Have you ever dreamt of having your own clothing line? Your passion for design and right marketing strategy can help you to be the next big brand in Fashion. Here we have 7 steps on how to launch your clothing line successfully and grow it into a brand.
Research
Understand the market that you want to get in. A good research always saves a lot of money and provides you with the right direction. Before producing a single piece of your garment identify and understand following factors.
- Target Market
- Identify competitors and understand how they have been in the market and how they are selling.
- Whether you need to open a physical store or go with online. Minimal investment is, of course, going online initially and creating a customer base before investing in physical assets.
- Fabric, Weavers, Manufacturers
Plan your business
Any business without a plan is like a fish without water. Make sure you put down your plan very clearly on paper. It should basically cover the initial road-map.
- Resources
- Product overview
- Operational plan
- Sourcing details
- Pricing and Investment
- Uniqueness
The fashion market is a crowded one. Come up with something truly unique in design that can stand out in the market. Also, ensure that pricing and quality match you target customer needs.
“If you squeeze out the same thing that everyone else is making, people are going to go with the existing brand instead of you,” As quoted by Alastair Rae co-founder of Albam Clothing.
Identify and Connect to Weavers/ Manufacturers
Initially, when you are starting small, it’s better to engage small weavers on demand basis who can make your designs a reality. This will help you to
- Save money on initial infra set up
- Create an understanding of how weavers work.
In the long run, this will help you to get the right resources when you will set up your own manufacturing unit.
Go online
Online is best option to start your business instead of investing in boutique/ store as its 1000 times cheaper. The reasons are very clear. Let me point them out.
- More customers are shopping online these days.
- It’s free to showcase your fashion products with platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest. You can also use shopping platforms and list your products at a certain investment.
- Set an online account to receive online payments using PayTm or Instamojo or any other similar platforms. To receive international payments, you can try Paypal.
- Use Whatsapp to stay connected to customers.
- If you are planning to have a website and want to have your own presence, You can connect to small business support platforms like the First Step, that can take care of your needs of web development to SEO and marketing at a very affordable cost.
Marketing Strategy
“When You Are Small, Make it Look Big”
Marketing is a vital part of your business and you should be the driving person initially giving it directions. Take the best opportunity of online and push it to all channels using various social media platforms. PR is a very vital part of a small a business and is not affordable in the market. However, you try using online Indian Fashion media platforms like tikli.in where you can collaborate and make sure every new launch gets a news presence and lot of online customers at a minimal cost.
Take Feedback and Monitor what’s working and plan your growth accordingly
Take feedback. I would recommend getting customer input before making major changes, and if you do modify your brand, do it slowly. Monitor the growth and do things that are working for you and try to minimise spending money, that doesn’t work.
Like any start-up, clothing line also needs a lot of hard work and complete dedication. Of course, there will be challenges along the way, but if you believe in yourself and your brand, you’ll succeed.
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