So, you have finally decided to take your skivvies into your own hands and begin your first foray into the world of underwear ecommerce. You want to learn how to start your own underwear business! Lucky for you, we here at BKage Underwear know a few things about how to begin your new underwear business and turn a profit.
Whether you want to start a brand catered towards classy women with beautiful lingerie, a “guy’s guy” company that keeps the family jewels safe, or want to offer a little bit of everything for everyone, we’ve got you covered.
Ready to learn how to start your own underwear business? From a premiere underwear manufacturing company, these are the essential steps you need to take to ensure that your very own underwear business will be a success:
- Begin building your business (and your brand!) before you even think about selling anything.
Sure, you need to sell underwear in order to have a tried and true underwear business, but in today’s customer-focused climate, the most important thing you can do to set yourself up for success is simple: plan ahead.
First, you need to determine your target audience. Who are your (potential) customers? What are they like? What do they want to buy? Your target audience can be a broad or narrow selection of people — it’s up to you! Of course, you may already have an idea of what you want your underwear business to sell, but your target audience should inform most of your decision-making.
Next, you need to build your brand and online presence. What does your brand stand for? What does your logo look like? How can your customers reach you? Nowadays, customers care just as much about who they’re buying from as they do what they’re buying, so it’s important that you establish early on who you are as a business. Additionally, you should start building a buzz around your underwear business online by creating a website and social media accounts, even if you don’t have any products quite yet.
Finally, you need to create a solid business plan. This encompasses everything from your underwear company’s budget, customer service interactions, to day to day operations. If you plan accordingly, you will be prepared for everything — a must when starting your own underwear business.
- Find the perfect underwear manufacturer.
Let’s face it — it’s highly unlikely that you will be sewing each and every undergarment you sell by hand. That’s where a manufacturer comes in! Underwear manufacturing companies (like us!) work with you to create beautiful and comfortable pieces that will entice and delight your customers. In fact, nearly all underwear businesses on the market today use manufacturers, rather than owning their own factories. Not every manufacturing company will have the ability to create the types of undergarments that you want, though. Here are a few things to keep in mind when choosing an underwear manufacturer:
- Product Selection
Just like you may not find the right type of garment at a store, you may not find the right undergarments at every underwear manufacturer. It may seem obvious, but make sure that you choose a retailer that actually stocks and manufactures the items you want your underwear business to sell.
- Customization Options
Do you want to design your own underwear from stitch to stitch, or do you simply want to add your own logos and designs to your underwear? Both are perfectly fine, but you need to make sure that you choose an underwear manufacturer that allows for the levels of customization that you want. For example, at BKage Underwear, our customers can choose their style of underwear, fabric choice, printing style, and design. Our staff designers can even help you create beautiful, unique designs of your own creation.
- Price
As a fledgling small business owner, cost will likely be at the forefront of your concerns. It is recommended that you shop around, carefully considering each underwear manufacturer to find the company that gives you all the options you desire without breaking the bank.
- Spread the word to start making sales.
Remember the website and social media accounts we told you to set up in step one? Once you have established your brand and have inventory ready to sell, these will be perfect avenues for you to put your marketing skills to the test to entice potential customers.
We love social media marketing because it can help you build a buzz around your new underwear business without (technically) spending a dime. Of course, if you want to place ads for your items and business on a social media platform — outside of your brand’s pages — you will need to pay for those.
Having a website for your underwear business is also a great marketing tactic, because not only does it serve as a place for customers to buy your goods, it also is a great way for customers to find you via search engine. Be sure to practice good SEO tactics on your website to ensure that your business will rank highly on Google — you can even purchase ads on Google to be the first thing customers see when searching for underwear companies online.
You’ve learned how to start your own underwear business, now it’s time to actually do it!
At BKage Underwear, we are ready to partner with you and your brand new business to create the underwear company of your dreams. No matter what you want to sell or who you want to sell your items to, we’re here to help you every step of the way. Contact us today to get started!
