Fabric shopping is a giant pain in the ass

We had to run to the fabric stores to pick up some new prints to finish the cut in our cowl neck top. We needed a couple of hundred yards so we had to source out some nice prints. We found some pretty good stuff that we bought in small lots to make about 25 tops per roll. But we are a little heavy in the paisley.

Of course you don't just pick them out. You have to protect the ones you pick so some other smuck doesn't grab them and try to buy them. So the wife goes out to pick them and I have to stand guard.

Then the midget Mexican girl has to measure them on the roller machine and you have to watch her so you don't get ripped off. The fuckin Paki that own's the joint is all "Rosa do this" and "Rosa do that."  But she likes us as I tip her a few bucks for all her help because she deserves it.

 

Finally when it is all said and done we load it up into the SUV and drive it back to Brooklyn. I am beat.

Today was fun but tomorrow is going to be tough

Today was our official day off so I was able to spend some time batting LSL around a little. But tomorrow will be a busy day.

The Javits show is on and we have to catch the last day of it to see if we can make some appointments and get jeans and jewelry and some other stuff that we don't make. Then on to the fabric stores to get some more goods to finish the cut. We are about 100 yrds short and need to find stuff for tops.

We are supposed to be off Mondays and Tuesdays but it never works out that way.

Hey I was busy....I have another job...just saying

Everybody was wondering where I was and why I was not posting but it is easy to understand. We spent the last two days in the city fabric shopping and it was a big pain in the balls.

We went to a couple of garment stores that are run by rag merchants. You know what that means. Haggling like the souk in Marrakesh. Also the joints are filthy dirty. The fabric is piled willy nilly and if you touch willy everything falls on your fuckin' feet.

I was looking at one role and the guy working there try's to pull it out like he is playing jenga. That made everything fall into a pile in the middle of the store. Those two girls in the back of this shot were actually much closer to the collapse and one of the roles got her right in her Meade. That must of hurt.

Anyhoo we found some stuff. So we had to have it measured and then wrapped up and then we had to bring it back to the store and carry it to the back room. Friday I have to bring it to the factory. It is a big pain in the ass.

But you have to do it if you want the good.

I just hate it when it falls on your feet. Jeeesh.

Hey I was busy shopping for Fabrics

So I am sorry that I haven't been posting as much as I used to but I have been mucho busy. As I had mentioned my employees have all quit or were fired so it is basically me and Lisa working every day. I have hired two part timers to fill in around the edges but we are doing the bulk of it.

When you run a store and a business like we do it is not just opening the door and letting the money roll in.
We manufacture all of our clothes so we have to buy the fabric and the trim and take it to the factory and pick up the finished pieces. I used to have this Jap twat that did this but her husband lost his job so she had to take a full time job to support her family. So I am doing her job as well as my own.

Today we spent all day in the garment center. We got fabric for our spring line and trim such as leather and zippers and all kinds of shit that goes into manufacturing. We went to about twenty places so we are really beat.

But I just did not want to miss another day posting.

Problems of a shop keeper.

This weeks problem is storage. We are starting to bring in spring and have a bunch of winter stuff we have to store. Now some stores do crazy sales to get inventory clearance but we feel we don't need to do that. A lot of our stuff is classic and will sell just fine next fall. Especially stuff like coats and sweaters. We sold a ton of stuff this year from last years lines at a reduced price but without giving it away. You have to have confidence that you will be around for a while.

So I have to find a way to save some inventory where it won't get damaged.

A lot of the stuff will be just great for spring and will sell through three seasons. Like the dress in the photo which I call the "Erte" dress. My wife is a big fan of the artist Erte and we have several of his pieces of art in the house. I tell women when they try on this dress they should be wearing a kerchief, smoking a cigarette in a cigarette holder and standing next to a very skinny dog. It is art deco all the way. This is the first dress that my wife had a hand in designing and has been a great seller for us. It is in a beefy Italian fabric that has substance to it and it smooths out the back when it fits properly. There is also extra fabric as it is a wrap dress which sometimes have a tendency to open up and look sloppy. We have more fabric in certain spots to avoid that as well as to manipulate the decolletage so it can be appropriate for work or play. I have sold three of them today so far. Perfect for spring when is still a little chilly.