How to start a Clothing Company

I saw this post by Rachelle Hynes on behance and thought it was a really simple checklist about what you should be doing with your clothing brand. One thing that I wanted to add is that you need to communicate your message so everyone can easily understand it. If you don’t do this then there is no point. You can have the most amazing unique selling point but if no one knows about it then it does you no good.

STEP 1 – Define why you’re in business

• What is it that you do and what unique product or service do you offer?
• What is your USP (Unique Selling Point)
• Define why you exist, and your vision for what you aim to achieve.

STEP 2 – What comes to mind when customers think of your brand? What do you want them to think?

• Define what you want your employees, potential employees, customers, suppliers, associates, competitors, and friends to think.
• Your message, and your story must be clear to each of these groups in order for the brand to be understood, supported, trusted, and to thrive in such a competitive market.

STEP 3 – Create words and phrases you want to have associated
with your brand.

• Is your brand fun, exciting, exotic, historic, serious or innovative?
• Ask your employees what words they associate with your brand. If each says something completely different or if there are inconsistencies, you need to work on defining your brand further.
• Your message must be consistent in all internal and external communication. Including your mission, vision, brand story, tag-line, logo, packaging, advertising – everything must be in line!

STEP 4 – Identify why people should come to you rather than anyone else.

• Defining the benefits and advantages you offer will help your marketing strategy, and build assurance in your customers mind.

STEP 5 – Build Your Brand

• Through every contact you, your product, your employees, your distributors, or your sales people have with the customer, creates an opportunity to build trust.
• Through your brand’ s clarity and consistency, people will develop an emotional attachment, which is turn drives sales, loyal customers and a successful brand.