Fashion

[firstestate]

I am a young fashion designer from the Midwest, specialized in making sport coats and blazers for young professionals (men and women). However I am struggling to sell them even though everyone says they are great styles and designs. What do I need to do to sell online or in stores? Please help I don't want to quit this

[Cyndog]

You set up an online store and you tweet, Facebook and spread the word. You take your line to local boutiques and see what they say. You buy booths at appropriate events. It's a lot of work, you must be dedicated and your clothing must be different than what's already available in stores. If your clothing is really tailored for business wear, I would check out business associations and any events they might have to network and get the word out.

[Mindy D]

There are videos on YouTube that can help you optimize searches for your site. There are many new companies that do the whole site for you and provide so much more. To find the website makers just look at some small company sites online. The companies used to make the site are listed at the bottom of those sites, including ebay sites. They do so much for you now. Then post your designs on Pinterest, Polyvore, Facebook. Look at other businesses to use their sources. I had put together a list of what I needed, but my husband deleted some of my sources. You can also check out Etsy. My hair salon sells someone's adorable clothes--but I have not seen anyone buying when I was there. Go to The Savvy Schuh or thesavvyschuh.com and look at this site. Write down all the companies sourced there.

[rac71]

I second Etsy as a selling site. People look to Etsy all the time for handmade goods. Definitely market yourself.

[Mindy D]

Try going to bigcommerce.com. They do everything for you. It's a great way to start.

[jackthebear]

etsy.com?

[shesallthat]

i think etsy is a very good suggestion. you would have a great online "site" for people to see. i was looking at some of the designers that do this locally and was amazed at the quality! one girl does custom order bridal gowns and they are stunning! someone else does custom order dresses that are sooooo amazing! their portfolio's are filled with beautiful designs and the reviews are great. people are willing to pay for quality work!

of course that is just part of the battle - getting online. you still have to market yourself so that people can find you. when i built my first online site a few years ago when i got started 90% of my time was spent trying to get my name/site to show up in search listings,directories and other sites so that i could network with people. the big thing back then was link exchanges but people don't really rely on that type of advertising now.

[moonstone dunes]

If you are making only blazers and sport coats you may have a VERY limited market. Traditional styles like Brooks Brothers you'd have to sell them at an extremely attractive pricepoint. Women probably have more blazers in their wardrobes than they wear, the younger women don't even wear them and the only men I see wearing sport coats are over 50 and sportscasters.

[okiebug]

I agree with moonstone dunes - the market for sports coats is saturated because the style has become more soft suiting - unstructured jackets in knits, cardigans, etc. There is still a corporate world that requires full on tailored suits, but they have a full range of choices in the stores.

People may say they are great styles and designs, but that doesn't mean they will buy them. Your work has to be different than what's out there, design wise, but still hold to traditional tailoring. If you are doing men's jackets, yours have to have better construction than the best out there - inner construction (no fusibles), standard allowances for alterations, outer fabrics of higher quality than the best in the stores. They have to be sized exactly - men know what size they wear, for example 44R, and expect jackets from any manufacturer to be the same size. If yours aren't, they aren't going to deal with alterations, etc - they will return it and not purchase from you again. Make absolutely sure your work is different, wearable and the construction is impeccable - that's the only thing that sets you apart from any major brand.

Another place to market your items is squaremarket.com. It's free, you get space for 15 pictures and some verbage, the buy button links directly to your Square account and the only fees they charge are the cc fees when you sell an item. You have to do the work to drive customers there - facebook, a blog, etc.

Take some courses on SEO optimization, facebook and/or website design, pricing, business plan, etc. Your community college, local vo-tech or college extension service should have some programs available free or low cost. There are webinars available. I'm attending one this Wednesday about SEO optimization for mobile devices.

If you posted this for research for a school paper, you got lots of great information free and without any work on your part. Everyone who posted information should be thanked.

[Sooner]

If you aren't in school, you really need to be. It's there that you learn about marketing, make connections, get changes to meet people in the industry, and have contacts for getting your products manufactured. There are a lot of young people in their field now and the competition is tough. School has the answers, this forum doesn't.