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Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers in North Carolina

Want to work as a Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers in North Carolina? Here’s what the data says. Design, make, alter, repair, or fit garments.

What do Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers Make in North Carolina?

For a tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers working in North Carolina, wages run about $35,490 per year (or roughly $17.06/hour).Annual wages span from $27,020 at the 10th percentile to $49,650 at the 90th percentile.

Wage Statistic	Annual	Hourly
10th percentile	$27,020	$12.99
25th percentile	$30,420	$14.62
Median (50th)	$35,490	$17.06
75th percentile	$44,930	$21.60
90th percentile	$49,650	$23.87

The location quotient — a measure of how concentrated this occupation is in North Carolina compared to the national average — is 0.92.

National Wage Comparison

Nationally, tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers earn a median of $40,404 per year ($19.43/hour), lower than the North Carolina median.

Employment Outlook

There are roughly 860,064 tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers in the U.S.. In North Carolina alone, approximately 480 people work in this role. That’s more than the typical state, which employs around 230 tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers.

Top North Carolina Metros for Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers

The largest metro-area employers of tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers in North Carolina.

Metro Area	Number Employed	Annual Median Salary
Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC	110	$35,490
Durham-Chapel Hill, NC	50	$49,230

Top States for Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers Employment

View the states that employ the most tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers work.

State	Number Employed
California	2,240
Texas	1,840
Florida	1,410
New York	1,400
New Jersey	710
Minnesota	600
South Carolina	550
Pennsylvania	500
Michigan	490
Massachusetts	490
North Carolina	480
Virginia	450
Illinois	360
Missouri	340
Ohio	270
Indiana	260
Maryland	260
Georgia	230
Louisiana	230
Tennessee	230

Highest-Paying States for Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers

Where tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers earn the most: tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers.

State	Annual Median Salary
District of Columbia	$57,380
New York	$57,280
Maryland	$52,000
Washington	$51,010
Oklahoma	$50,710
Pennsylvania	$49,250
Connecticut	$47,360
Hawaii	$46,990
Nevada	$46,020
Massachusetts	$45,770

Skills

The most important tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers skills, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:

Knowledge Areas

Key knowledge areas for this occupation, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:

Abilities

The abilities that matter most for tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:

Daily Tasks

Common tasks include:

• Measure parts, such as sleeves or pant legs, and mark or pin-fold alteration lines.
• Remove stitches from garments to be altered, using rippers or razor blades.
• Sew garments, using needles and thread or sewing machines.
• Let out or take in seams in suits and other garments to improve fit.
• Measure customers, using tape measures, and record measurements.
• Fit and study garments on customers to determine required alterations.
• Trim excess material, using scissors.
• Assemble garment parts and join parts with basting stitches, using needles and thread or sewing machines.
• Make garment style changes, such as tapering pant legs, narrowing lapels, and adding or removing padding.
• Maintain garment drape and proportions as alterations are performed.
• Take up or let down hems to shorten or lengthen garment parts, such as sleeves.
• Repair or replace defective garment parts, such as pockets, zippers, snaps, buttons, and linings.

Work Activities

• Controlling Machines and Processes
• Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work
• Thinking Creatively
• Making Decisions and Solving Problems
• Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge
• Judging the Qualities of Objects, Services, or People
• Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events
• Getting Information
• Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials
• Performing for or Working Directly with the Public
• Scheduling Work and Activities
• Developing Objectives and Strategies

Tools & Technology

Common tools and software used in this occupation include: Hot technologies: Google Docs

Related Careers

Related occupations to tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers include:

• Fashion Designers
• Patternmakers, Metal and Plastic
• Layout Workers, Metal and Plastic
• Print Binding and Finishing Workers
• Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers
• Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials

Also Known As

Alteration Tailor, Alterations Associate, Alterations Expert, Alterations Sewer, Alterations Specialist, Alterations Tailor, Alterations and Tailor Shop Fitter, Alterations and Tailor Shop Sewer, Appliquer, Bridal Designer, Bridal Gown Fitter, Cloth Cutter, Clothing Busheler, Clothing Cutter, Clothing Pattern Designer.

References

• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics — https://www.bls.gov/oes/
• O*NET Online — https://www.onetonline.org/
• BLS Employment Projections — https://www.bls.gov/emp/
• O*NET-SOC code: 51-6052.00