Take the Plunge and Start Your Own American Fashion Line Today

Fashion designers have it tough. There’s a lot of competition out there, and convincing people to buy your products without a store presence can be daunting. If you’re committed, however, you can absolutely make a name for yourself. Getting people out there buying your products is a success, even if you never make it to the fashion shows themselves. Not all products belong on a catwalk, anyway. Add in the fact that online and social media marketing has opened up new platforms for small businesses, and there’s every reason why your brand can become a hit. 

If you want to take the plunge and get started, use these tips: 

Understand Your Niche

While you can absolutely expand your collections in the future, it’s a good idea to get started with a clear and marketable niche. Your niche will be more than just menswear or womenswear. Think formal, casual, or athleisure. If you can curate a unique look that continues through your pieces and collections, even better. 

Develop Your Designs

You don’t actually need to be a pattern maker to be a designer. While it absolutely helps to know how to create patterns for print, it’s not essential. What you will need, at minimum, is a collection of your designs. Using the professional tools that are standard in the industry is a bonus since they’re easier to translate from picture to product. 

Find a Manufacturer

Just as you don’t need to know how to make patterns, you also don’t need to know how to sew. This is because manufacturers typically offer all of these services. Hire www.precspts.com for your athleticwear collection, for example, and you can take advantage of their pattern, grading, and marker-making services on top of the standard cut and sewing services. 

The development will take longer, yes, but at the end, you’ll have sample pieces to approve or workshop and, when you’re ready, the resources to produce small to medium-sized orders in bulk. 

Finding Stockists

During your production phase, you’ll also want to go to various stores to try to get a meeting with the buyer or owner. The ultimate goal is to get your products stocked in their stores. While getting your products in a big department store is a huge win, don’t limit yourself. Small boutiques are much more approachable and more likely to stock your range if they like its quality and designs. 

It’s a good idea to also think outside the box. If you sell athleticwear, for example, you can get in touch with local gyms to see if they’re interested in your product to either sponsor, sell, or buy. 

Tip: to really sell your product’s quality, choose a manufacturer located within the USA.

Marketing

Regardless of whether you get your products stocked or not, you will need to commit to marketing. Work on building up your audience, get your designs out there on influencers, and create top-notch product photos and editorial pics that stockists can sell. 

You’ll want to advertise your products both for individual sale and for stores and have two separate marketing campaigns to target both customer types.