If you are in the start up phase of your brand, I’d be pretty confident to bet you’re working to a budget or some level of financial restriction. It can be a task in itself knowing where to invest wisely whilst ensuring you get as much value for your money as possible.

There are several areas deemed unnecessary when starting out, many might not be needed at all.

Save Your Money.

A prime example of such expenses include hiring a web designer or purchasing expensive design software. Platforms such as Squarespace and Shopify are designed with us “average-joe’s” in mind. Their user interface makes creating an online destination incredibly simple with no tech experience needed. There’s also nothing a quick Youtube tutorial can’t help with when starting to build your e-commerce store and navigating their site. Furthermore if you feel compelled to buy software such as Adobe Photoshop or Adobe Illustrator - don’t! Beyond the initial cost, these come with a steep learning requirement and are certainly not beginner-friendly. You can also achieve decent graphics and photo editing with many free apps readily available. Try Canva and VSCO.

Other areas that may be tempting, but have no real impact in the early stages of business include fashion illustrations and shows. Apart from creating beautiful content for campaigns or social platforms, illustrations serve no real functional purpose in the development of your collections. Manufacturers won’t accept them as references for production as they’re often open to artistic interpretation and unlike technical illustrations, do not depict all seams, stitching or construction details. As for pumping money into a fashion show, this is an eye-wateringly expensive route to take, if your budget is modest this shouldn’t even be a consideration.

Know When to Invest.

So where do you focus your finances?

Investing in the right areas early on in the process will undoubtedly reduce further expense or errors down the line. Quality design, tech packs and samples are a must.

Quality Design
It is incredibly easy to get creatively excited and carried away by the thought of a beautiful collection, however quality design work will take into consideration your forecasted RRP and many other factors required before the process has even begun.

Time and time again I hear from prospective clients wanting high-fashion quality at a fast fashion price. There are clear reasons why this is unattainable. However what a good designer should be able to do is incorporate your requirements with the balance of good design, whether that’s through detail, fabric choice or construction techniques a thorough knowledge of functionality and design will set you up for the journey to come.

Tech Packs
Unfortunately one of my unspoken rules is “manufacturer’s aren’t your friends” - of course I mean this loosely and certainly don’t discourage you from building organic, genuine relationships with trusted production facilities, but the overriding message is to approach with prepared caution.

You can do so by ensuring you have a comprehensive tech pack that details your garment(s) to the very last millimetre. Without this thorough document you are handing control over to the factory whilst allowing ample wiggle-room for error and additional expense. No thank you.

Tech packs are working documents intended to be amended and updated throughout the process of garment development and will enable you to get to the first stage of production. They are also your ticket to gathering quotes from a variety of manufacturers allowing you flexibility and choice when selecting who to proceed with in line with your desired quality and cost of production.

Samples
You should never proceed into production without samples. There is always something to amend and jumping feet first into manufacturing is a big no-no. When you see your design from a two dimensional idea turn into a three-dimensional garment, your opinion on proportion, placement, length, fabrication etc. may entirely change. It is worth investing in your samples with your chosen factory to ensure utmost happiness with the quality produced and cross-reference their standards before submitting on the big order.

Finally, to fast track your brand and avoid any common mistakes it is worth investing in some guidance. Mistakes in the development of a collection or clothing line can be costly, although the path of entrepreneurship is forever winding, especially across the landscape of the fashion industry; investing in consulting help can be the access to knowledge that you need.

If you would like to work with me for any of the areas listed above, please don’t hesitate to request a quote and we can discuss your unique situation, brand requirements and take it from there.