Archive for the ‘Producing and marketing a clothing line’ Category

Fall 2010 Collection

Wednesday, April 28th, 2010

We have been working on a few photo shoots for the fall 2010 line. They turned out pretty good.

Both photographers have really different Styles.

The first shoot is Ronnie Abelada’s work. He is a new fashion photographer in Winnipeg.

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The second shoot is Mike Latschislaw’s work. He is photographer in Winnipeg and he does all types of photography.

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Both photographers have really different styles.

This is a link to another great article and photo shoot. The article will appear in the May issue of Weddings in Winnipeg.

May issue of Weddings in Winnipeg

May issue of Weddings in Winnipeg

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MVC Stream 2

Thursday, April 15th, 2010

I attended Manitoba Venture Challenge. It really wasn’t like the Dragon’s den, which was good.

I got a good opportunity to talk about where togo with my business, with some pretty experienced business people.

I did get some great input.

My business is not investor ready. I learnt that today.

But today I met other really good resources. People who see potential in my business and have the resources to help me reach those goals.

So I am pretty happy right now.

I will know over the next few weeks if I make it to Stream 3. Even if I don’t, I met some really great people today that want to see my business grow.

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Manitoba Venture Challenge

Thursday, April 8th, 2010

I received a call the other day from a coordinator from Manitoba Venture Challenge. I had applied in January. I never heard back so I had kind of given up on the idea.

MVC is Manitoba’s equivalency of the Dragon’s Den. Entrepreneurs are chosen and given the opportunity to pitch their ideas to a panel of Angel investors.

I was accepted and accelerated to Stream 2. In Steam 1 there are 200 participants and then it is scaled down to 15 in Stream 2.

So it’s pretty encouraging that I have been placed in Stream 2.

I am looking for investors to open two new stores. It is really hard to find investors and the right one for your business. I have never been given this opportunity.

The seminars begin on April 14. It is two full days.

Manitoba Venture Challenge

Bob Proctor is a man with great insight. I have been listening to him alot these day.

Here is the third video of a series he recently produced :

Video three

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Designing for a Clothing Company

Saturday, April 3rd, 2010

Things have been really busy over the last little while for me. We have been working on several photo-shoots for the fall line. It is looking good.

I will post the pictures as soon as I get them. There is alot of talented photographers and models in this city. So the images are pretty impressive.

I got a job designing for another clothing company. I am designing a line for them and working as a liaison between the Canadian company and Hong Kong. I have sourced a suitable factory through my Hong Kong contacts.

I will travel to the factory and represent their company in China.

I am really grateful for this opportunity. This is a service I have been wanting to provide clothing companies for sometime.

My skills and connections can really help clothing businesses expand. I have connections to all types of garment factories. I can help companies produce sweaters, baby clothing, blouses and coats. Really any type of clothing.

These opportunities don’t come along that often and this is a very difficult service to market.

I guess my blog is the best way for me to advertise this service right now.

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Market

Friday, September 11th, 2009

Fall is usually a big travel time. There are several markets on right now. This is the time a line should get the most exposure. I was in Edmonton yesterday for the Trends show. I was just there to talk to my reps and do some buying for the store. It is always good to make an appearance to check out how they are displaying a line. The show is four days and it is one of the biggest in western Canada. There is also a Trends show in Vancouver, which is supposed tobe good, but not as large.

There are alot of trade shows going on in Toronto now. I will go to the OFE show next month to meet with my rep for the first time. I have never been to this show. I really never goto trade shows in Toronto. Montreal fashion week is very good too, but I have never attended it.

These shows are for reps to show the line. Most of the Canadian shows you can’t participate unless you have a rep. It’s kind of strange that a manufacturer can’t get a booth to show their line personally. Probably another CAWS thing. It’s different in the US. They are more business driven though.

I will be attending the NYC fashion week. The Canadian trade commission invites 10 Canadian designers to New York to set them up with industry people. Its a three day event. The schedule looks pretty grueling, but I’m looking forward to it. Someone from the Canadian consulate in New York takes the group to all the main trade shows, fashion shows and to meet other retailers and wholesalers. It pretty much just networking. The goal is for us to find good trade contacts.

I will do a travel blog when I am there.

When I first opened my store on albert. I used to go to New York to buy. I started going to the LA wholesaling market instead because it was easier. This is huge market in downtown LA. I think it’s called San Pedro Wholesale Mart. It’s all cash as carry for wholesalers. Its pretty good for tops and underwear. Alot of the merch is pretty poorly made though. Sometimes cash and carry is pretty cheap quality.

I will also goto Asia in November.

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Design Planning

Wednesday, July 29th, 2009

To develop a line you usually have to work six months to a year ahead of time. There are four seasons Spring, Summer, Fall and Holiday. Some companies add one or two more, Resort or Cruise. This is kind of a made up season for high end lines. Not enough people shop for these seasons to develop a line for them.

It is better to work in four seasons. This is difficult in the beginning. Right now I am working on two seasons because most factories don’t want todo small orders. This causes problems for the manufacturer because you are paying at once for large shipments. This can really effect cash flow and if you don’t sell it quick enough the bank does not want to finance your next season.

To get the shorter runs from a factory you have to establish a good relationship. This means showing them you are a valuable customer. The factory is always pushing for bigger orders.

Try to work with a factory that will give you smaller runs more frequently. This is easier said than done. My factory just offered me this and I have been with them for three years. If you are really lucky you can get terms. This takes even longer. I don’t get terms from my factory.

It takes around three months for samples tobe developed and shipped. Most reps require the samples in August to take on the road and show at trade shows. Samples cost usually twice their production costs. I get four sets developed for reps and in store samples. This gets pretty costly. Try to work with pictures with your factory. If you don’t like the style cancel it before it gets to you. Four pieces of one bad style can sit for a very long time before it is sold.

One thing you should know about reps is they all are protected by an organization called CAWS. Among other things, they protect the reps from the manufacture pulling the line if they are not happy with their sales. If you are not happy with your rep you are expected to give them one season before you can remove it from their showroom. A season is a long time for your line to sit in a showroom where it is not moving.

This gets pretty frustrating. I have had to pay out reps for a season because they could not sell the line. Like most things its easier getting in than out. Many reps will take your line to try to sell it even if they don’t have the right customer base. Reps are a tricky thing.

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Finding a good agent

Tuesday, July 14th, 2009

I was thinking about the mistakes I made that season and how I could have avoided them. That was probably just what I had togo through. Really even if half those things didn’t happen, my first season would have been a loss.  The fact that I came out of that season with a good agent is great.  Mimi lead me to Raymond.

My advise, if anyone wants to produce goods in China is don’t even start without a trustworthy agent in Hong Kong. Good agents have offices in Hong Kong and travel to China weekly. It is really hard to find a good agent. I have seen middle aged American’s traveling to China with young men from Hong Kong. I thought to myself, look out you are about to loose alot of money.

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Producing and Marketing a Clothing Line

Sunday, July 12th, 2009

I’ve decided that what I would like todo with this blog is write a book about my experiences with developing a product in the Orient and marketing it. Eventually turn it into a book on how to develop and market a clothing line.

My experience over the last three years has been crazy. Working with China has been really difficult and I am still wrapping my head around it.

It started three years ago when I met Mimi at the Magic show in Vegas. She owned a label manufacturing company in Toronto. She had a sister factory in China, where she manufactured clothing. We soon started working together. I visited her factory in Markham. It was really impressive. She had really good clients like Calvin Klien. I thought she would be a trustworthy resource. Turned out she was not.

Not long after I started working with her I became frustrated. Her and her partner took a really long time to develop the first samples. When I did receive the samples they looked nothing like my specs. She also rarely returned my phone calls. After I saw the first set of samples I was so disappointed and upset I jumped on a plain to China to try to correct them before the season began. There I saw the Chinese slums for the first time. I think that most people would be better off going through life without seeing this part of the world.

This is the first time I met Raymond. Mimi had hired him as her apparel agent. There were 4 people involved in this project. This was 2 too many. At this time Raymond and I started talking prices and soon released Mimi was ripping us both off. So on top of being non-responsive and late on deliveries, she was also charging me double what she should have. As well as underpaying Raymond.

Well this season turned out as you would expect. Basically I overpaid for late product that looked nothing like my designs. Half of what I ordered I did not even receive. I also did not order anything for my store from other manufacturers because I was relying on my products to sell instead. I lost so much money that season. Not to mention the battle that began between Mimi and I.

She had developed a set of my samples to sell without my consent. I took her set back with me when I left China. After this she was ready for a fight. The amount of manipulation and lying I had todo to get my product through my doors was exhausting. When I finally did receive the stock it was pretty much dead-stock. As soon as I received the inventory, I had my lawyer contact Mimi to tell her that any further contact would be considered harassment.

Mimi knew Raymond and I had decided to continue working together without her. For months after that she harassed Raymond, constantly threatening him to sue him for “stealing” me as her client. This was my first introduction to working in the Orient. From then on I knew this was not going tobe the experience I had hoped it would be. Why I did not stop then I will never know. Oddly enough, it never even occurred to me to quit.

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