How to create your own sportswear brand
How to create your own sportswear brand. In recent years people have tried to have a healthier lifestyle. And this is reflected even more in people’s closets. We can also see this in social media. In it, we can find topics that go from more balanced diets to different ways of staying active. All this, thanks to the so-called fitness influencers as they were in charge of turning the healthy lifestyle fashionable. Thus, a new wave of fashion was born.
Why a sportswear brand?
Since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, the world has changed in its entirety. Because of this, many changed their habits. Some of them have turned unhealthy according to several people. However, there is a large percentage of people who take advantage of their free time and the new normal to take a few minutes a day to do physical activity.
Although not everyone is willing to engage in physical activity and enter the fitness world. It’s proven by many coaches and experts in this world that the motivation to put on a sports outfit makes the difference to start a few exercises a day. If the world is getting healthier, why not take advantage of that to create a new brand?
Comfort and fashion
The world of fashion has a reputation for being awkward, impractical, and very expensive. However, brands have adapted to the different specifications and needs of customers.
An example of this is the Adidas clothing brand that went from selling only clothing for athletes, to making outfits for all those who wish to dress casual and with style.
While the Nike clothing brand is focused on working with sportswear and athletes, others have adapted. Some emerging brands are targeting those who want to look fierce while maintaining comfort in their clothes.
The first step to getting started: The idea
All successful projects start with an idea, and the world of fashion isn’t the exception. Perhaps this idea arose as a way to satisfy a need. Or maybe this idea has a message and background. It’s up to you as an entrepreneur to discover what the reason for this brand is.
But it’s not just about having a good idea. You must connect your idea with some kind of desire in the market, otherwise, your brand would not be profitable. Remember that the customer is always right, and you, as a brand, must understand what they want.
Thus, know very well what you are going to sell. Whether it’s an innovative idea or an existing concept that you want to improve, it has to fill a void that the consumer didn’t know they had.
Who, what, where, why, and how
Fully understanding what you are selling and the entire basis of your product can be broken down into many questions. For example, the well-known five W’s: “What, Who, Where, Why & How?” Although many believe that this technique is cliché, it’s very effective.
The What’s
What do you sell? And what is your product? Remember to ask yourself: What makes you stand out from the competition? And what aspect of your brand will appeal to your customer? Besides all of this, ask: what is different about you? And what unique aspect does your company have as an identity aspect?
The Who’s, How to create a sportswear brand
This then brings you to the next point: the audience. Who is your audience? What do they like and what they don’t like about sportswear products? What is your disposable income for sportswear? For this, you must find and know your audience. In the same way, to do this you should conduct market research. However, be thorough with these studies as they will make you know who your target customer really is.
The Why’s
With the next point, we get to why which is the brand’s reason for being. So, why is this product needed for the sportswear market? Why will it be sold? And also why do you think this product will be sold? Consider aspects like why does your target market need this? Why do you need this product?
The Where, How to create a sportswear brand
The location or distribution is another key point that you should know after having the first idea that started your business. Where will you sell this? Where does your target audience prefer to spend their money? Will you be using your own e-commerce or e-commerce store? Will it start in physical stores? If so, what are these locations? As you can see, conducting market research on where your target market buys is key.
The How’s
This point is vital to really know where your brand will go. How will you sell this? How do you plan to market your product? Is the marketing strategy at the same stage as your product and audience? How are you going to engage your audience? How can you be better and bigger than your competition? Besides all this, remember that the use of free social channels has changed the whole game. Thus, it’s important to be aware of social media and its constant changes.
One of the best tips you can follow is to write each of these questions on a piece of paper or document. This will help you create a plan for your brand. Besides, this way you can ensure that you have detailed each of your company’s plans.
Idea and Concept
Even if you already have all this planned, a great idea, and have done an analysis about it, you should stop for a second to think: is this really unique? Your brand concept has to focus on design and functionality. However, besides thinking about the aesthetics of the company, it’s important to remember the costs and profitability of this. All of this is necessary to achieve the optimal development of your idea.
A marketing concept means nothing without a plan. Thus, don’t take marketing plans lightly. The difference between being a successful company and a less successful one is based on who does invest in planning and research.
Another point that can be beneficial for your company when starting is to perform a SWOT analysis. SWOT analysis refers to the knowledge of the strengths, objectives, weaknesses, and threats of a brand. With this, you will be able to understand in-depth each of your goals and the possible future issues.
Mission
If you know anything about the business world, you know that every company has some key elements on file. One of them is the mission.
The Mission is the purpose of an organization. It stands for the aims and goals of the organization within a specific environment. As such, it’s also what the company is doing at present and the way it serves different groups of interest. Some of these can be shareholders, collaborators, consumers, community, and government, among others.
The mission statement becomes the frame of reference to guide decisions on the use and application of available resources. It also acts as a mix so that the organization can function coherently.
Vision
While the mission is the present of the company, company, or organization, the vision is the future of it. As such, it’s the way the company is heading in the medium term. Besides this, it also works as a direction to guide strategic decisions for growth, diversification, and competitiveness. Not only that but it serves the different interest groups that gravitate around the organization.
The vision is qualitative, it invites transformation, it-s demanding as it constitutes a vital and powerful force for change. It tends to be timeless since it doesn’t define a specific date for the change. Although this could also establish a projected era in time, its achievement implies a dynamic projection on the horizon. Thus, it guides the way for the mission to transcend into the future.
Why is the vision useful?
If the mission supports the personality of an organization, the vision is about where you want to go. It makes sense of the objectives at a strategic and operational level.
With this element, you will make employees understand how the fulfillment of their daily tasks bears fruit on a broader level and has repercussions over a long period.
Remember that before looking at numbers and engaging in a specific activity, people want to know how they relate to a larger goal.
Values
Values are the basic beliefs and concepts of an organization, they form the core of its culture. It’s also the shared conceptions of a company that are important and therefore desirable.
When accepted by the members of an organization, they influence their behavior and guide their decisions. A value system is a set of elements that serve as a guide and standard for the individuals that make up an organization. This way they can analyze and judge their own and other members’ behavior. So, in the case that these are negative, they should be sanctioned. After this, the company must reinforce behaviors with positive values.
Types of values
- Social values: they talk about social responsibility or contribution to the environment. They also mention everything about a work dynamic or even happiness, for example, sustainability and cooperation.
- Development values: they dictate the pattern of continuous improvement. In addition to the impact on the communities; among these is innovation.
- Values in work dynamics: refer to an internal activity, such as efficiency and excellence.
- Customer service values: indicate unmatched satisfaction; some examples are the attitude of service, respect, and active listening.
Branding is key
Branding is what brand management does to make it known. Not only that, but it also focuses on creating a positive image in the minds and hearts of consumers. Thus, branding or brand management comprises actions related to the purpose, brand values , and positioning. It also creates a connection with the public to influence their purchasing decisions.
For a brand to work, you must spend a lot of time and plan on your brand identity. There are many brands in the world, so you must make yours stand out. For this, you must create brand awareness and loyalty that connects your customers to your label. Remember that your brand must be linked to your actual products.
It’s also important that you know the purpose of your brand. A purpose is nothing more than its reason for existing. In many cases, this purpose comes as a phrase that accompanies the logo and becomes a motto or slogan of the brand.
Get your quote
It’s all so creative and fun until we get to create the sportswear brand. If you forgot to agree on a budget in your business plan, this is the time to do it.
Once the initial budget has been made and you have an estimate of how much it will cost to set it up.
How do you finance it? Can family or friends help you? There are special loans for investors to turn to.
You can also go to an investor, but remember that this means away some of your company.
Equipment and qualifications
This is very important. Before, in traditional companies, the work team only had to be good when it came to their work experience. Now, however, the workers of a company must match or fit in with the values of the company. It’s not all about experiences and skills anymore.
Take a few seconds to reflect and ask yourself: can you do it all by yourself? Even if you can, is that the most efficient way to do it? Be sure to connect with talented and motivated people who can help you where you fall short. If you are a designer, find a good business partner, and if you are an entrepreneur, find a good designer. No one can do everything and neither should you.
A team is the most important factor in a company. You as the owner of the brand are in charge of working and planning systematically. However, your team is the people who make it happen. As such, it’s very important to define everyone’s tasks. The owner is responsible for the conception, planning, financing, and management of projects. While other people are helping with sales issues and administrative tasks.
How to create a sportswear brand? Entrepreneurship
Running your own business isn’t a 9 to 5 job. It’s not the hours you spend in the office that matter but what you produce. Being your own boss means that you need to make everything happen. As such, you will live and breathe your brand, working 24/7.
All people have great ideas. However, the point that makes an entrepreneur stand out is that they make those ideas come true. You will need to put in the work and move on with your dream.
So, ask yourself, Are you cut out for this or not? Is it really what you want? Besides all this, wanting to start a clothing brand is ideal because you will have a lot of sweat on your forehead.
Design and materials
Once you know all the basics of your business and are ready to start your sportswear brand, the next step is designing. This is the process of making your garments. The first step here is to define your collection. Focus on your brand identity, your vision, and the products you want to create. Make sure your collection is clear and coherent.
Once you have structured and defined your collection, the designer can start drawing. For this, get back to the inspiration and the branding, and the customer you want to have. Styles should fit in with your brand identity and vision. As such, the designer must create excellent technology packages so that you can continue with the development of your product. Read more about design in the article: how to design without knowing how to draw.
Prices, How to create a sportswear brand?
In the start-up phase, you had a first look at the costs and prices of your styles and production.
Now when the collection is defined, you have sourced materials and found factories, and thus production costs, you need to check your prices again.
Additions? Will it be profitable? Go through all the posts in your budget and see how you can recalibrate.
In the end, you want to live and work doing what you love. You don’t want it to be an expensive hop where you lose money
Launch with kickstarter campaign
Depending on your distribution strategy, the sale of the products will be different. However, online sales have become more popular this year. Thus, launching an online sales campaign will always be a good option.
With this, you can skip the margins for agents or retailers. In addition to being able to offer products that are top quality for around 15 to 30 percent less.
To get started, launch a Kickstarter campaign. Kickstarter is a crowdfunding website for creative projects. This platform has funded a wide range of efforts, ranging from independent films, music, and comics to journalism, video games, and food-related projects.
The objective of this strategy is to earn the money necessary for production. A successful campaign would need 320 people to order a t-shirt. For this, either the clients or yourself will choose the rest of the 600 pieces. Currently, the ideal will be to attract attention through Facebook and Instagram, as well as through multipliers, such as online magazines and blogs.
Marketing sales
Let the world know the story of your brand. Marketing is your products, your meetings, your communication, and everything you do in your business. Be honest in everything you do, let customers understand why you are doing it, and what your brand is about. You want to spread your message. Thus, tell the world about your sportswear brand and what sets them apart from the competition.
It won’t matter if you have the best products in the world with the best history if nobody buys them. In the end, you need to remember that it all comes down to sales. You want your clothes to be sold, to be able to invest and develop your collection. If you work with retailers, the traditional way is to display at trade shows. This way, you will end up having multiple mini-presentations and demos of your impressive collection. However, remember that not all buyers are open to new things. Thus, don’t be put off when it gets tough, believe in your brand, and be resilient. Keep going!
How to create a sportswear brand? Customer service
Customer service can be defined as one of the pillars of profitability and the positioning of any business. This focuses directly on consumer satisfaction and optimizing their experience and interaction with a brand.
Take care of your customers. You make your garments so that your customers can have them for their intended need. Don’t let them down, put yourself in their shoes, and see how you can help them.
For this, analyze how you handle complaints, returns, and delays. Besides all this, interact with your customers, put your ego aside, and use the information to create even better products in the future.
Constantly check the comments, How to create a sportswear brand
After completing the entire marketing process and the marketing strategy cycle, you should review how well you did in terms of objectives.
For this, constantly review the results of the strategies or campaigns you carry out.
This is so you know where you need to improve.
Remember that what once worked doesn’t always have to work.
Work systematically
Plan, plan, and plan. Don’t leave anything to chance.
If you want to create your sportswear brand, you need to be disciplined to work systematically.
- Check the sales numbers.
- Plan future activities.
- Create innovative strategies for your brand.
Being creative is what will really make money and rank well.
Know your strengths, How to create a sportswear brand
Do you remember the SWOT analysis you did at the beginning of your brand?
It’s time to return to it and read it again.
Take each of the strengths and advantages that made you who you are in the beginning and work on each of them exploit the 100% out of them.
Stand out in the market to become an opponent in the world of sportswear.
Make it sustainable
Sustainable fashion, also called ethical, sustainable, or slow fashion, is a current of thought, design, production, and use of garments or accessories based on the following value standards:
- Minimize the environmental impact to preserve and improve the health of the planet.
- Guarantee labor rights prioritizing transparency throughout the life cycle and recovery of a garment.
- Establish a circular economy based on qualitative, competitive, efficient, and innovative growth compared to only quantitative growth.
How to create a sportswear brand? Be you and the rest will follow
Remember to be authentic with your brand.
That is what will set you apart from the rest of the fashion companies.
Don’t be afraid to say and do what you think.
As long as they also meet the needs of a niche and you know how to connect with your audience, the rest will follow.
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