How to Start a Clothing Line From Scratch | A Step-by-Step Guide

Summary

This video script offers an in-depth guide to launching a fashion line, emphasizing the importance of branding, retailing, and manufacturing. Michelle Bali, a creative strategist, and Mackenzie Yates, co-founder of ethical brand Kotn, share insights on business planning, brand identity, creative concept development, and marketing strategies. They discuss the necessity of formal education, the structure of a business plan, and leveraging online resources. The script also covers reaching out to manufacturers, timing collections, and selling through various channels, providing actionable advice for aspiring fashion entrepreneurs.

Takeaways

• 😀 Starting a fashion line requires a balance of passion for art and understanding of commerce, including branding, retailing, and manufacturing.
• 🎓 Formal education in fashion is beneficial but not strictly necessary due to the wealth of information available online through platforms like Udemy, Masterclass, and YouTube.
• 📝 Writing a business plan is essential for clarity on goals and for presenting to investors, and it should include an executive summary, company overview, market analysis, product and service description, customer segmentation, marketing plan, logistics and operations plan, and financial plan.
• 🎨 Developing a brand identity involves creating a distinct personality for the brand through visual identity, tone of voice, brand story, and brand values.
• 🌐 Utilizing online resources like Pinterest for inspiration and Canva for mood boards can help in establishing a brand's visual identity.
• 📖 Reading books like 'A Technique for Producing New Ideas' by William Bernbach can stimulate creativity and provide a structured approach to idea generation.
• 📈 Trend forecasting in fashion is crucial and requires being constantly aware of social culture, music, science, politics, and more.
• 👗 The fashion industry operates on a seasonal cycle, and planning collections a year in advance is recommended, although the rise of 'seasonless fashion' aims to slow down the industry's impact.
• 🔍 Finding a manufacturer often relies on personal networks and online directories, and joining groups like Shopify entrepreneurs on Facebook can provide peer advice.
• 🛍️ Selling online involves optimizing the website's homepage and product pages to encourage conversions, providing detailed product information, and showcasing the brand's values.
• 📊 Digital marketing should start with organic channels to build a foundation of customers, then move into paid advertising like Google and Facebook ads, with an emphasis on email marketing.

Q & A

What are the essential skills needed to start a fashion line according to the video?

To start a fashion line, one needs to master branding, retailing, manufacturing, and other business aspects, in addition to having a passion for art and commerce.

Who is Michelle Bali and what is her role in the fashion industry?

Michelle Bali is a creative strategist based in Toronto who has worked with numerous small businesses in the fashion industry and larger companies like Nudesticks Cosmetics and Valaria Lipovetsky.

What are the main topics covered in the video about building a fashion brand?

The video covers topics such as the training needed, writing a business plan, developing brand identity, creative concept development, reaching out to manufacturers, timing collections, wholesale strategy, and selling online and in person.

What is the significance of formal education in the fashion industry as per the video?

While formal education through college or university can provide valuable business and fashion industry skills, it is not strictly necessary due to the abundance of information available online.

What are the eight sections of a business plan mentioned in the video?

The eight sections of a business plan include the executive summary, company overview, market analysis, products and services, customer segmentation, marketing plan, logistics and operations, and financial plan.

Can you provide an example of a platform that helps in finding manufacturers or fabric agents?

Some platforms mentioned in the video for finding manufacturers or fabric agents include Compass, Maker's Row, and Sketch.

What is the importance of developing a brand identity as discussed in the video?

Developing a brand identity is crucial as it encompasses more than just the design of collections and logos. It includes the brand's personality, photography style, website design, and sustainability statement, which together create a unique brand image.

What are the four components of creating a brand's look and feel as suggested in the video?

The four components include visual identity (logo, brand colors, typography, photography), brand tone of voice, brand story, and brand values.

What is the role of a fit model in the fashion design process?

A fit model tries on the garment prior to production, helping the design team achieve the desired fit and providing insights into how the garment will hang on the body.

How does the video suggest reaching out to potential partners and vendors in the fashion industry?

The video suggests using online directories, joining relevant Facebook groups, and leveraging one's personal network for peer-to-peer advice and recommendations.

What are some actionable steps for bringing a first clothing collection to market as shared by McKenzie Yates of Kotn?

The steps include defining brand values and target customer, building a product line, choosing sales channels, and focusing on organic growth through press, social media, and email marketing.

What is the significance of customer feedback in the early stages of a fashion brand according to McKenzie Yates?

Customer feedback is crucial for understanding customer needs and preferences, allowing for product pivots while the brand is still lean and agile.

What are the top three digital marketing methods recommended by McKenzie Yates for a new fashion brand?

The top three methods are building an email list, using Google ads to capture existing demand, and experimenting with Facebook ads to create demand.

Outlines

00:00

📚 Starting a Fashion Line: The Essentials

This paragraph introduces the video's focus on establishing a fashion line, emphasizing the need for a comprehensive understanding of branding, retailing, and manufacturing beyond just designing clothes. Michelle Bali, a creative strategist from Toronto, shares her experience working with both small businesses and larger entities like Nude Sticks cosmetics and Valaria Lipovetsky. The video promises to guide viewers through the process of building a brand from scratch, covering everything from business training and planning to brand identity development, creative concepts, manufacturing, wholesale strategies, and线上线下 sales. The importance of formal education is acknowledged, but the abundance of online resources is highlighted as an alternative. The paragraph concludes with an introduction to Mackenzie, the co-founder of ethical and sustainable clothing brand Kotn.

05:00

📝 Crafting a Business Plan and Brand Identity

The second paragraph delves into the specifics of writing a business plan, which is essential for clarity and investor attraction. It outlines eight key sections: executive summary, company overview, market analysis, products and services, customer segmentation, marketing plan, logistics and operations, and financial plan. A step-by-step guide and a free downloadable template are mentioned for further assistance. The paragraph also discusses the importance of developing a brand identity, which encompasses more than just visual elements but also includes brand personality, photography style, and sustainability statements. Four components for creating a brand's look and feel are introduced: visual identity, brand tone of voice, brand story, and brand values. Kotn's brand identity is used as an example, highlighting its use of neutral colors, sans serif fonts, and film-like imagery to convey a distinct brand aesthetic.

10:01

🎨 Inspiring Creativity and Launching Collections

This paragraph addresses the challenge of sparking creativity for fashion designers, suggesting the use of historical fashion references or personal twists on existing ideas. It recommends the book 'A Technique for Producing New Ideas' by William Bernbach and the use of Pinterest for inspiration. The importance of relaxation in fostering creativity is noted, along with the story of Kotn's inception inspired by the need for a basic white T-shirt. The fashion industry's seasonal cycle is discussed, with advice on planning collections a year in advance and considering the emerging trend of seasonless fashion. Tips for timely launches include trend forecasting, collaborating with vendors, creating work-back schedules, and having a marketing plan. The prototype phase is also covered, detailing the process from sketching and flat creation to specifications and fittings with a fit model.

15:06

🛍️ Selling Strategies: Wholesale, Online, and Marketing

The fourth paragraph discusses the differences between consignment and wholesale, highlighting the preference for consignment by new retailers due to lower risk. It advises on setting up a wholesale portal and mentions platforms like Fair.com for connecting buyers and wholesalers. Online selling is equated to having a virtual storefront, with advice on optimizing the homepage and product pages for conversions. The importance of clear product information, high-quality photography, size guides, and transparent shipping and return policies is emphasized. Kotn's homepage and product page are used as examples of effective online presentation. The paragraph concludes with a reminder of the importance of a marketing plan, including email marketing, social media, PR, and leveraging personal networks to reach stylists, buyers, and consumers.

20:06

🌐 Digital Marketing and Organic Growth

The final paragraph focuses on digital marketing strategies, emphasizing the importance of building a brand through organic channels before moving to paid advertising. It suggests starting with press outreach and social media consistency, followed by email marketing, which is noted as a top converter. The paragraph also touches on leveraging Google ads for capturing existing demand and Facebook ads for creating demand, while acknowledging the challenges and costs associated with the latter. The value of organic growth is underscored, with the suggestion to focus on customer feedback and pivoting the product accordingly. The conversation with McKenzie Yates of Kotn provides insights into the brand's approach to marketing, including the use of gifting to influencers for exposure and user-generated content.

Keywords

💡Fashion Line

A 'fashion line' refers to a collection of clothing or accessories that are designed and produced under a specific brand. In the context of the video, starting a fashion line involves balancing artistic passion with business acumen. The script emphasizes that beyond creating beautiful clothes, one must also focus on branding, retailing, and manufacturing to establish a successful online business.

💡Branding

Branding is the process of creating a unique name, symbol, or design that identifies and differentiates a product in the eyes of consumers. The video stresses the importance of mastering branding to build a lasting online business in the fashion industry. It includes developing a brand identity that resonates with the target audience and sets the business apart from competitors.

💡Business Plan

A 'business plan' is a formal statement of business goals, reasons they are attainable, and plans for reaching them. It is essential for clarity on goals and for securing investment, as mentioned in the script. The video outlines eight sections of a business plan, highlighting the need for an executive summary, company overview, market analysis, and other critical components to showcase the feasibility of the business idea.

💡Brand Identity

Brand identity encompasses the visual and rhetorical elements that make up the public image of a brand, including logo, colors, typography, and photography. The script discusses developing a brand identity as an intricate personality, emphasizing that it goes beyond design to include the brand's story, values, and how it presents itself across various platforms.

💡Sustainability

Sustainability in the context of the video refers to creating clothing in an ethical and environmentally friendly manner. The co-founder of Kotn, mentioned in the script, focuses on traceability in the fashion industry, which is a sustainable practice that ensures the origin of products is known and ethically sourced.

💡Seasonless Fashion

Seasonless fashion is a movement against the traditional seasonal cycle of the fashion industry, aiming to reduce its social and environmental impact. The script mentions this as an emerging trend, suggesting that fashion lines can be designed to be less dependent on seasonal collections, thus potentially slowing down the rapid consumption of clothing.

💡Trend Forecasting

Trend forecasting in fashion involves predicting future styles and consumer behaviors by analyzing current social, cultural, and economic influences. The script advises giving oneself time to trend forecast, emphasizing the importance of being immersed in various cultural aspects to identify and capitalize on upcoming trends.

💡Manufacturing

Manufacturing, as discussed in the script, involves the process of producing clothing items. It includes reaching out to vendors, creating a work-back schedule, and understanding the logistics and operations necessary for a fashion business. The script also touches on the importance of creating a prototype before full-scale production.

💡Wholesale

Wholesale refers to the sale of goods or merchandise to retailers, who then sell them to consumers. The script explains the difference between consignment and wholesale, noting that new businesses might start with consignment to reduce risk for retailers, and the importance of setting up a wholesale portal for business transactions.

💡E-commerce

E-commerce encompasses the buying and selling of goods or services using the internet, along with the transfer of money and data to execute these transactions. The video script provides tips on selling online, including optimizing the homepage and product pages of a website to encourage customer conversions and provide a seamless shopping experience.

💡Marketing Plan

A marketing plan outlines how a company will reach its target customers, including strategies for advertising, promotions, and public relations. The script stresses the importance of having a marketing plan for when a new collection is released and suggests leveraging various channels, including email marketing, social media, and PR to build brand awareness.

Highlights

Starting a fashion line requires balancing passion for art and commerce, along with mastering branding, retailing, and manufacturing.

Michelle Bali, a creative strategist from Toronto, shares her experience working with small and large fashion businesses.

Education in fashion can be supplemented with online resources like Udemy, Masterclass, and YouTube for business and skill development.

A business plan is essential for clarity on goals and for raising investor funds, consisting of eight key sections.

The executive summary provides an overview of the entire business plan in one concise page.

Market analysis in a business plan should include industry overview, competition, and the company's niche.

Developing a brand identity involves creating a unique personality through visual identity, tone of voice, brand story, and values.

Visual identity includes logo, brand colors, typography, and photography, which can be inspired by Pinterest mood boards.

Brand tone of voice should be authentic and consistent across all marketing and customer service channels.

A compelling brand story makes an emotional connection with the audience and differentiates the brand.

Brand values should reflect the company's mission and what it stands for, such as social good or design excellence.

Concept creation for a clothing line can be inspired by history, existing ideas, or books like 'A Technique for Producing New Ideas'.

The fashion industry operates on a seasonal cycle, and planning collections a year in advance is recommended.

Seasonless fashion is a movement to slow down the social and environmental impact of the fast-paced fashion industry.

Trend forecasting in fashion requires being a 'sponge' to music, science, politics, and culture with curiosity.

Collaborating with freelancers for prototyping can help test the market with minimal investment in production.

When finding a manufacturer, leveraging personal networks and online directories can be beneficial.

Consignment and wholesale are two retail models; understanding the difference is crucial for new fashion entrepreneurs.

Selling online requires optimizing the homepage and product pages for easy navigation, brand storytelling, and conversions.

Digital marketing methods discussed include organic growth, Google ads, and Facebook ads, with a focus on email list building.

Mistakes to avoid include not seeking enough customer feedback and not pivoting the product early in the process.

The importance of a strong organic customer base for long-term brand commitment and return on investment.

Transcripts

Starting a fashion line is an amazing way to balance your passion

for art as well as commerce.

In order to make a lasting online business, you're going to need

more than just beautiful clothes.

You'll need to master branding, retailing, manufacturing

among other things.

That's why I am so excited for today's video, where we're going

to learn how you can build your own brand from start to finish.

Hi, I'm Michelle Bali.

I'm a creative strategist based out of Toronto.

I've had the pleasure of working with countless small

businesses in the fashion industry, across Toronto.

And I've also worked with bigger businesses like nude sticks

cosmetics and Valaria Lipovetsky.

So I've definitely seen both sides of the coin.

In this video we'll be talking about the training

you'll need, resources for writing a business plan and

developing your brand identity.

We'll also cover tips on how to come up with creative concepts,

reaching out to manufacturers, timing your collections to the

seasons, wholesale strategy, and selling online and in person.

And even better in today's video, we'll be joined by Mackenzie.

She is the co founder of Kotn, which is a ethical and

sustainable clothing brand.

You can take formal education through college or university to

learn the business and the skills of the fashion industry, but

that's definitely not necessary any more considering how much

information there is online.

Check out Udemy, Masterclass, even YouTube videos to

help get you trained.

I know I personally have friends that have successful fashion

businesses and they don't have any formal training in fashion.

For example, McKenzie studied fashion communications

at Ryerson university.

While cofounder Benjamin studied communication.

Your education will definitely help you, but it will not define

the success of your business.

Even if you're running a one man show, writing a business

plan is going to be essential for being clear about your goals

and being able to manifest them.

And when you're ready to raise, an investor is going to want to

see how feasible your business idea is before funding it.

When you're writing a business plan, you'll want to separate

it into eight separate sections.

The first section is the executive summary, the

executive summary overviews, everything that you have in your

business plan into one page.

The next section is the company overview.

This will answer who you are as a company and what you plan to do.

You'll also want to include a market analysis that gives an

industry overview, how competitive it is and where you fit in.

Next, the products and service section will speak to the gap that

your industry has and how your company aims to fill that gap.

Customer segmentation outlines your ideal customer

and your target audience.

Include a marketing plan section where you'll strategize

how, when and where you'll be reaching your ideal customers.

Make sure to write in a logistics and operations plan.

This is going to be very crucial, especially for

businesses in fashion.

So in this section, you'll want to include your suppliers,

your shipping and fulfillment, your facilities and your

equipment, lastly, and also a personal favorite of mine.

You're going to want to include a financial plan.

So in this section, you'll want to include your income

statement, your balance sheet and your cash flow statement.

That's a basic overview of what's included in a business plan, but

if you're looking for a more step by step guide on how to actually

write one, we've created an entire video dedicated just to this.

So make sure that you're clicking this video here, open that link

in a new tab to watch after.

And it actually comes with a free downloadable template that

you can use to follow along.

Developing your brand identity is more than just the design of

your collections and your logo.

Think of your brand identity as an intricate personality,

you've got a photography style, your collection, the way your

website looks, the branding, your sustainability statement.

All of these things combined together really help

create your brand identity.

Here are four components to start out with when you're creating

your brand look and feel.

First is your visual identity.

Your visual identity is composed of your logo.

Your brand colors, your typography and your photography.

A good idea is to head over to Pinterest and check.

Look up some images that inspire you and drop them into Canva

to create a dynamic mood board.

Let's take a look at Kotn.

Kotn uses neutral colors, san serif fonts and images that look

like they've been taken on film.

All of this together, gives you a very distinct brand look and feel.

Your brand tone of voice is the way that you'll speak to your

audience through marketing and customer service, developing a tone

of voice that feels natural and authentic to you will definitely

come across to your audience.

Make sure that you're creating a set of guidelines of how you

would speak across all channels.

And that's going to come in handy, especially as

your team starts to grow.

So for instance, Kotn uses a very formal tone of voice

while still being informative.

Your brand story is the narrative of why your brand

exists and its mission.

People remember stories better than they do facts and figures,

so this is really your opportunity to make your brand story

memorable and make an emotional connection with your audience.

Here are a couple of questions to ask yourself when you're

building out your brand story, why am I starting this brand?

What makes me different and why does the world need my brand?

Going back to Kotn, their brand story really highlights

the importance of traceability in the fashion industry.

Only 5% of the fashion industry knows exactly where their

products are coming from starting at the raw materials.

So they've disrupted the industry by being transparent about the

origin of their products and they work that into their brand story.

Your brand values are the things that you stand for

as a company like social good or excellent design.

Developing brand values that you truly care about will make you

proud to stand behind your brand.

And it's going to give you motivation to help build

your brand over time.

Most companies will take all of this information and

compile it into a document called a brand book, check

out glossier's brand book.

You can create your own brand book on Canva, or you can hire a graphic

designer to do this for you.

You can find a graphic designer on upwork.com, but just make

sure that you're vetting the right kid, coming up with a

concept behind a clothing line or figuring out how a product

is going to look can feel super daunting, especially when you're

just staring at a blank canvas.

Many creatives will get inspired by fashion throughout history,

or they'll take an existing idea and add their own twist.

Pick up the book called a technique for producing new

ideas by William Bernbach.

It's about an hour long read and it guides you through

five simple steps on how you can produce new ideas.

Every time that I pick this up and read it, I always have new

ideas flying through my head and it sparks so much creativity.

A great place to discover and collect inspiration

is on pinterest.com.

pinterest.com has an unlimited amount of searchable images

that will help get your creative gears turning.

A recent article in ink explains that brain scans have shown

high levels of creativity when the brain is relaxed.

So if you're printing off your mood boards, make sure that

you're sticking them around your house because as you're going

about your day and your brain is relaxed, an idea might strike.

One of the aha moments for Kotn's Benjamin cell was

when he was in New York on a very hot sweaty summer day.

He was constantly having to re-up on his basic white Tee's.

But he could not find a happy medium between the $5 Tee and the

a hundred dollar designer Tee.

And that was part of the inspiration that

led to Kotn's inception.

The Fashion industry operates on a seasonal cycle.

So it goes fall/winter and spring/summer.

In order to keep up with this, you're going to want to start

planning your collections at least a year in advance.

However, there is a new movement called Seasonless fashion and

it aims to slow down the impact socially and environmentally

that the fashion industry has.

Here are a couple of things that you're going to want to keep top

of mind in order to launch on time.

Give yourself time to trend forecast.

Trends come from a mix of intuition, research

and social culture.

In order to be successful in your trend forecasting, you're going

to have to accept that it is it's very time consuming and calls for

you to be a sponge pretty much 24 seven approach music, science,

politics, the culture around you with a sense of curiosity.

Reach out to your vendors and your partners to discuss timelines.

This will include your pattern makers, your fabric

vendors, and your production facilities, to name a few.

Create a work-back schedule and share it with the entire

team to make sure that the dates are achievable.

Have a marketing plan in place for when your collection drops.

Be clear on what publications you're going to go after

and how you'll build anticipation on social media.

If you're just starting out, I recommend you be

super lean with production.

Try working one on one with a freelancer in order to get

your product prototyped and to be able to test the market.

The prototype phase, we'll start with a sketch.

Use your sketches to refine the design in the early stages,

rather than making expensive edits to the prototype.

You're also going to want to create a flat, a flat is

a simple line drawing as if the garment were laying flat.

You'll also need initial specs.

Specs are the measurements of a garment laid out in a very

easy to read chart, engage your team members in order

to communicate your vision through an ongoing conversation.

Also make sure that you're showing them existing examples

to communicate your ideas.

A fit model is a model that tries on the garment prior to

production and helps the design team achieve the desired fit.

It'll also give the design team a good understanding of how the

garment will hang on the body.

Make sure that you're choosing model that accurately

represents your target audience.

Fittings usually include the designer, the technical

designer and the fit model.

Be prepared for a couple of rounds of fitting critiques to

the prototype before going into production, when you're ready to

find your manufacturer, it's gonna have a lot to do with who you know.

Same thing goes with finding your fabric agents and your wholesalers.

So what you can do, is you can start by looking online

at directories like Compass, Maker's Row and Sketch.

Also join Shopify entrepreneurs Facebook group, in order to

get some peer to peer advice.

In my personal opinion, reaching out to your network will

always yield the best results.

So don't be afraid to detach from your screen and start asking

your network for some advice.

With consignment, retailers will pay you once the item

sells and with wholesale retailers will pay you upfront.

Generally speaking, when you're just starting out, retailers are

going to want to do consignment because it is less risk for them.

Retailers will often want to be given a 50% discount, so

make sure you're accounting for that in your profit margins.

To get going, set up a password protected wholesale portal

on your Shopify website.

Or you can also use an app like wholesale club.

Also check out fair.com.

fair.com is a platform that connects buyers and wholesalers.

For every client that I've introduced fair to they've

made at least one sale.

So make sure that you're definitely checking this out.

When selling online think of your website as your storefront.

Start by optimizing two main sections of your website.

Starting with your homepage, make sure that your homepage makes it

very easy for a customer to find what it is they're looking for.

Looking at Kotn's homepage, we can shop by collection,

men and women's, and certain featured products.

You also have to make sure that the homepage speaks to

your brand values, which Kotn does a very good job of here.

The homepage should also encourage conversions.

High quality photography, and call to actions that are sprinkled all

over the homepage is going to help increase your conversion rate.

Let's take a look at a product page, the product

page to do one thing.

And one thing only.

It aims to get people to add the item to their cart.

To do this, you're going to want to give as much

information upfront as possible.

The information given should make it feel as if the customer

were seeing it in person and it will make them feel confident

in their decision to purchase.

Make sure that you have swatches of your products

if it comes in multiple color or fabric variations.

If you have variants, have several photos for each color

that your clothing comes in.

So we can see here that cotton has multiple photos

of all of the color variance.

Your photos should showcase all the angles of the fit

and closeups of the detail.

Kotn also uses a size guide, which is imperative in helping the

customer make the right choice.

This will also minimize returns, a call out to what

size the model wears also helps make an informed decision.

Have a description box with your marketing language.

Use this space to further illustrate your product's

quality and its features.

Use keywords you think people will be typing into

Google to find your product.

Instead of just description, Kotn uses an editor's note,

which is a creative take on this.

Having your shipping and return policy right on the product

page gives an extra sense of transparency and reassurance.

And lastly, cotton has used a low stock alert app that's

going to drive urgency.

Here's a logistical tip when selling online.

Be mindful of how long it takes to produce a product and then

to ship it to your customers.

You want to strike a balance when it comes to your supply chain,

don't tie up your funds in holding too much inventory, but also

don't make your customers wait, if they've ordered something in your

product lead times are too long.

Oftentimes it's not, not enough to have a revolutionary product.

You're going to need a marketing plan in place to let

people know that you exist.

So you're going to want to do email marketing.

Social media marketing PR and leverage your personal network

to get in front of stylists, buyers and the consumer.

I hope that this has been helpful.

Remember that everyone is at their own stage in this journey and

that Rome wasn't built in a day.

So keep on keeping on and wherever you're at in this journey, that's

exactly where you need to be.

So today we're joined by McKenzie Yates.

She is cofounder of Kotn.

Kotn is a Canadian fashion brand that focuses on traceability at

every step in the supply chain.

Kotn has been recognized for their manufacturing transparency

by Forbes, among others.

Welcome McKenzie.

Great to have you on.

For many of our viewers, it's going to be their first dive

into starting a clothing brand.

Can you walk us through any actionable step by step

methods of how you brought your first collection to market.

Feel free to talk about the processes from design to production

and manufacturing, and marketing.

Yeah.

So I would say first figure out what you stand for and what sort

of values you have as a designer or founder, but also as a brand and

then figure out who your customer is or your ideal target customer.

From there, you can start to build out your product line, your

brand, and then also whatever channel you're going to sell

your products through, be that wholesale or your own retail.

Then with those few things, you're kind of set up to kick it off.

Do you have any digital marketing methods that you use and what have

been the ones that have the best ROI for your brand and any that you

would suggest starting out with?

I think the number one thing, and for us is really building

our brand and building out our organic channels.

And I would say that, if, especially if you're a clothing

brand that is really where you should be spending the

majority of your effort, especially starting out.

So for us, that was, going after press was a good way to just

start getting the word out there.

And that's a free way to promote your brand.

Really just like emailing editors and sharing your story with people

and then social media building that up, and posting consistently.

And I'd say like, Focusing on a channel that you think

is going to be the most impactful for your brand.

Also email is a huge thing.

That's often overlooked, but it is the top converter.

So building out your email list in any way that you can, and if

you're doing one day popups, if you're doing like social media

contest, like try to collect as many emails as possible so

that you can have an ongoing relationship with the people that

are interested in your products.

So I would say that's like the foundation that you

should be investing a lot of time into is building that.

And then once you start to understand like who your customer

is, and you have some people in your funnel already from those

organic channels, areas that we would recommend is leveraging

Google ads to capture existing demand for your products.

So it depends on how niche your products are.

For us, advertising white tee shirts on Google is quite

challenging because there are so many other people

that are trying to capture that, um, those search terms.

But if you have a very unique product offering, then Google is

definitely a great way to try to get customers through the door.

And then Facebook ads, you gotta do them.

They're a really great way to create demand, but they take

a lot of experimentation and they can get very expensive.

So it is worth testing, but it it's really challenging to master.

We definitely aren't there yet.

Figuring out creative and messaging that translates to

ads is also very challenging.

So I would just say, be aware of the Facebook ads.

Ithink it's a misconception to think that you can figure out

your digital marketing and like turn this switch and customers are

just gonna come right in the door.

You can't buy customers.

So you really need to make sure that like that foundation is set,

that your message is consistent.

And then you can use that as sort of an amplifier to

amplify the messages that you're trying to get out there.

But yeah, the days of cheap Facebook Ads are long gone.

So it's interesting that you said that you would start

with organic and then kind of move over into paid.

Um, what, so I guess you did that.

What was your feeling around that?

Why was that your route?

So really it was about like creating a foundation of

customers to start with and that can be a small foundation.

But then you can start remarketing to those people too.

And remarketing ads.

Are much more successful and, are easier in a way because

your customer, the customer is already a little bit

familiar with who you are.

So yeah, I would just say that it's free.

That's a big reason to start with organic and it takes a

little, you're going to get a more committed customer that's

more interested in your brand and will last longer term.

I think organic customers are more likely to be returning customers.

So the longterm impact of growing that organic base

is going to be beneficial.

So you also talked about reaching out to publications.

What was your, like, how did you do that and what were

you saying in those emails?

We literally were just like hacking the internet, trying to

find people's emails on Twitter.

Like I think we paid to download some list of a

bunch of people's emails.

Um, it's not that hard to find contact information

for a lot of these editors.

And it's great if you can figure out like, People that

are interested in certain things mentioned articles that they've

written in the past and how you think like you might be able to

fit into an article in the future.

Um, but it was really just like cold emailing people

and telling them our story and following up a lot.

Harassment is, the name of the game.

And nowadays, I mean back in five years ago, it was the same, but

even more so now, like a huge part of press is also influencers.

So if you can gift your product to people, that's a

great way to get free content.

A lot of the time that you can repost on your channels.

Plus exposure.

So we do a lot of gifting right now.

We kind of have two streams.

Exposure, which is where we're paying sometimes for people to post

or, um, we're going after people cause they have the right audience.

And then we also have, like a user generated content stream

where we're going after micro influencers, people that might even

have like a thousand followers, but have really great images

and are super on brand for us.

And so that's a way to have like tons of different people

in your clothes and show those images without paying

really high model fees.

And organizing big shoots.

So it's a, yeah, just reach out to people like be your authentic self.

And I think people appreciate that.

It's a founder reaching out to them.

In the beginning and not a PR agency.

So that helps give you a little bit more leverage.

So what digital marketing methods do you use and what

have you noticed has the highest ROI and what would be the top

three that you would suggest if you're just starting out?

I would suggest working on building your email list first and

foremost, and leveraging email, and doing whatever you can to kind

of build a strong channel there.

And second.

Google ads to capture an existing demand for your product.

And then the third channel would be Facebook ads with a

disclaimer that that is the most challenging channel, but

it is a great way to create demand and it's worth testing.

What are some mistakes that you made early on and how

would you recommend new fashion entrepreneurs to avoid them?

I would say that one of the big mistakes that we made early on

was not getting enough customer feedback and there's a few ways

that you can do that through surveys, meeting people in person

and asking the right questions, that aren't leading questions.

So I would say that, that is a great thing to focus on early on

is talk to as many customers as you can and pivot your product

when you are still lean and nimble.

Okay awesome.

Thank you so much for joining us.

That was super informative.

All right, let's do a recap.

In this video, we talked about skills and training,

creating a business plan and developing a brand identity.

We cover tips on how to spark creativity and tips on

production and manufacturing.

We talked about time near collections to seasons.

Wholesale and online selling.

We covered a lot of ground in this video.

So feel free to hit that like button if you found it helpful.

And that will also save this video for later for

you to refer back to it.

If you have any questions at all about anything that you

saw in this video, make sure that you're leaving them in the

comments below, and I will get back to every single one of you.

Also, we are all fam here, so make sure that you're

answering each others questions in the comments as well.

Thank you guys so much for watching and I will see you in the next one.

Bye.