Production of shoe covers - 4 types of equipment for business

Entrepreneurs unfairly ignore the production of shoe covers, although this business idea really works. Now it is a large market with an ever-increasing volume of consumption. In 2022, the market volume in Russia exceeded 870 thousand units, the capacity in monetary terms was more than $5 million. It continues to grow, so new players also have chances.

In this regard, we will tell you in more detail how to launch your production and organize sales of goods, and we will provide details that are important for achieving success.

1. What are shoe covers? 2. Business on shoe covers: features and prospects 3. What are shoe covers made of? 4. Shoe cover manufacturing technology 5. Opening a shoe cover business: initial investment 6. Documents 7. Premises 8. Equipment 9. Personnel 10. Sales 11. Marketing and promotion 12. Profitability and payback: financial plan

What are shoe covers?

Shoe covers are protective covers, products that are put on shoes for hygienic purposes. They prevent contamination of interior spaces in medical institutions, factories, and laboratories.

They have a universal size: length 39+1 cm, height 14+1 cm. They come in different shapes - for ease of wearing.

Using shoe covers, a person not only does not bring dirt indoors, but also reduces the risk of the spread of pathogenic infections and microorganisms from the street. Shoe covers are waterproof (if their integrity is not compromised) and can be used during icy conditions - the material does not slip.

Business on shoe covers: features and prospects

The features of the Russian shoe cover market and the business for their production are as follows:

1. Equipment can be purchased at low prices.
2. The production process is simple and no special skills are needed.
3. The cost of shoe covers is low.
4. The product can be stored under normal conditions and does not deteriorate.
5. The products are disposable, therefore, each new trip to institutions where they are used requires the purchase of a new pair.
6. The volume of consumption and demand for goods is constantly increasing.
7. If you find wholesale buyers, you can be sure of consistently high revenue.

Payback

As already noted, the production of shoe covers is characterized by low cost. Therefore, the main emphasis should be on increasing sales volumes.

The approximate payback period of a business can be calculated as follows:

• The average cost of one pair of shoe covers is about 1.5 rubles.
• The approximate number of pairs produced in 30 days is 432 thousand pairs.
• Of these, 425,000 pairs go to wholesale. The remaining seven thousand pairs are loaded into the machine.
• The wholesale price of a pair is 1.5 rubles, the retail price is 5 rubles.
• After full sales volume, revenue will be 672.6 thousand rubles.
• Net profit – 72.5 thousand rubles.

Thus, a shoe cover business will pay for itself in less than 2.5 years. With a competent approach and proper organization of the search for distribution channels, the activity in question will become a profitable and long-term business, since these products belong to the disposable segment, which means they will be constantly in demand. The main thing is that the goods do not sit in warehouses, but arrive to the customer as quickly as possible.

What are shoe covers made of?

Polymer materials are used to produce products. They are non-woven, waterproof and inexpensive.

Table 1. Polymer materials for the production of shoe covers

To fix the shoe cover on the leg, a latex rubber insert is made along the edges. Thanks to her, the product does not fall off the shoe.

Relevance

The production of shoe covers as a business “scares off” modern businessmen. However, those who consider this matter hopeless are mistaken. Although there are no development options other than increasing linear production, the demand for the product is great, since it is a one-time item, and the cost is low. In addition to medical institutions, shoe covers are sold in beauty salons, food factories and other establishments where sterility is required. For example, the attendance of an average clinic is 300-500 people per day. Exactly the same number of pairs of medical disposable shoe covers will be purchased. If this is a children's hospital, this number can be multiplied by 2, since parents will also need them.

Shoe cover manufacturing technology

For production, you will need equipment - a machine (automatic or semi-automatic) that will process raw materials into shoe covers in the form of slippers (“boats”).

1. A roll of spunbond, polyethylene or polypropylene is placed on the machine.
2. The machine operates itself or is controlled by staff - the machine draws raw materials and performs soldering.
3. An elastic band is welded to the top of the product. It fixes the shoe cover on legs of different sizes.
4. The canvas is folded and cut with a hot knife.
5. The goods are packed in plastic containers and small bags and stored.

The automatic line can do all the work on its own.

Other tools

Machines for the production of disposable shoe covers also differ in seam welding technology. The unit can be equipped with ultrasonic welding or its thermal analogue. The performance of both devices is not particularly different, but the cost of the first option is 20 percent higher. The average productivity of the equipment is 30-50 pairs per minute. In an eight-hour working day, it is possible to make up to 48 thousand shoe covers.

At the next stage, we select a machine for producing a fixing elastic band. It can be made on machines with mechanical fastening of the elastic (the material is stretched manually, after which it is folded and soldered along the edge).

Machines with machine fastening are also used for this purpose - the elastic is fed from both sides, after which it is automatically wrapped and soldered. Those who have decided to seriously expand their business should worry about purchasing devices for packaging production and the packaging process itself.

Starting a shoe cover business: initial investment

The table below calculates the costs required to organize a shoe cover manufacturing business.

Table 2. Approximate costs for industrial production of shoe covers.

The cost of renting premises is for a city with a population of up to 1 million people.

Professional equipment for the production of shoe covers is the main expense item. There are different models of equipment on sale, you can choose cheap equipment. Our business plan involves the use of a production line that ensures process automation and high productivity.

Adviсe

Owners of this or similar types of activities are advised to adhere to the following rules:

• State support measures. Beginning entrepreneurs can and should take advantage of subsidies and benefits.
• Working disabled people. They can be arranged on an automatic line, which will also increase the amount of benefits and loyalty of government agencies.
• Focus on the colors of the materials. The assortment is strictly defined and cannot be expanded, but you can diversify the colors of the materials by offering organizations shoe covers with a corporate color.
• Purchasing a franchise. If you are unable or unwilling to start a business from scratch, you can purchase a franchise. But a ready-made plan, a base of suppliers and buyers will require additional expenses.

The production of shoe covers is a business that requires high investments and a business plan for several years. Its opening should be approached thoughtfully, analyzing the sales market. There are no breakthroughs in this field and few opportunities for development, but well-structured work can bring solid profits for a long time.

Documentation

At the first stage, you need to select a business registration form. You can create a company either in the form of an individual entrepreneur or an LLC (legal entity). It depends on the scale of production and future plans, however, it is better for a businessman planning to open a small business to choose the form of individual entrepreneur (individual entrepreneur).

Registration will be cheaper, you can work at a low tax rate (STS). The owner will be able to handle accounting directly (the calculations are simple), and there will be no need to hire an additional person.

When registering, please indicate OKVED code 24.42.2 “Manufacture of other pharmaceutical products and medical devices.” No permits or licenses are needed.

Room

To work, you will need a small room equipped with communications (most importantly, electricity). For 1 machine you will need a workshop area of ​​up to 20 square meters. m.

In addition to it, we need rooms for staff, a warehouse for raw materials and finished products, and a bathroom.

It is recommended to rent a workshop on the outskirts of the city - this will reduce the cost of rent. It is also not worth locating too far from the sales market - logistics costs will increase.

At first, you will not need an office to receive clients. The entrepreneur will have to do the “processing” of potential buyers himself.

Manufacturing process

To understand all the intricacies of the process, it is necessary to understand the principle of operation of the machine. Conventionally, it can be divided into the following stages:

1. First, the canvas is unrolled and fixed.
2. Next, the machine stretches it, cuts out the neck, and the almost finished product is soldered at the seams using thermal or ultrasonic welding.
3. An elastic band is fixed to the neck of the shoe covers, which is attached in a similar way.
4. At the final stage, the product is packaged in capsules or manually folded into bundles.
5. There is equipment that can immediately attach a tourniquet and then cut medical shoe covers according to the pattern.

Equipment

To produce shoe covers on an industrial scale, you need professional equipment. Products can be manufactured using 2 technologies - using ultrasound or heat treatment (heat welding).

According to the business plan, the production line includes the following equipment:

• directly the machine for the production of shoe covers - STKM 17 (cost 1.5 million rubles);
• apparatus for creating packaging - ;
• machine for packing shoe covers (cost 350 thousand rubles).

The machine can operate without the participation of people - workers will only be needed to monitor the manufacturing process and maintain the production line. It is more expensive than the semi-automatic version, but it is beneficial in the long term - you will be able to save on hiring and training staff.

The productivity of the automatic machine is up to 100 pairs of products per minute.

How much can you earn?

It follows from this that producing shoe covers is one of the most profitable ways to earn money:

• In 1 minute, the machine will produce 120 shoe covers, the net income from which will be 64.8 rubles.
• For 1 hour – 3,888 rubles.
• For 9 hours (for 1 working day) – 34,992 rubles.
• For 1 month (20 working days) – 699,840 rubles.
• For 1 year – 8,398,080 rubles.

To calculate net income you need:

Subtract monthly expenses from the company’s profit for 1 year (excluding the cost of raw materials):

• 8,398,080 – 1,867,200 = 6,530,880 rubles.

Also, from this amount it is necessary to allocate funds monthly to cover the initial investment. That is, if you allocate 500,000 per month, the enterprise will pay for itself in three months. But such cases are rare.

Emergency situations may occur at the enterprise, which may require additional investments. Therefore, the maximum payback period can be considered 1-1.5 years.

Staff

2 people can handle the work in the workshop, as well as loading and unloading operations. They will monitor the equipment and check the quality of the products.

A senior manager is also needed. You can only work without it for the first time, since the owner himself will often be at the site.

It is worth hiring a sales manager whose task will be to negotiate with consumers and conclude supply agreements.

The driver can deal with logistics issues; it is better to bring personal transport. The driver’s task is to deliver products to customers.

Sales

Shoe covers are now actively used by many institutions - not only medical, but also, for example, sports. There are 3 main groups of consumers interested in the product:

• Medical institutions (hospitals, clinics):

1. clinics, hospitals, maternity hospitals, other government medical institutions;
2. private medical clinics;
3. dental offices.

• Cosmetology companies (beauty salons, SPA salons, manicure/pedicure and hairdressing salons).
• Industrial enterprises.
• Sports centers (fitness, yoga).
• Educational institutions, kindergartens, children's art centers (music, dance, art schools).
• Food and chemical industry enterprises.

Products can be delivered directly or through vending machines.

Marketing and promotion

Personal contact is of great importance in promoting a product. It is better to offer products and negotiate contracts with all potential consumers in person.

That’s why you need a sales manager who knows how to negotiate.

It is important to use different advertising channels:

• create a website, rent banners on third-party resources;
• publish advertisements in newspapers and media;
• hand out business cards;
• order outdoor advertising.