Starting Your Own Online Clothing Business

Among the many things Facebook has made easy is business. If you've been harbouring ideas about starting your own clothing business, now is the perfect time to act on it. Here's what you'll need to do.

DECIDE ON WHAT YOU'LL BE SELLING
Will you be importing pre-made clothes or unstitched pieces? Are you going to be designing and making your own line? Are they going to be mass produced or be made as unique pieces? 

Answer these questions before deciding to proceed with the business idea because how you organise your resources effectively depends on this step.

TAKE YOUR TIME FINDING YOUR SOURCES
The biggest noob move people make is not scouting their sources properly. If you're importing clothes, check multiple sites to crosscheck prices and shipping costs. If you're buying fabrics, visit several markets, talk to shopkeepers and see what deals they can offer you. People tend to dump names of all the places they get their fabrics from. Put this to use. Visit them, compare them. Do not jump straight into one cheap source that seems like a good place to start. 
If you live halfway across the city from Islampur, you can probably strike up a deal with a shop near your house and save yourself a lot of trouble as well as money. The same applies to finding the right dorji or factory where you can get the stuff made. Make sure you're doing your math every step of the way - it counts. 

MARKETING STRATEGIES
While Facebook makes it super easy to find your audience, getting them to buy is a whole different ball game. Do your research before you set up a Page. What are your competitors doing? How are they pricing their goods? What kind of delivery service are they using? What kind of reviews do their Pages have? Are they doing photoshoots or uploading pictures of the items only? Look into these to get a thorough idea of what customers like, want and need. 
You'll have to engage actively with your customers not only to reach them in the first place but also to convince them to spend their money. Many Pages interact with their customers through other social media platforms like Instagram. While Facebook Pages Manager helps you run your Page on the go, other services like Hootsuite allow control over multiple social media platforms. 

PATIENCE IS KEY
Doing business requires patience. You'll face slumps, you'll be selling things at 5 am and sometimes the booms in demands will be overwhelming. There will be rude customers, annoying questions and trolling. Be prepared to ride them all out gracefully.  
The whole process of starting and running a business is extremely time consuming. Before you take the plunge remember this: being your own boss means you'll be running the show full time. Still ready to commit? Get going then!

Nooha Sabanta Maula is an Anthropology major whose anthropologising has made her confused about life. Send her your thoughts to noohamaula@gmail.com or fb.com/noohamaula