How to cost a brief
Whether you are wanting to start a lingerie brand, or simply have a great lingerie pattern, or beautiful fabric to use and want top know how much each brief will cost to produce then I’m about to take you through the steps.
Please note for this costing I will just take you through direct costs: fabric, trims etc not the indirect costs: pattern making, grading etc..
So you need to look at everything that will make your brief: in this instance it is : elastic, tulle (front and outer gusset), inner gusset, mesh (back) and bow, if you are designing for a lingerie brand it may also includes, labels, swing tickets, packaging and manufacturing. If you are wanting a cost with include indirect costs and mark up points then I have produced a costing sheet for this, that takes into direct costs and offers you suggestions for selling point. There is also in this costing sheet another sheet which takes into indirect costs and gives you a pie chart of how much each part of the garment is costing. They also show you how much you would need to order fabric and trim wise if you were doing 10, 20 or 100 pieces.
So, to start you will measure the elastics I do this from measuring a sample, if you haven’t made a sample yet measure a brief that will cover a similar shape.
My sample measured my 1.89 and cost 60p/m so it was cost at 1.89x 0.60 = £1.13
You then need to work out how many times your pattern fits into 1m of fabric, the fabric I used at the front was only 23cm wide so I could fit in 2 front in one meter of fabric. The fabric cost £2.40 so 0.5 x £2.40 = £1.20 (one front look up 0.5m of fabric)
Then I worked out the back, for this I draw out 1m x the width of the fabric for this i could get out 12 backs so I would do 1m/12= 0.08
And then I would do 0.08 x £8.40 = £0.67
And I would do that on all of the pieces. This is what I got:
Mesh £0.67
Gusset £0.79
Lace £1.20
Lace gusset £0.60
Elastic £1.13
Bow £0.10
Total = £4.50
Looking at this I would start to look at cheaper gusset lining.
By working out one cost, means you don’t have to keep making a sample to work out the costs once you have done it once.
Let’s Talk Numbers – The Ultimate Lingerie Cost Sheet
Pricing lingerie can feel like a guessing game—but it doesn’t have to be.
This automated cost sheet does the math for you. Simply enter your fabric and elastic amounts, and the sheet calculates exactly how much each piece costs to produce. It also gives you two wholesale pricing strategies and three different selling price points—so you can confidently set your prices without second-guessing.
What This Cost Sheet Does For You:
Breaks Down Your Costs – From materials to manufacturing, so you always know your bottom line
Suggests Pricing for Wholesale & Direct Sales – Two wholesale methods and three selling strategies to choose from
Calculates Fabric & Trim Needs – For 10, 20, or 100 pieces, making ordering easy
Includes Break-Even Analysis – Helps you figure out how many pieces you need to sell to cover costs
Comes in Two Versions – A printable A4 version and a digital version with even more insights
Who Is This For?
Lingerie designers who want clarity on their costs
Small business owners looking to price smart and profitably
Anyone making lingerie who needs a simple, stress-free costing system
If you wish to use the costing sheet to help you please see below, there is also a video on You Tube explaining everything.