If you’re wondering how to start an online clothing business, you’re in luck because today we will be explaining how to start an online clothing store in detail.
Just like building an actual garment, there are a couple of steps you ought to follow to ensure an amazing, functional, and long-lasting online clothing business.
Every online clothing business is unique. Regardless of whether you’re interested in starting a very modern clothing store, finding a creative outlet, or just want to know more on how to start an online clothing store with no money, this article will help you with the necessary steps to build a clothing website with a strong foundation.
Are you ready? Your online clothing business awaits. Let’s start exploring what steps you need to take to build an online clothing store by using the best ecommerce website builder platform Builderfly.
-
Get Inspired and Gather Your Ideas Together
In other words: brainstorm. Regardless of whether it’s by yourself or with a group of business-savvy friends, this will enable you to establish a cohesive foundation from which to grow your booming business venture and launch an online clothing business.
Here is a framework of questions to ask when brainstorming:
-
Fashion audience
- If you’re starting an online clothing business, you’ll want to have an idea of exactly who will be buying your clothes. Ask yourself, who is your ideal customer? What will your style represent? Who will it cater to?
- Since clothing trends are generally age-specific, there’s a natural inclination to start with a particular age group.
- Consider researching high-selling, top-trend items for your target age group. A little time with the right fashion magazines and Pinterest searches can accomplish a lot in this area.
-
Ask fashion influencers
- Ask for your friends’ input during these beginning stages. It’s one thing to look at editorial fashion articles or Google trends, but it’s another to interview individuals about how they tend to interact with an online clothing business.
-
Field research for your online clothing business
- Brainstorming and asking around is crucial, but so is research. Now that you’re starting to get a sense of what your online clothing business will look like, take some time to compare and contrast how it will function compared to similar brands.
- Collect what data you can about online business practices and the fashion world. Combine it with your brainstormed ideas and feedback from your peers.
-
Find out Which Products to Sell in Your Online Clothing Store
Next up: focus on the product. When learning how to start an online clothing store, you may need to know about the ins and outs of operating in the clothing business in an efficient, straightforward way.
Study various clothing brands to see what makes them sell. This research for your online clothing business can be as basic as searching for fashion icons online. Pay close attention to the materials utilized in creating different products and style trends.
Following are some amazing tips for picking products when starting an online clothing store:
-
Focus on your clothing interests
- Take what fascinates or inspires you most about clothing and apply it as you start an online clothing business. However, don’t be afraid to take inspiration from other influences as well.
-
Choose your fashion focus
- Choose whether you need your online clothing business to concentrate on a particular article of clothing or a different range of items. Generally speaking, you will have better luck with more variety.
-
Plan ahead for online clothing boutique success
- How can you prevent your online clothing store from failing down the road? It’s a hard thing to think about this early in the process, but important all the same!
- Key question: what could potentially happen to cause an upheaval in your online clothing business, and how can you be prepared?
- Key tip: style is always changing
-
Get the Word Out
Begin this next phase by asking yourself, “What attracts customers to my site?” If you want to know how to start an online store, this understanding is vital to your success. In literature, there is a term known as a hook, referring to the opening sentence of a publication that immediately draws the reader into the story.
So what will grab the attention of your customers? What is your particular hook? Let’s cover the best ways to grab buyers’ attention.
-
Fashion on Instagram
- Instagram is an excellent platform to start promoting your online clothing store. If there’s a new style you want people to see, post a picture on Instagram. Whether you model the styles yourself or have friends who model for you, this is an excellent way to advertise the plethora of styles you have to offer. Show the products in different contexts. Benefit from Instagram stories to feature happy and glad clients wearing your products.
-
Vlogging
- Vlogging is another visual way to promote your online clothing store. This allows you to connect with your customers more personally and in-depth.
-
Paid advertising
- Google AdWords and Facebook Advertising are both helpful ways to reach potential customers who would otherwise be unlikely to find your online clothing business. There are so many ways you can target each of these tools, so spend time in understanding your audience and customer as you write your message.
-
Content marketing
- Content marketing is a great way to drive traffic to your store without spending a dime.
-
Email marketing
- With a little smart work, emails can become an important part of your marketing platform. From sending out coupons and special offers to announcing the launch of new products, email is one of the easiest ways to connect with interested customers.
- As per the Baymard Institute, almost 70% of online shopping carts are abandoned before checkout- so one basic email reminder can be a wonderful way to regain the interest of those customers.
-
Set up your Finances for a Successful Online Clothing Business
It’s time to budget. Learning how to responsibly gauge a sustainable income off your talent is tricky, but it is a rewarding and valuable skill to have for future endeavors.
One of the many benefits of starting an online clothing store is learning business-savvy skills that are applicable across a range of industries. Thus, let’s make a budget plan for your online clothing business.
-
Do further research
- How much will you need to spend on sourcing materials? How much time will it take to make per garment? With this in mind, what will be the prices you set on your store?
- In other words: are you earning an incentive? Your online clothing business must become revenue positive as quickly as possible so that you can make a profit.
-
Quantity over quality (at first)
- When the business is first starting, sell in small quantities to get an idea of where your profit leads you. You’ll want to gain early insight into the growth of the company.
- In the beginning, it can be tempting to source the most expensive blank t-shirts to print on or make the largest enamel pins that will stand out. However, it’s important to stay lean at this phase.
-
Manage Your Inventory for an Organized Online Clothing Business
Inventory is an essential component of your online clothing business’s success. Understocked, and frustrated customers won’t be able to get what they want. Overstocked, and your financial resources are strapped. Incharge a very responsible person to handle your store’s inventory.
-
Use data to determine your clothing inventory
- These insights can help you map out the future of your inventory by identifying which product offerings you want to expand, and which you want to cut back.
- When your online clothing business takes off, having an efficiently organized inventory is incredibly helpful, especially during periods where there is a large product demand, like the holidays or during an extravagant sale.
-
Build an Online Store that is On Brand
As we mentioned before, the toughest part for many entrepreneurs learning how to start an online clothing store is creating an online clothing website that stands out from the competition.
Even the most beautiful products will fail to convert customers if they are sold through a lackluster, poorly designed store. Think of it like this: your products are only as good as their online presence.
You want everything about your store to be visually appealing and easy for the customer to navigate. Your online clothing business should be stylish, easy-to-use, and project an air of trustworthiness to customers.
From well-organized product categories to secure checkout, there are so many details to keep in mind to accomplish the online clothing business you want.
And, everything you need can be accomplished with Builderfly as it lets you create a secure online store within 15 minutes. You just need to manually drag and drop theme elements and embeds widgets to sell your products online.
Now that we’ve laid out the steps to starting and running a successful clothing business, you’re ready to get started. Remember, fashion is supposed to be fun. The challenges you’ll face in your online clothing business are natural. Take them in stride, stay flexible, and stay true to your style.
