Learning how to open an online clothing store is something that requires a great deal of time and research. The more research you do, the more you can learn from the advice of those who have been there, done it, and got the t-shirt—quite literally!
Here, we aim to make the basics as simple and stress-free as possible for you.
We’ll take you through 6 steps to take when starting an online clothing boutique, including advice on starting an eCommerce site, and how to open an online clothing store with wholesale products.
Let’s get stuck in…
How to start an online clothing business
Below are 6 steps to success when starting an online clothing business.
Follow these, and you’ll stand in the best stead when launching your brand onto the exciting but ever-expanding eCommerce landscape.
Build a solid business plan
The very first thing you need to do is put a business plan together. This is a formal plan of action that needs to be put in place before you can get stuck into all the fun stuff like naming your brand and picking your products.
Here’s what the pros at Forbes recommend covering in a business plan:
- An executive summary
- Business description
- Outline of what you plan to sell
- Market research and analysis
- Target market information
- Marketing plan details
- Financial plan and forecasts
- Business structure and ownership
- Legalities
- Operations and management
You will also need a robust business plan if you pitch for investment, loans, or funding.
Investors and banks will want to see detailed information in your plan about things like financial forecasts, how you plan to make money, and most importantly to them, how you plan to make them money.
There are a whole host of useful business plan templates available online, which are a great place to start if you’re a beginner.
Once your business plan is boxed off, you then need to decide where you want to sell your products from, i.e. where you want to set up shop on the digital marketplace.
This could be through an established eCommerce marketplace like Etsy, Amazon, or eBay. Here, you can simply upload products to your listings and sell through your chosen third-party site(s).
However, for maximum control, creative licence, freedom, and growth potential, we’d recommend creating an independent online store. This can be done on a reputable eCommerce platform such as Shopify, WooCommerce, Wix, or Squarespace.
There are many more eComm platforms available than the ones listed above—it’s all about doing your research and comparing features and costs to find the one that works for you.
This will form your website, where you can create landing pages, product pages, and blog content—a hub from where you can send out content and direct traffic back.
Put together some detailed buyer personas
Buyer personas are fictional representations of your ideal customer(s) created using findings from market research and real data about existing customers.
Forming these detailed profiles will help you understand the characteristics, needs, preferences, motivations, and behaviours of your target audience.
A typical buyer persona profile can include age, gender, occupation, income level, education, geographical location, and family status. Also, include interests, hobbies, values, goals, pain points, and preferred communication channels.
This information gives you invaluable insight into your target audience’s desires and decision-making processes so you can then tailor your marketing and product strategies to effectively engage and attract the right buyers.
Build the foundations of your brand identity
Next, it’s time to turn your focus to your brand identity. This includes things like the colours, images, overall aesthetic, and tone of voice that makes your brand truly unique from all the others on the market.
This also includes your brand name, which can be different from your registered business name. Your brand name should be unique, relevant, memorable, and timeless—something that also easily translates to a website domain, email address, and social media handles.
It’s also crucial to check if your desired brand name is available and not already taken by another business. Failing to do this important step could land you serious legal trouble.
Pick out the perfect products
You’ll already know what you want to sell, especially if you’ve already conducted market analysis and honed your buyer personas. Now it’s time for you to get down to the brass tacks of specific suppliers and manufacturers.
If you choose to design your own clothing, you’ll need to find reliable manufacturers or suppliers to help bring your designs to life.
Alternatively, you can research wholesalers, distributors, or dropshipping suppliers who offer the type of clothing you want to sell to your customers.
When weighing up your options, it’s also essential to research things like shipping costs and minimum order quantities (MOQs), as you’ll need to factor these into your budget and outgoings.
We share some more advice on how to open an online clothing store with wholesale products a little further on, so keep scrolling.
Put a promotion and marketing plan together
Once you’ve completed all of these steps thoroughly and successfully, it’s time to launch your online clothing brand into the world and start turning your product inventory into profit. A strategic marketing plan is your key to success.
You can evolve your marketing approach over time, depending on where you see most conversion and reward with customer engagement.
Here are some of the main things you could focus on to begin with to get a feel for what is going to work for you:
- Email marketing
- Influencer and/or affiliate marketing
- Social media marketing
- Paid advertising
- Search engine optimisation (SEO)
- Content marketing (blogs, etc.)
Keep reading for more pearls of wisdom on starting an online clothing business…
Other important tips for starting an online clothing business
Once your business is up and running and your online shop is in the works, here are some key pieces of advice to ensure you create a slick customer experience and sell as many products as possible.
High-quality product photography
Believe it or not, the quality of your product photography has the power to make or break your sales and profit. If the clothing you want to sell doesn’t look eye-catching, clear, and detailed on your website, customers will be far less inclined to buy or even browse.
Research shows that three-quarters of online shoppers look at product photos before anything else. Other interesting facts and figures include:
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Most (80%) online shoppers agree that product photos are highly influential when making purchasing decisions.
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Almost a quarter (22%) of returns happen because people think products look different in person than they did in the photographs.
- Good product photos are 40% more likely to be shared by online shoppers on their social media accounts—hello, organic marketing!
Our top tips would be to invest in hiring a studio space to shoot your product photography and professional models if possible. A studio will be deliberately well-lit so you can shoot your products in crystal-clear lighting.
If you feel you’ve got an eye to shoot great photos yourself, great, go for it!
If not, hiring an experienced eCommerce fashion photographer will be an invaluable move. That way, you know you’ve not only got great images for your website but also for social media, digital channels, and even print advertising too.
Make sure your website is mobile-friendly
When building your online clothing store, you must ensure your eCommerce website is mobile-friendly—this is what the experts call ‘mobile responsive’.
This means creating a mobile version of your site as well as a desktop version so that it looks great and functions seamlessly on devices of all shapes and sizes (laptops, iPads, smartphones, etc).
Most website-building platforms and content management systems (CMS) make it super easy to ensure your website is fully responsive. You don’t need to be a coding whizz, don’t worry.
Nearly 60% of internet shoppers think being able to shop on mobile is important when deciding which brands to buy from after all.
Create detailed product pages
As well as a responsive website to host your online store and eye-catching product photography, it’s also essential to create detailed product pages for each of your collections and individual items.
Write detailed descriptions that highlight key features, materials, sizing information, and any unique selling points. Optimise your product descriptions with relevant keywords to improve search engine visibility too.
If you’re selling a women’s white tee, for example, include words like ‘basic white t-shirt’ in your product description to echo what buyers might be typing into the search bar.
How to open an online clothing store with wholesale products
Thinking you might want to open an online clothing shop with wholesale products? Here are some extra pearls of wisdom:
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First and foremost, make sure you’re only using quality, reputable wholesalers with great reviews, who you can rely on—like us!
Nova of London was established in 1981, so we’ve got decades of experience to help give your brand a headstart.
We even have a collection of How To Guides designed to make things like downloading images and combining orders a total breeze.
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When selling wholesale clothing products, it’s generally always advisable to put your own label in (relabel) them. Just make sure you understand the legal and ethical ways to go about relabelling.
Check out our guide to Putting Your Own Label In Wholesale Clothing for more information.
- When placing your first order(s), start with a variety of products in different sizes, colours, and styles to cater to diverse customer preferences. Consider the demand, pricing, and storage capacity when determining the quantities you order.
- You can refine and alter this as you go, as you gain more insights into what your buyers actually want.
There’s plenty more expert advice in our Beginner’s Guide To Wholesale Fashion, so make sure to bookmark that.
Building an online boutique? Here’s why you need Nova of London…
We design and supply a diverse selection of exceptionally crafted wholesale women's dresses, skirts, tops, jumpsuits, jeans, coats, and more.
Our London-based design team works in-house to provide you with an array of original, on-trend, and affordable designs, with fresh new drops announced regularly.
With our quality products, distinctive styles, and friendly approach to customer service, you’ll have your online clothing shop kitted out and off the ground in no time.
Browse our expansive range of Wholesale Clothing Collections to get started.
We offer direct shipping at wholesale prices for your online clothing business, so you can get set up and well-stocked in no time. For more information or to place an order, get in touch today!
Check out our handy Wholesale Clothing FAQs and the Nova of London blog for all the latest news and updates.
