Clothing Brand start-up, first business

[Marigold]

Hello people, now that i have finished TMF , and im halfway trough Unscripted , i have started a business/ my own clothing brand. Yes i thought it would be a good idea, because i've always had trouble finding jeans with a good fit and design that stands out from the crowd.

I got a tech-pack done and have a manufacturer in italy who is creating my first sample at the moment. This takes a minimum of 6-weeks. And then the production of my 100 pieces for starting up. 6-weeks…

I have someone who is working on creating a clean website with a webshop for my brand, so everything is ready for when the big order from italy arrives.

But im wondering if its worth it??
Is there someone who have tried something similar? Because its kinda expensive since im manufacturing in italy, but i want the best quality for my product.

Best regards Fabian

Would it be an idea to test the concept first by advertising the jeans before manufacturing a whole load of them?

What market research have you done?

 

[Fabian1999]

You got it, bro. Keep us posted.

Yeah sure, i will keep everything updated here!

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[Fabian1999]

Pretty common, believe me.
Even though I’ve always known what I’m doing is wrong because I didn’t have a precedent, I went ahead with it.
In my opinion, like yours here, that’s the only way to learn or “learn as you go” as I’m calling it.


After 4-5 small successes with different stores, I decided I knew enough to start a clothing brand.
Not the kind that people do now with POD or slapping a logo on a t shirt.
A brand where I went from outsourcing materials all the way to design and sales.
I was good in photoshop so I could always make designs.
But I had to learn about patterns, stitching, materials, sizes, fit, etc.



I started with the idea of creating a luxury brand.
Designed a full blown collection. Velvet bombers with python leather sleeves.
Swarovski embellished hoodies.
Sweatshirts made out of 6 different materials.( think of a camouflage
If you’re not familiar, swarovski’s are expensive.

My designs were and are great.
I offered quality but since I wasn’t some well known brand, I tried to attract customers with “fair prices”
Ie: cost to make was £100/hoodie and I was selling for £150.
Bullshit. That doesn’t account marketing or packaging and shipping.

After spending about £50k, I realized I won’t have enough money to manufacture the whole collection.
I decided I’d only do hoodies, t shirts and sweatshirts.
In the meantime I spent some more because yeah, next design is better than the old one. )

Got to the point where I could only manufacture the hoodies, but I wasn’t going to have any money left for marketing.

I figured all of these where “challenges” I had to pass, not realising I’m spiralling down an endless pit.
I then cut some more designs that I decided I couldn’t do myself.

I was left with only the designs that I could make at home.
I bought myself a vinyl cutter, lots of swarovski rhinestones, a heat press, blank hoodies, and there I was.

Given these conditions, the hoodies turned out great.

Made the store. Bear in mind up to this point I done 0 to verify anybody wants my shit.

Started with fb ads, got good engagement.
The whole process of working for this for a year and a half was paying off.
I sold 2 hoodies at £250/each before I ran out of marketing money.

Most people that interacted with the ads were saying the same thing.
Beautiful designs, but too expensive.

I had two comments that opened my eyes.
“It’s nice, but why would I buy this when I can buy a Versace hoodie instead?”.

You see, the whole point is:

People don’t want top quality if it comes with an expensive price tag when you’re nobody.

Had I spent the £50k in creating an online presence that people would go crazy for,
I could’ve slapped a logo on a t shirt, write MADE IN LONDON on it, and sell it for £99 a piece.

When you think again that you want to offer top quality, ask yourself if it makes sense in terms of business for you.
I recommend you visit versace,gucci, louis vuitton’s websites.
Sure, they’ve got some very good products in the thousands.
But they also slap their logo on a cotton t shirt and sell it for £500.
And it works for them. Because they’ve created a culture. A lifestyle.

Went a bit overboard with my reply, but there it is.
Good luck on your journey.

Oh shit, sounds like you have lived my future, i was planning to sell every piece for 120$ because it has 100% egyptian cotton and is manufactured in italy. I get a piece for 36$ from italy. But you mentioned advertising in the profit calculation, and i didnt even think about that ads will drag down my profit.. and my price may be too high for an unknown brand. My plan was to start selling with a 50% sale.

But thanks for you story, i will try advertising the samples first, see if people likes it and then decide if i want to try. Ane maybe changing to a chinese manufacturer, for a better price.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[Fabian1999]

I agree with the others. I definitely always try to be on the side of positivity when it comes to starting something new, but testing first won't hurt.

Everyone wants to do clothing, and I honestly cringe inside when I have friends telling me they want to do the same thing.

Remember CENTS.

Control
Entry
Need
Time
Scale

Entry is relatively easy in this area.

Need... well, I guess you'll have to see how different and desirable the jeans you are making actually are.

Keep at it, but don't be disheartened if this doesn't work out. You probably aren't starting off on the strongest foot here. If you are, congratulations

You figured something out that few people can!

The best thing about your post is that you're taking action. Something most people don't do. Drill into your head the CENTS model and try to deliver on that in the future if this doesn't work.

Best wishes.

Thank you, i will re-read the cents concept and write it down or something to make sure im following the model. I will try to build up this clothing line, and if i fail, i can start something else with a little more experience. Ive read some threads about online marketing businesses, i dont really understand that much of it, but looks like a good amount of people make a good amount of money from it, since it is so easy to automate. But for me it was the easiest to start with a clothing line, i know, i should go the hard way, but im doing the clothing business first.

 

[mr4ffe]

i want to have my first 3 different styles of my jeans in stock before launching the shop

Good call focusing on quality over quantity!

You should aim for a productocracy, by leaving your customers more than satisfied. Everything about your business should spark positive emotions in people's heads. Your brand is ecstasy.

It's worth considering if your target demography is willing to pay extra for CO2-compensation, recycled materials, water-saving methods, locally sourced & manufactured products, etc.

Good luck! Looking forward to your updates.

 

[Odysseus M Jones]

It's worth considering if your target demography is willing to pay...

Ohh they will deff pay a little extra for CO2 compensation etc

Has anyone paid you anything yet?

Everything has to be perfect before take-off!

@woken

Im a little worried about the marketing tho, but first things first

How much have you spent so far?

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[Fabian1999]

Has anyone paid you anything yet?

@woken

How much have you spent so far?

No one has paid yet. Ive spent somewhere arround 500$ so far. But as soon as i start prototyping it is getting expensive.

 

[Fabian1999]

At what stage will you attempt to get people to open their wallets?

As soon as i have my first order of my 3 different styles, and a good website with good copy up and running. Or what did you mean with stage?

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[Fabian1999]

Have you actually validated your jeans?

Aren't you worried you'll have boxes of unsold product, a shiny new website, great copy and no customers?

On a positive note you'll have jeans for life.

I was going to say make sure they're all in your size.

But we get fatter as we age.

And fashion goes in cycles.

You'll be trendsetter when you're 70.

Skinny jeans, they were called drainpipes when I was young.

Sure, im worried. But the good response on my designs gave me motivation to try it. And now i will give it a try. And i was holding back for too long. Sometimes you just have to say f*** it and go on, to find out what happens. Im taking the risk to lose my money if nobody wants to buy them, but will at least learn something from my failure if thats the case. (And i have a lot og good looking skinny jeans for myself)

 

[Fabian1999]

Sounds like this is the way to go. Thanks for giving me advice to avoid to loose money and motivation before even getting started. I can write a little update as soon as i have the 3D designs and a protoype.

*UPDATE* Business failed

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[hexelbyte]

Hey Fabian,

Before you even did anything, did it make CENTS to you?
How does your product compare with others?

Why would I buy your jeans if I can just buy one from Walmart?

The issue is that you need to valid the problem in the general market.

Here's my take on clothing business:
C: Control? You rely on a manufacturer and distributor. If they go on strike? You're out.
E: Entry? Competition are the biggest companies in the world. They have their own factories and supply chains. If they want to sell jeans for $5, they will.
N: Need? Everyone needs clothes. But does the world want your clothes vs Generic Brand?
T: Time? Assuming you automate the whole process of making clothes and distributing them.
S: Scale? You could sell thousands of clothes, since you automate.

That is what you needed to evaluate before even making anything.

How would I give it a go?
Test the market, make a few prototypes, then hire people to wear them.
Take pictures and market the clothes on Instagram, TikTok, etc.
Create a landing page for people to visit and sign up for a newsletter.

If there are enough sign ups, then you can assume there's a chance.

 

[Fabian1999]

Before you even did anything, did it make CENTS to you?
How does your product compare with others?

Why would I buy your jeans if I can just buy one from Walmart?

The issue is that you need to valid the problem in the general market.

Here's my take on clothing business:
C: Control? You rely on a manufacturer and distributor. If they go on strike? You're out.
E: Entry? Competition are the biggest companies in the world. They have their own factories and supply chains. If they want to sell jeans for $5, they will.
N: Need? Everyone needs clothes. But does the world want your clothes vs Generic Brand?
T: Time? Assuming you automate the whole process of making clothes and distributing them.
S: Scale? You could sell thousands of clothes, since you automate.

That is what you needed to evaluate before even making anything.

How would I give it a go?
Test the market, make a few prototypes, then hire people to wear them.
Take pictures and market the clothes on Instagram, TikTok, etc.
Create a landing page for people to visit and sign up for a newsletter.

If there are enough sign ups, then you can assume there's a chance.

Youre right. My biggest challenge was to make a significant difference that would lead people to buy my jeans instead of already existing brands. And I learned along the way that the clothing industry maybe is one of the hardest industries to get started in without a massive social following.

Im currently looking at new projects to start. My first idea was starting an onlyfans management agency, as the popularity of the platform continues to rise at such a fast pace.

But next time, as you said. I have to do more work in the beginning before I throw myself out there and lose money. First step is the CENTS model to check if the business is a good idea in the first place.