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Eager to start your own clothing store, but don’t have much money to invest? There are a few ways to save money when starting a clothing store. Below are a few different ways to save money.
Start as an online store
Running a physical shop is expensive. Commercial property rent is constantly going up. You’ve also got to factor in the cost of furnishing the store, staffing it, cleaning it, maintaining it and paying energy bills. Plus there are all kinds of other extra costs such as licenses and insurance.
An online store can cost a lot less to run - you can run it from home. The biggest cost is likely to be your inventory and web design - things that are necessary whether you run an online or physical store. It’s worth investing money into a professional web design service such as this one at WebX360.com. This will ensure that your site is high quality.
An online store could provide a springboard that could eventually lead to a physical store. In other words, don’t give up on your dreams of owning a brick-and-mortar store - an online store could simply allow you to grow your business first.
Rent a market stall
Another option is to rent a market stall. This allows you to still physically interact with customers without paying the high rates of a brick-and-mortar store.
Research local markets to see if they have any stalls you can hire. Compare fees to try and find the most affordable option.
You may be able to make a name for your stall and eventually open a local store. Try to set aside some of your profits from week to week.
Keep your inventory small
The more products you try to sell, the more you have to stock. When launching a business, it’s best to start with a relatively small inventory. This can reduce the upfront costs.
A small inventory can still be diverse. Ideally, you want a few low priced items that are easy to sell and a few higher priced items that may need more pushing but are likely to generate bigger returns. Try to include a few unique products that will make you stand out.
Do your own marketing
Another way to save money is to do your own marketing. Things like social media marketing, PPC ads and flyer distribution are easy to do yourself and won’t cost too much money. You don’t need to hire a marketing agency.
As mentioned already, you may still want to hire a professional to build your website. If you’re considering marketing strategies like SEO or video marketing, it’s also better to hire a professional than do it yourself (unless you have SEO or video marketing experience).
Look into financing options
Looking into financing options could allow you to spend more upfront. Many startups are funded using business loans. You can apply for these via a bank or a private lender.
Make sure to shop around for loans in order to find the best rates - check out site such as SmallBusiness.com to compare loans. Loans may not be a good option if you already have a lot of debt.
