69 min · 30 video lectures · quizzes · assignments · workbook
About this course
Most people who are good with their hands never turn that skill into a real business because they get stuck on the business side — what to charge, how to quote accurately, how to track jobs, how to make sure they're actually profitable at the end of the month. This course fixes that.
Why it pays for itself:
Auto upholstery and trim repair is a high-margin trade with low startup costs and almost zero competition in most markets.
A single full interior can bill $800 to $2,500.
Patch jobs run $150 to $400 and take under two hours.
The market is durable — cars don't stop needing interior work — and mobile operators can run the whole business from a van or a one-car garage.
This course is built for the operator who already has some hands-on ability and wants to monetize it, or the motivated beginner who wants a structured path to their first paying jobs.
Every section maps directly to a tab in the Auto Upholstery & Trim Repair Kit, so you're learning and building your real business systems at the same time.
You'll learn how to set a defensible hourly rate, use the Labor & Material Estimator to quote any job from a patch to a full interior without leaving money on the table, log all your fabric and leather purchases in the Fabric & Leather Log to track true material cost, run a clean workflow from intake through invoicing in the Project Tracker, and read your Income & Expenses tab like a business owner rather than a technician.
By the end you'll have a working quoting system, a client onboarding process, a field workflow that keeps jobs on time and on budget, and a clear picture of your monthly profit.
The kit is your operating system.
This course is the training that turns it from a spreadsheet into a business.
What you'll learn
You'll be able to set an hourly rate and material markup that protects your margin on every job
You'll be able to produce an accurate written quote for any repair scope — patch through full interior — using the Labor & Material Estimator
You'll be able to log all fabric and leather purchases in the Fabric & Leather Log to know your true cost of goods
You'll be able to run the Project Tracker from job intake to paid invoice with no details falling through the cracks
You'll be able to read your Income & Expenses tab and calculate your monthly net profit
You'll be able to onboard a new client professionally, handle deposits, and set expectations that lead to repeat business
You'll be able to identify and pursue recurring revenue streams including fleet accounts and dealer partnerships
You'll be able to build a simple marketing system that generates consistent inbound leads without paid advertising
Course curriculum
Section 1: Welcome & Setup
Welcome: What This Course Is and How to Use It
The Auto Upholstery Business: Market, Scope, and Opportunity
Kit Walkthrough: All Five Tabs in Eight Minutes
Tools, Gear, and Workspace: What You Actually Need to Start
Your First Job: A 7-Day Roadmap to Your First Paid Repair
Section 2: Pricing, Estimating & the Money Math
How to Set Your Hourly Rate Without Guessing
The Labor & Material Estimator: Quote Any Job in Three Minutes
Real-World Pricing by Job Type: What the Market Will Pay
Material Sourcing & the Fabric Log: Know What You Actually Paid
Deposits, Invoicing & Getting Paid Every Time
Section 3: Winning & Onboarding Clients
Where Your First 10 Clients Come From (No Paid Ads)
The In-Person Walkthrough: Quote with Confidence, Close on the Spot
Client Intake: The Project Tracker from Quote to Approved
Turning Every Completed Job into Future Business
Handling Price Objections Without Discounting
Section 4: Field Operations & Job Execution
The Job Workflow: Intake Through Delivery Without Surprises
Leather Repair Fundamentals: Surface Prep, Fill, Texture, Color
Vinyl and Cloth Work: Techniques, Timelines, and Pitfalls
Quality Control: How to Eliminate Callbacks Before They Happen
Mobile vs. Shop Operations: Which Model Wins for Your Stage
Section 5: Money, Bookkeeping & Profit
Using Income & Expenses: Your Monthly P&L in One Tab
True Job Profitability: What a Job Actually Made You
Tax-Ready Records: What to Track So Year-End Isn't Painful
Reading the Business: Revenue Trends, Profit Trends, and Red Flags
Cash Flow for a Trade Business: Staying Solvent Through Slow Months
Section 6: Recurring Revenue & Scaling
Dealer Accounts: Your Best Source of Predictable Volume
Fleet and Corporate Accounts: Higher Volume, Longer Contracts
Add-On Services That Increase Revenue Per Job
Building Systems That Work Without You: The One-Person to Two-Person Transition
Your 12-Month Growth Roadmap: From First Job to Steady State