Have you been sketching clothing designs since you were a kid? Are you immensely entrepreneurial and dream of million-dollar fashion business to your name? Regardless of your reasons, wanting to start a fashion business and actually building a successful fashion brand are very different things.
Fortunately, there are plenty of resources in the market, like online tutorials or fashion management programmes, that teach you how to make your fashion brand stand out. Let’s delve into the different aspects of fashion business management and some useful strategies to make your fashion business successful.
An overview of the fashion industry in the UK
The fashion and apparel industry has always been a prominent sector in the UK. According to the British Council, the fashion industry in the country was worth £26 billion in 2020 and added around 800,000 jobs to the economy.
The UK fashion industry is also considered its largest creative industry, which attracts scores of foreign investors to the country each year. The UK is also considered a world leader in fashion education, with six of the world’s best fashion universities in the country.
A career in this bustling industry can be financially rewarding and extremely fulfilling. Setting up a fashion business can build a solid foundation for your career in this dynamic sector.
What factors play a role in the success of a fashion business?
The fashion industry in the UK and abroad is fiercely competitive. Therefore, it can be difficult for a small independent fashion business to sustain and grow its presence.
However, you can take a leaf out of the books of successful brands who have carved a presence with a lot of determination and smart marketing. Here are some of the important factors that can make your fashion business successful.
- Uniqueness in ideas
- Expert knowledge of the target audience
- Brand loyalty
- Good visual communication
- Freshness in designs
- Consistency in quality
How can you build a successful fashion business from scratch?
With intense competition in the market, you can’t depend on a trial-and-error approach to make your fashion business successful. Instead, here are some tried-and-tested ways that can boost the success of your fashion brand.
- Identify a suitable niche in the market: Your clothing line won’t be successful just on the basis of your reputation as a designer. Your products have to add substantial value to fashion consumers or fill a gap that hasn’t been addressed before. Therefore, you need to identify a specific niche that also suits your talents.
- Develop a solid business plan: A well-developed business plan is crucial for any business to succeed, especially if it is in a competitive industry like fashion. Identify what impact you want to create with your brand and what your long-term expectations from your business are.
- Identify your target customers accurately: A specific niche for your brand must always be paired with an intimate knowledge of who your products would be marketed to. The target audience plays an important role in the growth of your business. Therefore, accurately identifying and catering to them can take your fashion business forward.
- Partner with reliable vendors and manufacturers: Unless you plan to source the raw materials and deliver the products to customers on your own, you will need to partner with different vendors and manufacturers. Connecting with reliable vendors of good repute can save you a lot of stress and also boost your brand image in the market.
How can a fashion management programme help you grow your business within the fashion industry?
To build a fashion business from scratch and grow it further, you need immense business knowledge and fashion expertise. A relevant fashion business management course can help you understand the different business strategies needed to run and grow a fashion business.
Additionally, you also acquire expertise in other aspects of fashion business management like industry trend forecasting, pricing, and brand management.
Thus, a fashion management degree can help you respond creatively to different business challenges creatively and evolve with the dynamic business industry.
What are the other career prospects of the fashion management and marketing course?
Even if you aren’t interested in setting up your own business, a fashion management degree can also bring you varied career prospects. Pursuing a fashion business management course will also boost your prospects and help you reach a wide range of well-paid fashion roles.
Here are some fascinating career options that you can choose as a fashion management graduate.
- Fashion product manager
- Fashion market manager
- Fashion entrepreneur
- Fashion business advisor
- Social media consultant for fashion house
- Fashion marketing consultant
Other interesting career paths in this sector include retail purchaser, fashion marketing director, public relations head and CEO.
If you are on the lookout for a good fashion management programme, check out the BA (Hons) Fashion Management and Marketing offered by the London College of Contemporary Arts.
This course provides you with updated business and fashion industry knowledge as well as many transferable and technical skills. The central London campus of LCCA also allows you to observe the London fashion industry up close and make influential connections.
Click here to learn other USPs of the MA fashion business management and marketing programme at LCCA.
Frequently asked questions
Question 1: What kind of salary can I expect as a fashion management graduate in the UK?
Fashion managers are known to draw decent salary packages in the UK. According to a report by Glassdoor.com, the average annual salary for a fashion manager in London can be around £44,349.
Question 2: Can LCCA provide me with good industry connections to help me set up my fashion business?
Yes! LCCA has a strong network of industry links such as Zara, Ted Baker, Soho House and Pringle of Scotland that can support your studies and boost your career prospects.
Question 3: What kind of subjects will I study in the fashion management and marketing programme?
A fashion management and marketing programme will target the basics of running and handling a fashion business. A few important subjects from its comprehensive curriculum include visual merchandising, fashion forecasting and trend forecasting.
Question 4: Can I explore other fashion sectors with fashion management and marketing degrees?
Yes. A fashion management programme gives you many transferable skills and a broad overview of the fashion industry. This can help you explore other fashion domains like public relations and luxury brand management.