1 - HAVE A STORY
In 2018 , the street wear industry is an extremely competitive market. With the rise of social media it seems like every Instagram fitness account or Youtube vlogger has a line of merchandise. Due to the competitive industry, you need something that will set you apart from the dozens of other clothing brands that pop up every day. It takes so much more than just a cool graphic on a shirt to create a successful brand. You need to have a story that tells people what your brand is all about and why your brand is important. Whether it's repping the city you love or repping a social change that you are passionate about, you need to give your customers something to get attached to your brand about.
2 - PICK THE RIGHT GARMENT
There are thousands of different options out there for garments that you could use for your clothing brand. Being able to offer a high quality garment that is super comfortable and fits great will really boost your brands quality reputation. Avoid going for the cheapest option, and spend a few extra dollars to get a top quality brand shirt. I highly suggest Next Level or Bella Canvas triblend tees, these are considered fashion fit high quality brands. Material is also important, the most durable and softest garments consist of a blend of cotton and polyester, and sometimes rayon.
3 - CUSTOM TAGS
Many people don't even think about this and don't know it is an option, but you can rebrand a blank shirt and market it as your own. It's as simple as tearing the tag (most brands even make them pre-made to tear away clean and easy with no remnants), and printing your own customized tag inside the neck. There are no legal issues with doing this either, as long as all required information is included in the new neck label print such as material, wash instructions, and country of manufacturing.
4 - FIND YOUR TARGET MARKET
Like I said, the clothing brand market is extremely competitive. It's going to be next to create a clothing brand that appeals to the entire population. It's important to find a niche that you want to market to that will be more likely to buy your products. This doesn't just mean marketing to men or women, you need to be even more specific than that. You want to position yourself in a market that is specific that already exists, and preferably does not have a clothing brand that is already aimed to. Ideally, you want to market to an audience that you can identify with. For example if you find yourself in the gym for 2 hours everyday and tracking all your nutrient intake, you're probably really into fitness. Since you identify as a member of the fitness community you would probably know how to market to people who are also into fitness, and what kind of product they would be more inclined to buy. In addition to knowing your audience, you will also be much more passionate about your brand and more determined to make it as great as possible.
5 - GET SOCIAL
This should go without saying but it's a necessity to utilize social media to promote your brand and keep it relevant. Using social media the right way can create an entire community around your brand which is priceless. Interacting with your followers and customers show that you care about them and that will make them more likely to support your brand and even pass along word about it to others.
6 - SIMPLE, CLEAN DESIGN
You may think that you need to come up with a badass design that will look awesome on a shirt. While it is important to have an appealing, professionally-made graphic, it's not the key part in your product. Take a look at Supreme. It's a word on a shirt. Not even a customized font, you can literally recreate the logo in 5 minutes on Microsoft Word. To sum it up, it's not so much about what your design looks like, but more what it means. It's better to keep it simple and clean rather than a big graphic that is overwhelming to look at.
7- GIVE BACK
You want to show that you care about the community. If you are creating a brand for the money, you will fail. You will find it more rewarding when you attribute your success to a great cause. This can be as simple as donating a portion of your profits to a charity that relates to your brands message.