How to Run a Clothing Business

how to run a clothing business

As with any other kind of business, how to run a clothing business can be a difficult task to achieve. There are issues and struggles you are confronted with every single day, and while some might think it is a breeze to run a shop, we know it can leave you with your hands full. This is why we thought about our clients, and we decided it would be a good idea to share with them some tips and recommendations on how to run a clothing business. This article addresses most of the elements you will need to pay attention to in your daily activities, and it can also be a great starting point for someone who is new to the clothing business too.

Here are some tips for clothing brands and managers:

1 Must have clothing (unique design) in shop at all times.

We have seen businesses fail just because they didn’t manage to get their stock in time while still having to pay rent and their employees. Securing a stock is crucial to any clothing line business plan, no matter the sales channels are online business or offline. No one likes to walk into a shop and see empty shelves just like nobody appreciates it when making an online order only to find out the shop is out of stock for the clothing items they wanted to buy.

Having always enough stock to impress your customers is just essential to your marketing efforts to attract those potential clients. We have had clients that admitted they needed to bring some new stock in the shop every month as their loyal customers were returning in need of new products. So having stock is not only essential to attract new clients but also to cater to your already loyal customers. Target customers will appreciate if you have something new to offer every time they walk into your shop. As for an online clothing store, you can even make them purchase more from you if you send them a newsletter with new arrivals every time you restock.

2 Keeping the shop nice and clean.

You might think it is common sense but many times it turns out that the shop is not as neat as the customers would like it to be. People are attracted to clean, organized places. When thinking about an offline shop, it needs to be spotless and shining. An online shop, on the other hand, will have to be just the same. Does it sound funny to talk about cleaning when it comes to online shops? It does, we know this. But it is actually about the site’s design we are talking about. Get rid of the cluster on your product pages, invest in good quality photos and make it easier for your target audience to seal the deal.

Think about when it was the last time that you have had a general cleaning spree in your shop or a design revision. It is has been a long time and dust has set on your hangers or your product descriptions, now it would be the perfect time to take care of that!

If you feel that this operation would be too time-consuming to have your staff members look into it, then consider hiring some specialists to do it for you.

3 Sell quality products

Price is important, but quality is even important. Be sure of your quality level, customers not only care about price, good quality can gain more return customers.

4 Professional customer service

Any clothing business should aim to make each customer shopping experience a great experience in itself. Many women, for example, go shopping with their friends, and they consider it to be a great past time. Others just want a quick checkout process while shopping online store and to get easy access to shipping and delivery information.

What is good customer service for a clothing business?

–    When considering an offline clothing brand, it begins at the front door. Do you have the program displayed there visibly? Do you have a welcome sign? These are all small details that can make a big difference. And once they walked through that front door, the sales assistant role takes the stage. Welcome them with a genuine smile and in an agreeable manner.

–    Educate your sales assistants to treat all clients with respect and an enthusiastic attitude and pay attention to details. A sales assistant who is able to provide an enjoyable shopping experience for the clients will attract more customers and will turn them into loyal fans in no time. When going into brick and mortar store clothing store people seek human interaction, but, at the same time, they need time to consider things and just have a look around. Finding that perfect balance in between being helpful and not being too much is difficult, but the results can be mind-blowing and sales increasing. It is more than worth it to invest in a good sales assistant as she or he can definitely drive more sales your way.

–    Keep your sales assistants motivated as your profits are coming from their hands and it is the way they deal with the customer that will make you have a good year or a bad one.

–    Make sure the sales people are knowledgeable about the products they sell. There is nothing more frustrating in terms of client experience than having to deal with a sales assistant who has no idea what she is selling and can’t help with any piece of advice. A good sales assistant will be able to accommodate all questions, even if she doesn’t know all the answers.

What is good customer service for an online clothing shop?

–    Here we don’t have a sales assistant that can drive the sale, but we do have options to engage with potential clients. Think about real time chatting with clients to answer their questions and address their concerns. It is a service most people find useful at one time or the other, especially in the clothing business where sizes can be so different from one brand to the other, and we have other variables too.

–    Help your potential clients get to where they need to be in three or less than three clicks. This means showing up on every page links to shipping, delivery and contact information, as well as your terms and conditions and other policies in order. This will keep a decent level of transparency, and it will help with getting your customers trust to shop from you.

–    Offer enough information about the products in their pages and also options to see similar products. At the same time, once the client started the checkout process, don’t allow any fluff to come his way as it might detour him from the purpose (that is shopping, of course).

5 keep a good working relationship with the clothing suppliers

While it might seem like after choosing a clothing supplier and signing a contract with him is the end of the work, you will need to maintain a good working relationship with your clothing supplier. This will ensure you will get some understanding from his part when you need something delivered before schedule or if you need more time before making the payment.

Keeping in touch with your supplier is a safe way to make sure things are going accordingly to the program, and you will have the stock in your warehouse exactly when you need it. Paying in time and respecting your end of the contract agreement is crucial for your business, just as it is for his business.

Imily clothing has over 10 years experience on helping clothing owners to run their business. If you are looking for a reliable clothing manufacturer please feel free to contact us.

How to set up prices for a clothing shop?

They say that for a store it is all about location, location, location. And while this is definitely true, we also have the price factor that can change things radically. So even if you are in a fabulous location, not having set the right prices can affect your business in a negative way. There are many elements to consider when setting up the prices and you will need to consult with your managers, but our suggestion is always to go for the right and fair price as it will attract more customers than a price that is absurdly high.

How to advertise for your shop?

Once you have a clean, nice and organized shop, a welcoming sales assistant and everything else you need to cater to your clients needs, it is time to make it public! People need to find out about your business and what you have to offer, and this is what advertising can do for you. You can advertise in the local newspaper or radio station, on TV or online, depending on the specifics of your clothing business and the budget you have saved for advertising.

Some shop owners will announce the opening of the shop, and they will consider they are done with advertising as now people know about their business. But effective advertising is not a one-off event but requires consistency and commitment. So try scheduling your marketing campaigns at least three times a year, to cover for the major holidays.

Nowadays money invested in advertising is money well spent as sometimes it is the only thing making a difference in between a brand that sales and a brand no one heard about.

Pitfalls to avoid when running a clothing business:

Of course, your desire is to make your business grow and develop as soon as possible. But chasing bigger profits from the first year can lead you to make mistakes like these ones:

1 Too many changes too often

You most certainly want to improve your business every day and hence you want to correct certain aspects. You just placed the furniture in the shop, but now you have a better idea of how to do things. Changing things too often (or the appearance of the site) can lead to a lack of trust coming from your potential clients. We all need some stability in our lives, even if this means seeing our favorite shop as it was when we first felt in love!

2 Allowing the budget to go sky-high

Budgeting is a hard task and many times we end up with a reality that is way beyond what we have estimated. Maybe you want to put more of the budget towards an expansion of the shop or to the diversification of the clothing like you sell. And this is just fine as long as you consider all the factors. Do you have enough money to cover the deficit? Will you have to cut other costs and is it possible to do it? These are some of the questions you need to ask yourself before making changes to a budget that was agreed upon. Sometimes the best solution is to sleep it over and take it easy starting with the next day. Remember Earth wasn’t built in a day and neither your shop success will be.

3 Complicate buying process

We must have said it before, it is great to offer your clients options before they engage in making a purchase, but once they are on that path, don’t bother them with anything else. It is incredibly frustrating to end up at the cash register to pay for an item and instead of a quick and simple process you have to deal with a sales assistant that only now tells you that they have a 2+1 offer or that if you buy more you’ll get a bigger discount. Well, we all love discounts and sales, but please, let us know before we come to pay for our products.

4 Bad quality clothing

You will catch the customer by price once, but not all the time. Be careful to the quality of your selling, or you will get complaints and refund often.

It is just the same with shopping online. Some clients just hate it that they can’t checkout without filling out an incredibly long form. If you want to retain your clients, let them check out quickly and offer them options before! In this case, having too many options can be just as bad as having no option and the clients can leave your shop frustrated and confused.

The end

If you have any other ideas on running a clothing business, feel free to share with us.

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