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She never thought that skill could also be the only investment in a business.
Now Amalia ?Bebe? Tuada-Enjaynes is amazed at how she and a group of co-employees have found new life as independent tailors.
It all started with a group of co-workers who wanted to uplift their standard of living and be more in control of their jobs.
?We just believed in the saying ? if others can do it, why can't we?? said Enjaymes
The group of four had previously worked at Arlene's Fashion on Don Mariano Que Street for two years before deciding to put up their own tailor shop.
Enjaynes said that they got tired of being employees of other tailor shops because they could not control their workload.
?We have to work even if we are already tired because we have to finish our work load and we also don't own our time.?
TRAINING
Enjaymes said she never had formal training in tailoring.
She acquired the skills her neighbors in Upper Calahoan in Minglanilla town, southern Cebu, where her husband comes from.
?I learned to sew uniforms through my neighbors ? housewives whose main source of income is doing tailoring jobs,? said Enjaynes.
Her first investment was her sewing machine which she loaned from Singer, Enjaynes said.
The machine cost about P8,000. She paid the loan from her tailoring jobs.
?I then worked for MYC Collection for eight years and transferred to Arlene's Fashion where I met them,? referring to her co-workers, who are now her business partners.
Jima Negro and Alma Alipin do repairs and tailoring. Alejandro Cati-an is their master cutter as well as their leader.
?I do the marketing such as approaching offices and schools so that I can get projects from them like doing their office uniforms or school uniforms,? said Enjaymes.
START
They started their partnership in May 2006.
Enjaynes recalled that they only had a few customers back then and her home on 387-B P. del Rosario Street, Cebu City was their workplace.
?My first clients who are still my clients now are Abet Kanglaon of LTO (Land Transportation Office) ? we do repairs for her uniform and other clothing, too ?(and) another client is from as far as Daan Bantayan, Verna Arcenal. We do nursing uniforms for her.?
Enjaynes said that aside from their skills, hard work and patience are also among their investments.
She cited instances where customers will demand and insist that she should do it their way.
EARN
They earn an average of at least P300 to P450 per day during the early days of operation.
?Now we average at least P650 and sometimes more especially during peak season,? she said.
Peak season starts every second week of October and lasts until the last week of August the following year.
They get projects from schools and offices during during this period.
Enjaynes? group also capitalizes on word-of-mouth advertising from satisfied clients.
?Here we do multiple repairs for a job we did from our customer until the customer will be satisfied. I think that's the reason why our clients stick with us and recommend us to their friends. In other shops, you will have to pay for more repairs or adjustments,? she said in Cebuano.
Enjaynes also said that the business was profitable for them as their only capital are their acquired skills.
?We already had the machines so when we started everything was already in place; all we needed to do was get projects,? she said.
GROWING
They have four machines in the shop. Operating cost is only pegged at P5,360 which includes electricity, telephone bills and rental of the shop. Given that they earn at least P650 a day and operate at least six days a week, they can earn at least P15,600 each month or a net income of P10,240.
Enjaynes said their business was still growing.
What they like about their partnership now is that they get to work at their own pace, own their time and don't have a limit of how much they can earn.
Enjaymes said what they were doing now was a lot better than being employees who could be laid off any time
