If you are someone who thinks that starting your own clothing brand requires a lot of investment, you need to hire expensive models and spend a lot on professional photoshoots, along with having an attractive website, and lots of inventory.
All these are common misconceptions about starting your fashion label. There is actually a possibility to not spend money on the above-mentioned things and still be able to build your brand and that too in 1 to 2 months.
Before you start this journey, answer this question
When Should I Start My Clothing Brand?
Before you invest any of your time, effort, and money into launching your brand, you need to take time and Self Evaluate.
You need to analyze and ask yourself these questions.
- Why do you want to start a clothing business?
- Do you have any knowledge?
- Do you have any fashion design degree?
- Do you have any experience, or you have worked with a fashion designer or a tailor?
- Do you have an understanding of tailors and fabrics?
- Or is it a family business?
- Do anyone in your family do a clothing business or even a fabrics business? and you have some understanding of the business.
- Or you are working for a clothing brand and you know the ins and out of this business and now you want to start something of your own.
If you fall into any of these buckets then without any doubt you should attempt it.
But,
If you have no relation with clothing or fashion or don’t have any experience with it, then this business is probably not the right choice for you.
I will tell you why, because it is a cutthroat business, and that is why the scope of margins is very less. Only big brands are able to earn decent margins, and we all know that you cannot build a big brand in 1 or 2 months. It takes years to build a reputable brand.
So if you don’t have any leverage in this industry, then you should reconsider your decision. I am not trying to demotivate you, but it’s better to be safe than sorry.
But don’t get upset. If you lack any knowledge or experience, there are many other options out there if you want to start your E-commerce business. If you want to explore them then reach out to us for a consultation.
Or you can check out our crash course on how to start your International Ecommerce business, and sell your products in the USA and earn in dollars.
How To Start Your Clothing Brand In 8 Easy Steps
If you have even a basic knowledge or some experience with fashion, then you are the right fit for this business. It’s time for you to pay full attention to these 8 steps.
1. Get Your USP Right
Ask yourself What is the USP? Which means your unique selling proposition. In simple words what makes your product different? Why will somebody buy your product?
Do you have a different fabric that is rarely available in the market?
Or your brand is sustainable, which is positively impacting the nature or environment. e.g., Alia Bhatt’s brand Ed-a-Mamma does not use plastic in their production or packaging.
Or your brand is backed by a social cause. E.g., the ForceIX brand of Akshay Kumar donates 9 rupees from each garment sold to ‘The Bharat Ke Veer Charity’, which goes to the families of martyrs who sacrificed their lives for India.
Or are your designs supremely unique, because of which you can set your identity in the market?
You will have to figure it out when you launch your brand. Have a clear idea about what will customers see in your clothes because of which they will purchase from your band.
Think about this deeply, once your USP is clear, in your and your team’s mind, then you will be able to target the right customers and have the right messaging on your landing page, website, social media accounts like Instagram page, and even on the notes that you send to customers.
You will find our blog on Akshay Kumar’s clothing brand quite helpful.
2. Be Super Clear About Your Target Audience
The truth is that you cannot sell everyone, everything. When you launch your business, you should be crystal clear on who will be your target audience.
Is it a college-going Gen Z?
A work-from-home millennial?
Are you creating a brand of oversized clothing?
Are you making clothes for kids in that case your target audience will be the parents?
It is important to figure out your target audience, because when you figure this out, then your brand, design, and style of clothes, all these things will be decided by the audience.
Because you will create clothes for those people and not your own personal use.
Once you get this straight, then comes a very interesting step, for this, you can take the help of friends, family, and social network.
3. Make A Mark With Your Brand Name
While it is important to have a unique and creative brand name that stands out, sometimes people get too involved in this step, even before being clear about the USP and understanding whom they want to sell.
Don’t get too romantic thinking about your brand name. This is one of the biggest mistakes that people tend to make. Know that your brand name is not as important as your business clarity.
If you have good business clarity then choosing a brand name will be a no-brainer.
Your brand name needs to be aligned with 2 things:
- Your product and services.
- Your target customers.
For e.g., if your brand is kids’ wear, your brand name has to be relatable for kids, because your customers will be the parents of kids. Like Firstcry, Mothercare, etc.
If your customers are GenZ then your brand name should be like Urban Monkey, Urban Vertical, Four in AO, etc. The name should be cool and urban, such a name will be relatable to the college-going crowd.
If you intend to sell suits and Tuxedos then your vibe will be different and the brand name should reflect that e.g., Raymond and Blackberry.
If you are starting an ethnic wear brand then your vibe should be desi. Like Manyavar, Rangoli etc.
Once you figure out your brand name you have to do a research exercise. So that you don’t face any trouble in the future. In short, find out whether the brand name that you have chosen is not registered by anybody else.
For this, you can run these 2 tests.
- Do a Google search and see if you get any results.
- Go to the Go Daddy website, and search for your brand name with .com or .in extensions. This way you can ensure whether someone else has not already purchased it or not.
Finally, a very important step is to do trademark research. Make sure that another company has not already registered it, or else they will be after you to close your business.
If you want to do trademark research, then let us know through comments, and we would love to write a step-by-step blog and help you out.
4. Get Your Designs Sorted
Now it is time to make clothes, If you have design skills and you know how to make clothes, then initially you can do this on your own.
In case you have no knowledge of manufacturing or designing the product, you will have to outsource this step or collaborate with someone.
Depending upon your budget there are 3 ways to collaborate.
- Work with Agencies that can help you design your clothes, if you have a big budget.
- If your budget is less, then you can work with Interns, who have a fashion designing background, just sit with them and give them a brief about what you have in mind.
- The cheapest option will be to find a good Tailor in your neighborhood and tell him that you want his time for the next two to three days. Pay him for his time, sit with him, and ask for his help with the design.
But make sure while designing that your USP, the fabrics that you intend to use, and what you want to create, are clear in your mind. This will help you land exactly at that place where you had your imagination from the start.
Quick Tip
Watch the episodes of Project Runway, it’s a US-based reality TV show for fashion designers. This will give you great ideas for designs.
After some hard work and some hustle, when your products are ready, then you can go to the next step.
5. Hunt For Manufacturer And Fix Your Inventory
This is the tricky part. Manufacturing sounds complicated, right?
And it sure is complicated, but not as complicated as it is in your mind. Let me explain.
When you start to manufacture your products, there is no need to spend lakhs on your manufacturing unit. You basically have to source it to another manufacturing unit, by giving them your designs.
What Are My Options?
- Option 1– If you have a high budget, you can work with a clothing manufacturer, who is already manufacturing clothes for different brands. But there is only one problem here.&n