as you improve. Marine canvas isn't a simple trade to start in, but can be quite profitable if you don't fuck up. I encourage you to keep at it, but don't count on some asshole to help you.
Can you and the other seamstress coordinate your bids? You shouldn't have to be in a race to the bottom.
He already complained about her raising her prices & being """too expensive""", which is fucking absurd.
Her bid for the 2 seats were 25$ each. He only chose mine because she's been out sick all week & he needs them done by Friday.
I should talk to her next time she's in. Hopefully we can exchange contact info because he probably won't leave us alone together.
I know it's easier said than done, but this is exactly why unionization/collective bargaining exists.
Right now, you (and your fellow seamsters/seamstresses) have zero leverage in this relationship and will get fucked over 100% of the time. The only possible way for you to improve your situation is to gain some leverage, and the only way to do that is by organizing.
Careful about bosses telling tall tales. Happens in the contracting and piecemeal space a lot. Confirm with other seamstress. Hell, start a coop and poach clients directly.
It would be worth finding out why the other seamstress is quoting $25 for each seat. Are they trying to underbid you (or other seamstresses), is that rate sufficient for them, or do they just have no idea what their labour is worth?
If they'd normally bid higher but underbid to get the work in preference to you, you need to talk. You'll either need to work together or in some way set a reasonable rate between you. If they are underbidding to beat others, the market may be saturated, but from your post it sounds like there should be enough work for all.
If the rate is sufficient for them they either have lower living costs somehow, but yours sound low anyway, or they are producing pieces more efficiently than you are, so their effective rate is higher. If that's the case, you might want to talk to them to find out how, although they may not be willing to say.
If they just don't know what their labour is worth and the boss has pushed them to quote that much, you probably need to talk to them about that.
In summary: talk to them. They might not want to talk, which is their perogative, but you both might get more insight into the issue, and maybe find a way to boost your income in the process.
Fuck, that manager is a vulture.
Her bid for the 2 seats were 25$ each. He only chose mine because she’s been out sick all week & he needs them done by Friday.
Dumb question because I don't know your industry. What would a customer pay to have these 2 seats done that he is paying her $25 to do?
Very hard to answer. If it's a rectangle stapled onto a board: strip/cut+sew/upholster, about an hour? My shop rate is $100/hour. It can easily take longer with weird shapes, many seams, new foam ect...
If it takes 20 minutes to sew that's a fair price.
That truly sucks.
Do you have the passion, skillset, and tools to do commission cosplay outfits? That can be pretty lucrative, but somewhat hard to get into if you can't get a reasonably influential cosplayer to rep your work.
There's also furries. Apparently they pay out the tail for their goofy getups.
It's a different skill set I think, but prom, quinciñera, and wedding dresses are surely lucrative.
Find a car modification place and make new seat upholstery?
I bet cute handmade pet clothes are a decent price per hour, sold on Etsy.
Drycleaners often have a little tailoring side business. Find a new drycleaner and see if they need an in-house or as-needed hem and dart person? Burlington coat factory and some department stores also do light tailoring.
Rich people pay for custom curtains, I'm sure.
I don't know if any of these are feasible in your area or with your experience, but I'm throwing spaghetti here. Hope things turn around for you, friend.
Very good ideas but you've just described, like, 4 trades lol. Sewing Machine Operator is a very broad term for many specialized trades. It's rare to find a quilter who's also an industrial tarp fabricator.
All fantastic ideas.
I imagine the furry market is a lot harder to get established in as cosplay due to size.
The automotive market is equally as hard to break into unless you can establish a partnership with an established upholstery company.
Pet clothes are are a more widespread niche market, but the clientele has to be more batshit than furries.
Drycleaners, big market, great potential.
Rich people pay, but are a bigger pain than pet parents.
If your specialty is seamstress, I guess that is an any harbor in in storm situation. So maybe taking anything n you can get until you find a niche is the strategy?
I've actually made fursuits before.
Unfortunately, there's apparently an oversaturation in the market right now..
I'm looking for some place where the income is stable & I don't have to seek out clients on my own. Done my own stuff for years now. I'm too tired trying to "market" myself & my work.
I feel you. But being on your own is where income gets generated. It's also a pain in the ass.
Maybe you can attach yourself to some clothing designers? They often need help making their visions come to life.
Sorry you're having this trouble. At least you got paid for the cushions - I've heard too many stories of people having to make a sample of whatever and getting stiffed.
I've tried to do custom cosplay work before based off of written measurements, but I'm pretty useless without the client being available for tailoring/adjustments.
Most folks aren't goid at giving the actual correct measurements anyhow.
Understandable. Is there any other market that you can pursue that isn't limited by local market demand?
Start your own business if possible.
There is tons of work and the local market supports that. Find a way to use equipment from somebody else for cheap to start and at the rates that the shops get payed you probably would get byy with finding one out two jobs per month. Take control of your life. You can do it.
That is deeply fucked. You deserve enough compensation to be comfortable, to have healthcare and all the other necessities & some luxuries, and to be able to plan for your future.
Those upholsterers are being predatory. No one deserves it.
So you're saying you and the other seamstress can open a business together and charge whatever you want?
He owns the equipment.
Seize the means of production my prole
You usually need money to do that.
A shove and a flight of stairs would work just as well
Murder a man and steal massively heavy equipment from a well-known local figure? That's your solution to my problem?
For fuck's sake.
You are right, you are better off finding some "legal" way of bankrupting them and forcing them to sell you the equipment, using a few lawyers and politicians.
At least that's what they do in the movies when they are not murdering.
That's a great way to end up working slave labor.
I mean, that’s kind of on you for not agreeing on the price beforehand - but still, pretty damn rude of them. I bet they’re charging at least 50 bucks an hour, so I’d love to hear their excuse for paying a tenth of that.
Sounds like you already have the equipment for this kind of work, so why not just start your own business? That’s what I did, and it was one of the better decisions I’ve made in my life.
I suppose I shouldn't have expected a boomer to fairly compensate me. However, it being my first time out in the job market for a while, I had expected things things to work on a standard based on at least the current minimum wage.
I don't think those expectations are unreasonable.
It's not unreasonable. I wouldn't work for this person, or I would accept work to do and then come back to them and say "I needed to prioritize better paying work, I can't get this done on time."
Like, do you think this person is treating you honestly in any measure? No. They are breaking the social contract. Don't give them an inch.
Unfortunately if you aren't an actual employee, minimum wage doesn't apply. And if you have to bid against other workers for work, you DEFINITELY are not an employee.
Not really how that relationship is determined basically anywhere.
Piecemeal employment contracts exist, they are still employment relationships.
If you are willing to do it so cheap for him can you try to reach out to customers directly? Put an ad in the local mailer or up at the docks. Keep the work simple until you build up the experience to do more complex and better paying projects.
I have been looking for stable work that doesn't involve self-employment & having to "market" myself & my work.