For some, entering the apparel business may seem like a glamorous endeavor, but it is still a business. A lot of people try to use their interest in fashion to start a clothing retail store, but in reality it’s not as easy as it seems. In fact, most people who have experience in this industry caution prospective entrepreneurs to make sure that they have enough apparel business working capital to operate for years because it takes a long time before they can actually begin to see some profits.
Here are some aspects of the business into which you may have to spend a large chunk of your working capital:
- Location. In many businesses, location is the key to success. Finding the right location may mean having to engage the services of a realtor. Often, a good location will already be rented even before an advertisement appears online and even if you do find a great location, you may also find that the rent is overpriced. The ideal location for a clothing retail store isn’t just a place where lots of potential shoppers pass by. It’s also a place that’s defined to be cool and fashionable.
- Ambience. The fashion industry is all about image, and your clothing retail store has to operate within the same rules. This means you have to make sure that the atmosphere of your shop reflects the kind of character you want for your brand. A clothing retail store isn’t the same as a hardware store; a clothing retail store is more like a fashion label or a club. You’ll need to invest some money in making sure that your store exudes that feeling you want so that you can emotionally connect with your prospective customers. And like fashion labels and clubs you have to change and update the look regularly in order to match current trends in fashion.
- Marketing. It’s not just the ambience of your shop which defines your brand’s image. You need to have a coherent marketing and advertising strategy so that you can foster an emotional connection with your target customers. Your advertising will be different depending on the specialty of your shop. Marketing towards teenage girls is different from how a wedding dress boutique or a store for bikers markets itself. Sometimes image can spell the difference between success and failure, and if you want to be cool you’ll need lots of capital on a regular basis.
The lack of apparel business working capital is just one of the potential problems you have to overcome if you are thinking about setting up a clothing retail store. There are legal ramifications involved, and you actually need to have the skill to manage a business efficiently. Not all clothing retail stores succeed, but having enough money can help.
It may be sufficient to give you enough time to get a firm foothold industry, so that eventually you do make profits from your investment. Knowing where to get your working capital even when business is slow is also important. Non-conventional lenders like invoice factoring companies will be able to provide you with the capital you need.