There's a case to be made for the small business these days. While big corporations are going through these massive restructuring plans to stay afloat--and small businesses certainly have their vulnerabilities they also have one big commonly overlooked advantage.Flexibility...."I can change in a day," a successful small business owner once told me. He looked around his small office, snapped his fingers as if to drill his point home and said again,"If something stops working out...I can chan... Read Full Story

Driving by this beautiful new Rock and Republic store the other day on L.A's Robertson Blvd.; I had to take my hat off to them for having the courage and the money to make such an investment in their brand within this shaky-bakey economy.I can't say whether it was a smart business decision or not...but if that shiny metallic building could talk it would have said..."Rock and Republic is a strong brand...the economy is bad but we're still hot-like-fire" And if I were to ... Read Full Story

Coordinating your first photoshoot can be a nerve-wrecking and costly experience. Heres a few tricks to help save you some timemoney and mistakes 1. Go With a Pro: While you may be tempted to use your cutest friend as your brand model keep in mind a highly experienced model can drastically improve the flow and timing of your shoot. At the minimum look for a semi-pro that may not be signed with an agency but has clocked some hours in front of a camera. 2. Work with an Agency: If youre a sa... Read Full Story

Interestingly enough few fashion programs have entrepreneurship style courses that teach designers how to handle all the ins and outs of starting their own label. So what are some of the first steps to get started? 1. Make a PlanBusiness planning can make the difference between a thriving company and a company that goes nowhere. You can either take low-cost classes at organizations like FBI or the Small Business Administration or you can go it alone with business planning books from your lo... Read Full Story

In the past many fashion companies seemed to inadvertently associate profitability and growth with off-shore manufacturing. ChinaVietnamThe Philippines, anywhere but here. Unfortunately other than being good patriots, too many brands have found it financially difficult to rationalize being Made in the USA. Interestingly enough in these challenging economic times, there appears to be an emerging sea change in the off-shore is better, mentality. Some design companies are starting to pay clos... Read Full Story

Ever notice that number in the back of the tags on your clothing Well if youre an apparel manufacturer you should know that is called an RN Number. Registered Identification Numbers, commonly known as RN numbers are obtained from the Frederal Trade Comission and required on the tag of any textiles that do not bear a companys actual registered name. If you have your companys registered name on your tags the same as it appears on other business documents like purchase orders and invoices..no w... Read Full Story

If you need a glamorous life and you want to start your own fashion line....unless youre Puffy..J-LO or Jessica Simpson you should probably reconsider. Ok, that may have come off a bit negitive..lets try again.. The truth is if youre starting a fashion line you should be mentally prepared and know that design is only about 10% of the work you have ahead of you The biggest challenge most newbies face involves business planning and management including financial matters, finding resources and s... Read Full Story

Hunting for Fabric? Well, an excellent place to source fabric is right in the Downtown LA Fashion District. Even if you aren't a LA local....LA offers 90 blocks of sourcing "fun," plus 70 degree weather in the middle of winter. Sounds like a nice work-vac combo to me. Tips for Shopping for Fabric in Downtown Los Angeles: 1. Let Your Fingers Do the Walking--Go to www.fashiondistrict.org and search through "textiles and notions," which is located on the left navigati... Read Full Story

Ok lets face it...folks in the fashion industry can be very particular. We create these brands and we care about them...we want to protect them and we don't want to leave our "babies," with just any ol' retailer. That means we have to discriminate, a bit when it comes to picking the stores we sell to. No matter how tempting it may be to imagine how black a new account could make our financial statements-- selling your brand too short...too soon can have a detrimental effec... Read Full Story

Finding a sales rep as a new brand is no easy feat. You have to find a rep that believes in your brand and is willing to nurture it to its full potential. It really takes warm-up time to build brands upand in those times you nor your sales rep will be making any real, money so to speak. In fact you may want to plan on losing some. That saidyou as well as the rep you choose must be willing to be patient and prepared to deal with a bit of uncertainty as you climb the proverbial success ladder ... Read Full Story