Your crash course to starting your own clothing line
Introduction
Some words by the author
Some words about this book
Section One: Researching And Planning
Your Target Market
Who is going to wear your clothing
Identifying your market area
Knowing your Customers inside out
Gathering information on your customers
Market research reports
Undertaking customer analysis
An example survey
Making sense of the results
Your Competitors
Who are your competitors?
Identifying your direct competitors
Important questions you should answer
Analyzing your direct competitors
Planning the year ahead
Working in Season
The design Calendar
Creating your plan
Section Two: Product Development
Creating Your Brand
What is branding?
The elements of a brand
Analyzing Brands
Developing Your Own Brand
Key areas to consider in a brand
How you want your brand to be viewed
Choosing a brand name
Creating a logo
Creating an overall theme
Creating your identity
Working with a designer
Protecting your brand
Identifying your brand's unique selling proposition
What is a USP?
Positioning Yourself within the market
The Design Process
Future trend predictions
Design planning
How are ranges planned by designers
Outsourcing For Design
Design in house or outsource?
Finding a designer
Creating a design brief
Sampling Your Products
What is a sample?
Why you need samples
Where to get samples made
Design Protection and copyright
Understanding Intellectual Property
Design rights
Registered design
How to register designs
Unregistered intellectual property
Protecting yourself with unregistered design
Self copyright
Trademarks
Confidentiality agreements
Section Three: Promoting Yourself
Marketing
What is marketing?
The marketing mix
Types of promotion
Above the line and below the line
Creating A Company Profile
What is a company profile?
The Key contents in your profile
Writing your company profile
Table Of Contents
Advertising
What is advertising?
Types of advertising
Brand awareness versus direct response advertising
Do you need to advertise?
Creating your advertisement
Eliminating noise
Understanding where to place your advertising
Testing and measuring responses
Public relations
Press release
What your press release should say?
Writing a press release?
Press release example
Sending out your press release
Building a website
Why you need a website
The purpose of your website
What content should be on your site
How your site should be designed
Giving your web site credibility
Online sales
Getting traffic on to your site
Email marketing
What is email marketing
Creating a mailing list
Digital Brochures
What is a digital version of your promotional material?
Trade Shows
What is a trade show?
Choosing a show?
Setting your goals
What to consider before booking a show
Budgeting for your trade show
Planning your stand
What to do at the trade show
What to do after the trade show
Section Four: Selling Your Product
Retail Hit List
Where to sell your product
How to find stores
Creating a retail hit list
Store Analysis
Which stores are suitable for your product
Undertaking a store analysis
Creating A Look Book
What is a look book and what is it used for?
How you should present your look book
Preparing To Approach A Buyer
Pre-sales promotion
Pre-approaching the buyer
What you need to know about your company
What you need to know about the buyer
What to do before approaching a buyer
Understanding How A Buyer works
Understanding the buyer
Why a buyer might choose your product
Making The Call
Approaching the buyer
How to deliver your pitch
What to do after the call
The Meeting
Meeting the buyer
What to do before the meeting
What to do in the meetingTable Of Contents
Closing The Deal
Why must you close the deal?
Ways to close a deal
Why people might say yes
When you should close
Handling objection
Why people might say no
The ʻI want to think about itʼ excuse
What to do after the order
Using An Agent
How sales agents work
Advantages of using an agent
Disadvantages of using an agent
How to find an agent
Working with agents
Section Five: Production Management
Sourcing Materials
Planning your production
How are materials sourced?
The supply chain
Lead times
Minimum orders
Ethical supply chains
Production routes
What is a production route?
In-house production
Outworkers
Specialist CMT units
Screen printers
Contract Manufacturing
Mass Producing Your Clothing
Choosing a factory
Key questions to ask a CMT unit
Key questions to ask a screen printers
Key questions to ask a factory
Basic factory evaluation checklist
Production And Management Techniques
The critical path analysis
Managing a critical path
Quality control
Quality control checklist
Creating specifications
The spec sheet
Details to give a factory
Details to give a screen printers
Preparing goods for retail
Pricing garments
Care labels
Swing tags
