Quote or estimate: is a tailoring quote a fixed price?

The words sellers use

Everyday usage is loose, and some businesses use the two words interchangeably. These are the meanings most people work with.

• Ballpark or rough guide: a range given before the details are known. Useful for budgeting, not something to pay against.
• Estimate: a considered figure based on what is known now, which the seller expects might change once the work starts.
• Quote or quotation: a stated total for a stated job. If the job stays the same, so should the price.
• Fixed price: another way of saying the same thing, often used to reassure you that there are no extras.
• Price on request: no figure is published, and you will be given one for your order. It says nothing about whether that figure will be an estimate or a quote, so ask.

What can move a quoted total

In made to measure, almost every change to the total comes from a change to the order itself. Typical examples:

• The design. Adding a dupatta or a waistcoat, lengthening a kameez to the floor, or moving from delicate to statement embroidery.
• The fabric. Swapping to a different cloth, or needing more metres because of a longer length or a fuller cut.
• The destination. Delivery and import charges belong to the country the parcel goes to, so changing the delivery country changes that part of the total.
• The service. Moving from Stitching Only to Fabric + Stitching, or the other way round, changes what is being supplied.

How ours works

Every order we make starts with an individual written quote. Before you pay, it shows the agreed design, fabric, measurements, customisation, total cost, delivery arrangements, making time and the policies that apply. The total includes delivery to your address and any import duties, taxes and customs or courier fees at your destination, so nothing extra is due when the parcel arrives. Our delivered duty paid explainer covers that part.

Once you approve it, the total is fixed in the currency it was issued in. If you later want something different, such as another sleeve or a different fabric, tell us before cutting, and the change is agreed in writing, with any new total, before work goes on. Payment is in full in advance by bank transfer, Wise or a card payment link. If your money is held in another currency, the amount your bank charges can move with the exchange rate; the quoted figure does not. Our guide on paying in pounds from abroad explains that.

Questions to ask before accepting any quote

Whoever is making your outfit, these questions turn a number into something you can rely on. Our checklist of what to look for in a written quote goes through the contents line by line, and you can see how a custom stitching order is priced by asking for a quote.

• Is this a quote or an estimate?
• Does the total include delivery to my address and any charges at my end?
• Which details is the figure based on, and are they all written down?
• If I change one detail, will you tell me the new total before going ahead?
• Is there anything that could be added after I pay?