The successful path to a fashion brand. Benude Magazine Article.

What makes a startup fashion brand successful? Let’s face it, we all love fashion, and deep down we all have dreamed either of walking on the runway as a designer or as a model. The fashion industry is one of the most desirable industries out there but also one of the most competitive, yet not always profitable.

Now as more people have access to online manufactures, more people are entering the fashion e-commerce industry creating a saturation in the industry, making it more difficult for real and talented fashion designers to stand out and to be able to implement the right pricing into their products. It seems to be able to succeed with a fashion brand, it requires the generous investment, and aggressive support to push a brand to become the desire of people.  

So if a designer does not have the funding, and support of a team to succeed as a fashion designer, how can actually pursue this dream?.  Let’s explore a couple of options:

Ask yourself which are your priorities? Which of these do you want to achieve first, make money or make a name for yourself?  Because each one requires a different strategy.

To make money, your focus should be on creating a strategy to make money such as having your business plan, your stores where do you want to sell, your production schedule, be able to pitch to investors, find partners, get into other retail stores, do pop-up events, and really have a plan to monetize and really understand the psychology of consumers and specially their target market. Designers are always focusing on the creation but just hope people will love their brands so much that they will automatically sell, however consumers don’t see products with the love a designer has for its products. Consumers must either have an emotional connection or a logical need to choose a product. 

To make a name for yourself is a very different route and probably more fun but it does not mean it is easier. To make a name for your brand and yourself as a designer also requires heavy marketing, relationships, partnerships, events, sponsorships, PR features, brand ambassadors, influencers, advertisement, and a lot of consistency and repetition to also get into the psychology of the potential consumer.  Because often what we see the image of a brand is not what the numbers reflect on a financial profit and losses behind the business. However a consumer when it sees and starts to recognize a brand will be curious to see it, feel it, and perhaps will invest in it. Is all in the psychological repetition.  This is why we see aggressive marketing campaigns from the media when they want people to consume or believe in something. Is all about repetition.  

So if you are starting out, with a small budget to invest, and do not know or have the support of an investor or a team I would recommend making your name known a priority and being patient to enjoy the journey. 

Now that I have said, my next recommendation will be to not quit your job. 

Here is the thing about entrepreneurship, when we already have found what we love, having a job should not make us unhappy, quite the contrary. Because a job will provide stability financially and more importantly on an emotional level to focus on the creative side of the business and the strategy specially be able to sustain for the long term.

When we already know what we love, we are happy to work and tolerate things from the daily work environment because we are already finding fulfillment on our passion, so rather than starting multiple business to seek income stay in your job and focus on making a name for yourself, really get your brand into a desirable place where an investor and potential partners will want to take your brand to the next level. 

Learn new skills to sell yourself.

Learn to speak efficiently and use your personality charm. Is really important for a fashion entrepreneur to also be able to speak for yourself, the more you share about your vision, about your work the more that people will listen and if you learn how to connect with people and gain their respect people will become a fan and loyal to your work just because they like you, or you said something they resonate and now want to support you. 

Focus on creation, and detach from the outcome. 

This is a good mindset technique in general for any entrepreneur. It can be stressful to want to see immediate results that we forget the journey of creation and often this can steal our joy. It is through creation and through our joy that we can produce very inspiring work and connect with the right people that could lead to some business opportunities.  Share your creations even though they are not final products or ready for the market, just by sharing your sketches, and the process of how you design will lead into growing your brand and gaining followers. This will connect you to your inner-child and allow you to enjoy yourself and your work, making you more talented.

Learn how to promote yourself as a designer:

Like any artist, or authors, people love to hear and meet creative people, especially fashion designers. They want to meet who is the person behind the vision of a brand so it is highly recommended you invest time in opportunities where people will have a chance to speak with you such as pop-up events, fashion shows, fashion trade shows and speak about your work on social media.

Really find your specialty, and stick to it.

Is very hard to make a name for yourself if you keep changing your products, have a variety of products that do not relate to each other. For example some designers start with shoes, later they add dresses, and belts, and wallets, all that could be great if they are actually selling and they have the demand, but unfortunately most designers attempt to bring too many different products in hope the will reach a wider market, they also spend too much money on sampling but can’t really afford the production of a large inventory so this limits them from being able to sell. They get stuck. All this is experimental and will confuse your clients and consumers and lead to a lot of wasted money. Choose 1-3 products and stick to the same until you have the demand to expand the brand and people really understand what is the essence of your brand and what makes you unique.

Dare to be bold.

Many designers are trying to find their style, and to meet the market’s expectations they change their style to create more commercial products, however playing it safe is not always a good tactic because of the saturation and competition, they won’t stand out if they hold on to their talent and don’t take risks. The best designers are those who have a distinctive vision and do not apologize for what they believe. 

Is time for sustainability and social responsibility. 

During the pandemic, fashion had to change their business from rushing through producing collections to producing face masks. Also inventories were not sold and designers had to rethink their collection to produce more timeless pieces that would not be related to a season. Well, while it seems we are starting to come back to some level of normalcy, the world, economy, and environment is still suffering from many crises, especially political ones. Most people had to rethink their purpose, their financial situation, their savings, their living conditions, there was simply too much stress, uncertainty and also trauma especially if they lost a loved one. These experiences most likely have changed their meaning and purpose of life, so most likely they won’t see their fashion additions the same way as they used to.  Fashion brands will have to be more environmentally, socially-change conscious and also be able to connect emotionally with potential consumers. If you have a good mission, and sustainability plan this will also get the attention of investors and media to want to support your brand.

Remember, there is no shortcut for success, especially a sustainable success.  Starting a brand can be done fast, but making it work and last can take time, it definitely requires a lot of patience and a solid strategy and plan. Sometimes it is best to start slow and intelligently than to rush and work in many desperate directions.  Being authentic to yourself, to your vision, to your talent and offering something positive and impactful for this world has more guarantee to success in anything you choose to do.  While fashion is based on trends, being a fashion designer should not be a trend. Do it right from the start and people will become loyal to your vision forever.