Is it a Good Time to Start a Fashion Brand?

No doubt about it. Change is afoot. Our daily needs and wants are more expensive, policies are very volatile, and there doesn’t seem to be an end in sight. Overseas manufacturing is not looking so appealing. The news is more than your soul can bear. And you, well, you are just trying to make it through your day riding the highs and lows as they come.

And then there are your plans. Yes, your fabulous plans! This was going to be the year of a new brand or product launch. People were going to love it and you were going to be able to quit your day job and ride off into the sunset. The end.

It may feel like the end (the news most certainly wants us to believe so). But I’m hopeful that not all is lost. Change always will happen. It’s inevitable. Perhaps not as dramatically as we are going through right now, but as creative people we will always find a way forward. Yes, the garment industry has been thrown into the deep end, but I’m still optimistic, especially for small brands and here’s why…

Today’s pricing will be the new normal for you

The ones feeling the pinch (to put it lightly) are those with supply chains already in place. These brands have built their success on assuming that their raw materials will remain semi-constant. There isn’t a huge profit margin in fashion, so when a wrench is thrown into the mix, it really disrupts things.

So far the one thing we can be certain about is that prices are going to be higher going forward. No one wants to pay more. Not a single one of us. However, if prices are here to stay, then accepting them as part of your business plan, or your pivot will allow you to plan for the future. Where existing brands are downsizing and sacrificing quality for cheaper alternatives, you have the ability to build based on this new normal” for pricing. 

You can get creative with sourcing

The sourcing playbook has gone out the window. For decades there was this formula in place for big brands. Design in the US, get fabric from overseas, do full package manufacturing overseas, ship it back to be sold to big retailers. Rinse and repeat. For small businesses, finding a factory on Linkedin that was promising cheap goods, preproduction services, and sourcing all fabric and trims made one stop shopping easy. 

The problem with full package production is that you could be limited to the options that were presented to you. But for startups, it felt like a buffet. It also made it really easy for people who wanted to dabble in super cheap fashion to get ahead just to say they have a product on their website. They may have gotten ahead, but once your supply chain is cut off, so too are all your resources for everything that goes into a garment. 

Hard work and a lot of time and research goes into sourcing, but if you take your time now to find the right places to get everything you need, you could be set up for success going forward. Not only that, you will know and understand the process so anytime a shift comes, you are prepared and know how to proceed when a valued vendor or supplier is no longer an option. 

You can adapt quickly

Chances are if you are reading this, you aren’t a behemoth brand. You are a small business whether it be a team of people or just yourself. Count yourself as lucky for that. 

Currently, big brands are struggling to figure out the new normal. They have built their businesses on cheap overseas labor. Post pandemic, rising prices were already a huge challenge to overcome. Now even bigger ones are being faced as how do they maintain pricepoints, quality, product selection and staff? The bigger the brand, the harder it is to pivot. Anyone who has ever worked in corporate America knows how easy it is to make changes (sarcasm). 

You, as a small brand can be very, very flexible. Yes, price is always a challenge, but chances are your customers are loyal and are niche. They support you and what has to happen. Let’s say you started out producing in Vietnam, but now you can’t justify it. So you make the switch to US production, working with a small family owned factory that can take on your production. Giant retailers cannot do this. The quantities they order just are not doable unless they build their own factories. 

There will always be a demand for clothing

The basic necessities in life are food, shelter and clothing. No matter what, people will always need clothing to keep themselves covered and warm. Sure, most people like it cheap, trendy and disposable, but that consumption pattern will be shifting. It’s going to become more expensive, so consumers will probably buy less. But I’m personally hoping that with a bigger price tag comes a greater respect for our clothing and treating it as something to be saved, mended and reworn.The pieces that are invested in will be loved. I know a lot of you who read this already put quality and customer before price.

People will need everyday clothing like underwear, socks, tshirts, and jeans. But they will also need special occasion items like wedding gowns or formal wear. Even during the Great Depression when materials were scarce people still found ways to show their personal style. Trends happen no matter what. It’s part of our collective concious.

Clothing has always been a means of personal expression. It denotes status, style, and points of view.  We may wear our comfy sweats at home, but when it comes to going out or festival attire, it’s a full on fashion parade. Fashion allows for individual expression on a larger scale, I think, more than any other medium, so I don’t think anyone is ready to abandon searching for that perfect item that will make them feel like a million bucks.

There’s never been a better time for a side hustle

This is my piece of advice to any fashion startup. Never quit your day job until you are absolutely sure your side hustle can become a full time paid gig. I know that probably seems obvious, but it’s worth repeating. The drive to quit your day job is fierce some days, but hang in there. 

Take it from me. I’ve been there, working 8 hour days and then going home to work at least 5-6 hours more. But you know what? My day job helped fund my business. I’m thinking if I had to buy my software and plotters now, geesh! That would have been painful. 

Right now in our era of uncertainty, maintaining income streams can allow you a slow roll out of a potentially very successful business going forward. 

What’s to come

Each day seems to present new uncertainties and we are living in strange times where we have all the big feelings for the atrocities happening around us, but then have to close the computer and go make dinner followed up with a few late emails and bad reality TV.

I personally always go back to the mantra when I am feeling all the feels to control what I can control and keep moving forward in the right direction for my community and myself. Somedays fashion feels frivolous, and I actually feel a bit so writing this post. But fashion is also a creative expression and has always been a commentary on our times. Fashion is art, and art is our voice. So it’s important to pursue what calls to you.

Anyways, that got deep fast…

No doubt, starting a fashion brand right now is like taking off in turbulent weather, but there always comes that point where you hit the right altitude and it’s smooth sailing. Don’t give up on your vision!