Quilting and Patchwork

Collecting Payments in Your Quilting Business

by Mary Emma Allen on July 11th, 2007

Most customers/clients pay well and as agreed.  However, no matter what aspect of quilting or fabric arts business you’re involved in, you’ll likely run into someone who is late with their payment or doesn’t pay at all.

I’ve not encountered many who didn’t pay me.  I found, when someone was late, the situation usually could be resolved.  If there was a problem with the product or service, we were able to work it out.

I learned when contracting for a project, especially a larger one such as a quilt or wall hanging that ran into quite a bit of money…both for my supplies and price from the buyer, I would divide the payments into increments.  That way, I had money in hand for supplies.  Customers didn’t find it so overwhelming when it came to payment.  I would request the balance upon delivery (or before delivery if it was something I shipped). 

Laura Spencer, at Writing Thoughts, relates a situation she encountered, The Case of the Missing Payment - Happily Resolved. Then Laura mentions four tips to ensure you receive your payment in a timely fashion.

Of course, Laura’s examples generally relate to writers.  However, the tips she gives can be applied to other businesses,  such as quilting and fabric arts, to help keep you from encountering a payment problem. 

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POSTED IN: General Quilting/Patchwork