Diving headfirst into the activewear industry is an exciting venture. It's a booming market, filled with potential for budding entrepreneurs. The foundational steps in launching a sportswear brand mirror the ones you'd take for any clothing line: defining your target customer, formulating a business plan, and honing in on your designs. If you're seeking more information on these fundamental steps, the 'How to Get Your Fashion Ideas Manufactured’ free Masterclass and The 'Fashion Startup Online Course' are excellent resources.
As an activewear specialist, I’ve worked with many kinds of sports brands and have found there’s 5 important things that new activewear startups need to remember;
1. You're Not Nike (Yet!), and That's Okay
As a startup, it's natural to aspire to be like the big influencers in the industry—brands like Nike or Lululemon. However, it's essential to ground these aspirations in reality. Developing custom fabrics like these giants do, isn't feasible for smaller businesses. Instead, focus on finding suppliers who cater to startups and smaller brands and working with what’s already available is a much more effective (both time and cost) way of getting started. These days, suppliers offer a huge range of sports fabrics with performance features, designed to meet the requirements of a budding activewear brand.
2. The Importance of Specialised Features and Construction
When starting a sportswear brand, understanding the intricacies of fabric and construction is paramount. Activewear demands fabric that is durable, retains its shape, and in many cases needs features and performance attributes like antibacterial properties, moisture-wicking, and breathability. These qualities ensure comfort during workouts and enhance the overall user experience. Moreover, activewear construction requires specialised methods to prevent seam chafing (ouch!) and provide adequate stretch—important factors in making workout gear that not only looks good but feels good too.
3. Daring to Be Different: Finding Your Niche
A lot of people say to me ‘it’s going to be impossible to get my new brand noticed without a huge budget’ and the reality is, that’s simply not true. Yes, the activewear market is densely populated, but niching down is an amazing (and often, underused) way, of standing out.
It’s essential for your brand to carve out a distinct identity and create products for a specific audience. While it's important to be aware of current trends, merely replicating other brands' designs won't do. Be 'trend relevant', yes, but always through your own unique lens.
Zeroing in on a specific sport or workout type can do wonders for your brand. By focusing on a niche, you have the opportunity to become a specialist, catering to a specific group of fitness enthusiasts. This focus makes it easier to develop 'raving fans' who are enthusiastic about your brand and products because they cater so well to their specific needs.
4. Building a Cohesive Range: The Key Increasing Profits
Think of your collection as a harmonious range rather than individual pieces. A well-thought-out range that allows customers to mix and match across your collection can boost your sales significantly. This approach encourages 'add-on sales', my favourite way of increasing profits. This method works because it increases the chances of customers purchasing more than one item, and therefore increases how much the average customer spends.
5. Manufacturing: Choosing the Right Partner
It's vital to partner with a manufacturer that specialises in sportswear. The unique construction methods and equipment needed for activewear manufacturing necessitate expertise in this specific niche, so don’t consider a factory who isn’t specific to this type of product.
In the current activewear market scenario, manufacturers often have their hands full. As a result, factories are choosier, making it even more critical for new brands to approach manufacturers fully prepared. Having your tech packs, quantities, and timeline ready before you make contact shows potential suppliers you mean business.
Embarking on the journey of starting an activewear brand is an exhilarating experience, with tons of opportunities for creativity and growth. To equip yourself with more tools to succeed, consider joining my free masterclass, 'How to Get Your Fashion Ideas Produced'. This masterclass will provide you with an insight into what you need to prepare to get factory ready, plus how you can manage the factory and produce high quality products. Click here to register free for the masterclass and start bringing your fashion ideas to life!
Pickleball outfit inspiration……