8 Ways to Add More Revenue Streams to Your Fashion Business

The world of fashion is constantly evolving. As a fashion business owner or a designer looking to expand your brand, you need to keep up with this constant change to be impactful. One crucial way to remain relevant in an uber-competitive world is by creating various revenue streams for your fashion business.

Multiple revenue streams not only help you to diversify but also provide a measure of financial security which is otherwise not possible. It is all about heeding the age-old adage- Don’t put your eggs in one basket. It is simple but brilliant business advice!

So, without further ado, let’s take a look at 8 effective ways to add more fashion revenue streams. Some of these are ongoing efforts while others are a bit more seasonal.

1. Online Styling Services

An easy yet coveted service that can add to your revenue stream is providing online styling advice. Many people nowadays are turning to the virtual world for getting styling tips and ideas. As a designer, you can help your customers by setting up an online consultation service through your existing website. Bonus points if you can tailor your services to the needs of your clients.

When providing styling advice, knowing and successfully defining your target audience will benefit you greatly in growing your revenue.

2. Trunk Shows and Pop-Up Stores

Trunk shows and pop-up stores have been around for quite some time in the fashion industry. If you are not already doing these, then you should definitely consider them now. Worried about how your pop-up store will perform? You can test the waters and start small by inviting a group of your favorite clientele to an intimate setting for an evening trunk show. This will allow you to set the stage and gauge the reaction for the future.

Once you have a fair idea about the preferences of your customers, you can plan for regular pop-up stores across multiple locations. You can even curate your collections according to various themes to add your unique flair to the shops.

3. Fashion-Related Products

The modern world of business is all about being innovative and fashion is no different. Think outside the box and offer fashion-related products for sale to your customers. Some ideas can be as follows-

• Downloadable PDFs and printables that allow users to plan their weekly outfits. Think of a weekly planner, but for your clothes. This one will be quite popular with people who are busy or who like to plan things in advance.
• A styling guide in a soft copy format.
• If you are comfortable with a camera, then you can also offer a styling class. Your clients will appreciate the knowledge sharing and will be willing to pay for the service.

While these are merely some suggestions, remember that the sky is the limit when planning new products.

4. Wholesale Offerings

Setting up a wholesale selling option is a tried and tested revenue generation stream. It is common for buyers to pay a significant amount upfront to receive their wholesale shipment. You can take advantage of this model and develop capabilities to deliver your products in bulk to buyers.

Wholesale can sound intimidating, especially if you are new to it. However, it can offer certain advantages like-

• You get bulk orders that are independent of your usual retail chain. Hence, wholesale orders can help you tide by any selling slump that you encounter at your storefront.
• You can sell your products in other stores. This creates a customer base where you do not have to worry about marketing investments.

5. Brand Collaborations

Brand collaborations are an effective way to diversify your revenue channels. Like-minded companies will often pay you to feature their products. This will get you extra income along with brand recognition.

If you are just starting, then look for companies and brands that resonate with your style and approach them with a value proposition. You will be surprised at how effective sometimes cold pitching can be. Once you find your niche, you can also organize exclusive events with brands to attract more customers and up your sales.

6. Social Media Presence

Needless to say, a strong social media presence is crucial to business success today. But it is not only for marketing purposes. Social media can also earn money for your fashion brand.

Affiliate marketing is one effective way to benefit from social media marketing. Alternatively, companies will also pay you to feature their products and services on your social media handles. In addition, you can try selling directly from your social media pages.

7. Exclusive Memberships

People love exclusivity. That’s why businesses often offer their customers membership deals with access to special products. You can create such a membership program for a fee for your customer base.

Memberships can also include access to seasonal collections before they are made available to the general clientele. You can also include some one-on-one styling time and special discounts for purchases over a certain value.

A quarterly or yearly subscription-based membership model can create a passive revenue channel for your fashion brand.

8. Online Storefront

Last but not least, if you haven’t started an online storefront for your brand, then you should do so now. It is an excellent way to create a revenue generation channel in this era of virtual connectivity. People love to shop online and you need to take advantage of that trend. An online presence, in addition to your regular brick and mortar store, solidifies your business while bringing in more cash.

The first step towards having an online store would be to create a website if you do not already have one. You can do it yourself or hire a web designer to do it for you. Create a catalog of your products and add suitable payment methods to set up shop.

The Bottom Line

As mentioned in the beginning, part of fashion business success depends on how well you can divide up the proverbial eggs when it comes to revenue generation. These are some of the ways in which you can diversify revenue streams while maintaining cohesiveness in your fashion brand. Having multiple revenue streams reduces business risks, especially during times of market uncertainty.

After all, fashion is about being creative. And, if you can bring this creativity to your business planning, then you will definitely succeed in your endeavor.