Taking Your Ethical Fashion Business to the Next Level

How as a new fashion business owner, do you take your business to the next level? How can you reach the heights of world-renowned fashion designers like Marc Jacobs or Stella McCartney? It’s not that any of these people have a special God-given gift when it comes to fashion design, but they did put in the work and know and understand the business. For ethical businesses, it can sometimes be hard because so many other businesses use unethical means to get a ‘leg up’, but with persistence and perseverance, you too can reach the elites.

Utilising Social Media

Social media is one of the best forms of marketing out there in today’s fashion world. If you can develop an engaged Instagram following, you’ll be able to attract buyers from all over the world. If you can’t afford to hire a social media manager just yet, start out with a few of the most popular social media platforms (Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook are good options. Start posting regular, high-quality pictures of your products with the appropriate hashtags.

Keep Creating

Keep on going, even when it seems impossible. Every big designer out there has had moments where they’ve thought they might fail, and that could you too, but the difference if perseverance. If you keep on creating and putting your work out there, chances are you’re going to build up your brand eventually.

Become a Production Pro

Production can be one of the hardest elements of a new fashion business to get a hang of, especially for new brands, and even more so for ethical brands. You’ll want to make sure that all your clothing is sustainably sourced and that the workers are well-paid, and you should be able to prove it too. This can unfortunately limit your choices when it comes to suppliers, and as a new brand, you may struggle since you’ll likely be producing in smaller quantities to start off with. Don’t give up; timeliness and a good business manner will get you a long way when it comes to suppliers, and as you grow, so will your relationship with them.

Find Your Funding

As with any business, there are going to be some up-front costs to begin with that you are just going to have to invest in. How you decide to fund this investment is up to you. Some new fashion designers decide to pay out-of-pocket, perhaps with help from friends and family, while others prefer to find a loan. There are pros and cons to both, but either way, you need to find the money to get started.

Get Your Work Out There

Another key step to marketing and networking your brand is to get your clothes out there! Focus as much as you can on influential people. The minute Meghan Markle wears your bag, you’ve pretty much made it, but it might take a while to get there, so it’s okay to start with smaller influencers like friends in the fashion world and small social-media influencers.

Taking an ethical fashion brand to the elites is no small task, but with the right attitude, you can make it. Luckily, public opinion towards ethical fashion is becoming much more positive, and there’s never been a better time to set up an ethical fashion brand.