Personal & lifestyle services

Books and taxes for alterations and tailoring shops.

Hemming and simple fixes, custom suit work, wedding party rush jobs, and a drawer of thread and buttons that never seems to run out. Your own bookkeeper stays on all of it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.

Book a call What we handle
  • From $197 a month
  • An accountant on every transaction
  • Cancel whenever
MayExample month
$5,200
what you made

May cleared $5,200. Bridal party rush jobs made up a third of it, so I kept rush fees in their own line to show what that extra charge is worth.

  • Square register depositsCounter alterations
  • Bridal shop referral payoutBridal and formalwear work
  • Wawak notions orderThread and notions
  • Second tailor payrollTailor wages
  • Storefront lease paymentRent and utilities
Money in$14,300
Money out$9,100
Set aside for taxes$1,250
An example month. Yours will have your numbers.

Why your books are different

Alterations books go wrong in the same four places.

A generalist sees deposits and bills. Your business is quick hemming jobs, custom tailoring that takes hours of a skilled tailor's time, bridal season rush work, and a drawer of thread and trim that gets restocked in bulk. When the books do not know that, you cannot see what actually pays.

  1. 1

    Rush and bridal fees get folded into regular pricing

    A wedding party needing five dresses altered in three days pays a premium for the turnaround, but if that rush fee lands in the same line as a $15 hem, you cannot tell how much extra a fast turnaround is really worth.

    What we doKeeps rush and bridal work in its own line so you can see what speed and formalwear actually add to the bottom line.
  2. 2

    Skilled custom tailoring looks the same as a quick hem

    A custom suit fitting can take hours of a tailor's time for one ticket, while a simple hem takes ten minutes. Priced and booked the same way, you cannot tell which jobs are worth the hours they take.

    What we doKeeps custom and complex work visible against quick counter jobs, so pricing reflects the time each one actually takes.
  3. 3

    A big notions order swings the month

    A bulk order of thread, buttons, zippers, and interfacing from a supplier like Wawak makes a slow month look worse and the following months look better than they were.

    What we doKeeps notions in one steady line and flags when a stock-up, not a slow week, explains a thin-looking month.
  4. 4

    A second tailor's pay blurs into general wages

    When a shop grows past one tailor, commission or hourly pay for a second set of hands gets lumped into general expenses, hiding what labor actually costs against what the shop takes in.

    What we doKeeps tailor wages in their own line so you can see labor against the work it produced.

Your categories

The categories Gus keeps for an alterations shop.

Set up once for how garments come in and what keeps the shop running. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.

Money in

  • Counter alterationsHems, waist adjustments, and simple repairs paid at drop-off or pickup.
  • Custom tailoringMade-to-measure suits and full garment construction.
  • Bridal and formalwear workWedding party and formalwear alterations, often at premium pricing.
  • Rush feesExtra charged for same-day or next-day turnaround.

Money out

  • Thread and notionsButtons, zippers, interfacing, and trim from a supplier such as Wawak.
  • Tailor wagesPay for any tailor or seamstress beyond the owner.
  • Sewing machine repair and partsService and parts for industrial machines.
  • Rent and utilitiesStorefront lease, electric, and heat.
  • Fabric for custom workYardage bought for made-to-measure jobs.
  • Marketing and referral feesPayments to bridal shops or formalwear stores that send business your way.

What we watch for you

  • Rush fee revenue

    What premium turnaround work brings in against standard jobs. It shows if rush pricing is worth offering.

  • Labor cost per ticket

    Tailor wages against tickets closed. It flags when pricing needs to catch up to the time a job actually takes.

  • Notions cost per month

    Thread and trim spending against jobs run. A rising number often means it is time to raise prices, not just reorder.

  • The set-aside

    The tax bill building up, tracked every month, so April arrives with no surprise.

Ask Gus

Things alterations shop owners ask Gus.

Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.

Is charging extra for rush bridal jobs actually worth it?

Right now rush and bridal work is bringing in about 40 percent more per ticket than your standard hems. Looks worth keeping.

I hired a second tailor on commission. How do I track that?

I keep her pay in its own line against the tickets she closes, so you can see if her work is paying for itself.

Do I need to save every notions receipt?

No. Send the bank statement and I sort thread, buttons, and trim into one line, so nothing gets missed at tax time.

The tax side

The tax side of an alterations shop.

Most of what goes wrong here is timing and labor. A second tailor paid informally, notions bought in bulk, and a set-aside nobody started until April.

What your return has to get right

Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.

  • Self-employment tax on shop profitFor an alterations shop, self-employment tax runs 15.3 percent on top of regular income tax when the owner is not paid through payroll, up to the Social Security wage base of $184,500.
  • Filing 1099s for helpersA tailor or seamstress not on payroll gets a 1099-NEC by January 31 if paid $2,000 or more in 2026.
  • Is a tailor an employeeA tailor who works your hours on your machines is usually an employee, not a contractor, no matter what the arrangement is called.
  • The pass-through write-offFor an alterations shop, the pass-through deduction lets an owner take up to 20 percent of business profit off taxable income, a figure that only comes out right when the books are kept right all year.

Deductions alterations and tailoring shops miss

Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.

  • Thread, buttons, and zippers
  • Interfacing and trim
  • Fabric for custom work
  • Sewing machine repairs
  • Pressing equipment
  • Rent and utilities
  • Business insurance
  • Signage and storefront upkeep
  • Bridal shop referral fees
  • Point-of-sale software
  • Tailor uniforms or aprons
  • Trade certifications

General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.

All year, not just April

An alterations year, kept every month.

Wedding season brings rush work in waves, and quick hems come in every week of the year. Your team keeps you ahead of both the calendar and the tax deadlines. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.

  1. January

    Get the year going

    For an alterations shop, last year's return gets started in January, and a monthly set-aside means April is already handled.

  2. April

    April, filed

    For an alterations shop, the return is filed and signed in April, with no surprise bill since the set-aside has been running since January.

  3. July

    Midyear look

    Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether spring wedding season changed the number.

  4. October

    Before holiday parties

    Formalwear alterations pick up before holiday events. Gus looks at any equipment worth buying and moves worth making before December.

What you get

Starts at$197a month

What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.

Book a call
  • Monthly bookkeeping

    Every transaction sorted into categories set up for alterations and tailoring shops. You never categorize a thing.

  • An accountant checks every transaction

    Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.

  • Your business tax return, filed

    Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.

  • The monthly number

    What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.

  • Your own bookkeeper

    A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.

  • On your books all year

    Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.

  • Cancel any time

    No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.

Straight answers

Questions alterations shop owners ask first.

Can Gus separate bridal work from everyday hems?

Yes. Rush and bridal work is kept in its own line, apart from standard counter alterations, so you can see what the premium work is actually worth.

I pay my second tailor by commission. Does that change the books?

It changes where the money goes, not what you do. Gus keeps her pay in its own line so you can see labor against the work it produced.

Do I need to save receipts for every spool of thread?

No. Send the bank statement and Gus sorts notions and trim into one steady line so it is not missed at tax time.

My tailor works my hours on my machines. Is she really a contractor?

Probably not. That pattern usually looks like an employee to the IRS, no matter what the arrangement is called. Worth the accountant's look before it becomes a habit.

My books are a mess from running this alone. Is that fixable?

Yes, and it is fixable. Send the bank statements you have and Gus catches the books up, with the accountant checking every transaction, usually inside a week.

Is a real accountant checking my books?

Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.

What does it cost, and can I cancel?

It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.

More in personal & lifestyle services

We keep books for the business next door too.

What makes a bookkeeper worth paying for Every business we keep books for

Book a call

Pick a time. That's the whole signup.

Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.

  • $197 a month to start
  • An accountant on every transaction
  • Cancel whenever