Hotrod & Restoration magazine recently published its annual automotive industry statistics. The nationwide survey, which gathers data from all sectors of the custom and restoration industry, highlights valuable information that our shops can use to better understand the market – such as average shop sales revenues and busiest months of the year.
What stands out the most, however, is the report’s findings on the average hourly labor rate that our auto upholstery shops charge in comparison to other sectors of the industry.
Hotrod & Restoration interviewed a sample of shops in each of the following sectors of the automotive industry, uncovering their average hourly labor rates:
- Builders/Restorers/Fabricators: $61 per hour
- Engine builders: $72 per hour
- Machine Shops: $70 per hour
- Paint/Body Shops: $64 per hour
- Upholstery/Trim/Interior Shops: $55 per hour
Trim shops charging an average of $55 per hour is no surprise, but when compared to other sectors in our industry it raises an important question:
Why do we charge less per hour than other sectors when our skills are just as specialized as theirs? You can even make the case that we’re more highly specialized, as there are fewer trim shops than mechanic and body shops, and only a handful of auto upholstery trade schools in the entire country.
The answer is clear. Someone is undervaluing our services – and it’s either us or the market.
Tell us what you think: How does your shop’s hourly rate compare to the industry average? And who do you think is undervaluing the services that our auto trim shops provide?
I handle my estimate process the same way, and also tend to short sale myself. Being that our jobs are never identical its hard to have set prices….. Im still trying to figure a different solution….. Even when I feel im shooting too high on my estimate some how I still have a short fall on time estimation…..
I have been in business for over 30 years my shop averages 100-300 hour depends on materials hey I did not suffer by low balling or low ballers i personally make sure the work is done right with no excuses
You’re certainly on the higher end as far as labor rates go, but that’s great that you can get it.
Great price and sounds good to me. just say a door panel is $850.00 and you can repair it in a hour or so. you saved the customer $700.00. I just looked here to see what the shop rate should be. I been in business for 39 years and have learned all you have is your labor and skill’s that are hard to find, a lot harder to find that a Dr. or lawyer. Your not going to find them charging a low rate. A week ago, we went up to $90.00 per hour,on labor that we can’t est. that will have some hidden problems. all you trimmers need to look around, I have been saying for years it a dying trade, 4 people were in this town,when I started, now me and one more. I feel $90 is very fair price..Should be higher than that in a bigger CITY.
Just for interest sake wat is the monthly salary for a master trimmer in USA just a average figure because a normal going salary in S.A. isn’t that bad depends who you work forehand in wat part of the country and to tell the truth S.A. is very limited with materials tools and accessories compared to wat I’ve seen and red about America and Germany
Just to put in my two cents in, I recently started up an Auto upholstery shop, the only of its kind in my country Belize, Central America and even though I am up to International standard because of my training in the US, people still expect to pay far below the industry rate..my edge is that I have no competition at this point but still not charging the full rate in the effort of building up a customer base.
dealer in my aera charges $75.00. so icharge $75.00 . guess that is why i don`t git dealer work . it is sent 30 miles away . they eve remove the seats . gues some one is a lot cheaper . i am just a one man shop and don`t owe them or anyone else a dime . i drive a ols 1994 truck my wife has a 1994 nissan i bought an d repaired for her .my truck i bought from a indivigal . will not trade with a dealer for that reason .yes i did in the past but when they went cheep i did . if they o bring something i will charge the at their rate.
my time is worth just as much or more than their shae tree mechanic they have working on a car .
Where are you located in sarasota? Can you send me a phone #….I need some work done.
Thanks,
Florence
What my overhead & monthly expenses are, is of no concern to my customers. It’s none of their business what it costs me to keep the doors open. Around here, the shops in commercial space charge $65.00/hr.
I work out of my home shop. I also charge 65.00/hr. Sometimes I make more, sometimes less. For instance. Boat moorage/tonneau covers. Average shop price here is $500.00 for a 19-23′ boat. Material costs are about $100.00 & I can punch out one of those in 4 hours. Pretty good coin, but it’s market value.
Mostly though, the com. space shops don’t/won’t do what I do. They survive on quick-turnover jobs & can’t afford to have a project vehicle taking up that expensive floor space for a month or more.
When (IF!) I do do insurance claim repairs, the Ins. Co calls me to inquire as to costs of the repair! They’ve never questioned my prices!
I’m a one-man shop that specializes in restorations, complete custom & one-off designed interiors. No more than 2 projects at a time. I bill my customers 2x a month, no matter if I’ve worked on their project for just for 1 hour or 100 hours in that period. Work does not progress until that 2 week cost has been covered. This helps to keep the customer from being whammed with a rather large one time bill upon completion, & it keeps the $$$ rolling into the shop.
I charge shop rate for R&D, too. It’s possible to spend hours researching the smallest details on low production/rare vehicles in order to produce a perfect recreation of the original.
I don’t advertise. Strictly word-of-mouth. Yet, because of the quality I strive to produce, my customers do not quibble over the final cost. They would rather pay for a job done right, the first time. But then, most of my customers are well versed in the costs of a properly stitched & installed interior as many of them have multi-vehicle collections & they’ve gone through the ‘not-quite-right’ scenario before! They’ve realized that paying to get it right the first time is cheaper in the long run than re-doing a budget-priced job that’s either just wrong or not up to the level of the rest of the vehicle.
Every interior I produce is done with the intention that it is for my own vehicle. Whomever owns the vehicle doesn’t matter, the interior will always be one of ‘mine’! So, if I wouldn’t be happy with the project in my own vehicle, then why should my customer?
If I do 100 projects, & 99 are perfect, that one that isn’t is the one that’ll come back to haunt me. It’s that perfection obsession that my customers pay for. Do it once, do it right. The quality of the job is remembered long after the price is forgotten. I make no excuses for my prices. There will always be someone, somewhere that’ll do the job for cheaper. I don’t care. I’m not in competition with them. I’m in competition with myself.
So, for all that, $65.00/hr. is still too cheap!
Great comments folks, been in the biz for 35 years. Upholstery is a dying trade that can be charged accordingly. My past of yachts, exotic cars, and designing car interiors for the auto companies made me charge what the market/client will pay for perfect craftsmanship. Good luck folks!!!
Im from Ontario canada and my rate has always been 45. an hour , but costs for supplies never stops going up which doesnt help. I worked for lazboy in canada for 33 years and wen they shut down in 05 i started up on my own. I have been told by many i dont charge enough. What is enough before customers start looking elsewhere?
I’m wondering what to charge to strip the inside of a short school buss from the passengers seats back . Well here’s a break down remove all the seats . Put in a new floor reposition the seats that have already been redone sideways to make a party bus , and build a division between the driver and passengers.. any ideas please let me know. Asap
exactly, fear that word will get around your prices are too high. Doing a pontoon boat with rips on parts of seats and couch .lot of work as all the covers have to come off to be patched then put back on . Almost finished and was going to charge 700. Canadian but worried he may be thinking too much. boat had a tree fall on it . Hes a dealer and bought boat at auction for resale.
CK Upholstery and Auto Trim exactly, well said
Ive been at 50 an hour for almost 10 years. The amount of hours I give away has gone down but recetly ive been trying to transition to 65$. It adds up fast and its still a little hard but I’m so much in demand and shops keep closing. Ive learned that the people that complain are gonna complain weather its 3$ or 10$ thats just their nature so you may as well get what you want.
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