Launching a retail clothing line takes great effort.
Many people want to start their own retail clothing line, but few realize the great amount of effort it takes to bring their dreams to fruition. Aside from being able to come up with trendy, profitable fashions, you'll also need to market your line and build your reputation in the fashion industry. After dedicating time to conducting thorough research and planning, you can start a lucrative fashion collection.
Instructions
1. Decide what type of clothing you want to make and sell--this will be your niche. For example, you can start a menswear line, a collection of women's lingerie, or a line of toddler apparel and accessories.
2. Learn make adequate fashion sketches by attending a fashion design or drawing course at your local community college, or reading a book such as Caroline Tatham's "Fashion Design Drawing Course." Your sketches do not have to be perfect. They are just a way to put down your ideas on paper.
Alternatively, you can use a CAD (computer-aided drafting) program just for fashion designing, such as OpiTex.
3. Develop prototypes of your clothing collection--these will be used to promote your line and will also be modeled by actual people, so the pieces should be of high quality.
4. Find a manufacturer to make your clothing collection. You will find that it is least expensive to have this done overseas, but if you want to have your clothing made in the U.S., there are many manufacturers located in Los Angeles and New York City.
5. Make a list of fashion media outlets specific to your niche, including blogs, websites, print magazines, forums, radio or podcast shows and television outlets--include local, state, national and international sources. Ensure you get the contact name, specific departments, Web addresses, emails and phone numbers of these outlets--this will serve as your media list.
6. Organize a fashion sdebut your clothing line. Invite local fashion buyers, independent boutiques and the editors of local media outlets that cover your fashion niche. To learn more about organize a fashion show, look to a resource such as Event Orb--see the link titled "Organize a Fashion Show" in the Resource section below.
7. Create line sheets and a lookbook--this is a portfolio that contains pictures of your fashion collection, including the names of the pieces, materials used and availability (for example, whether it will be available for the fall or spring of the coming year). You can have a physical lookbook, but putting it online will make it easier for fashion buyers to access, and is less expensive.
Line sheets are similar to lookbooks in that they show each piece in your collection and list a description of the clothing, but line sheets are primarily used to display wholesale pricing for fashion buyers. Just like your lookbook, you can make your line sheets available online.
8. Send press releases to the outlets on your media list, making sure that you offer to send the editors photos of your collection. Having your collection mentioned or reviewed in a fashion publication, even a small local one, can effectively boost your notoriety.
9. Consider retailing your clothing line yourself, in addition to selling it wholesale to fashion buyers and boutiques. You can sell the collection online via your own website or at an artisan marketplace, or open a brick-and-mortar retail store--this is the most expensive option, and best once you have established your clothing brand.
Tags: your clothing, clothing line, fashion buyers, line sheets, your collection
