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Five Tips for any Successful Crowdfunding Campaign

In a web 2.0 generation, the ‘crowd’ is synonymous with the buzzword, crowdfunding. This collective effort of the crowd or “wisdom of the crowd” has become a mainstay for the creation and success of many early stage companies, startups and digital platforms.

From the many successful crowdfunding campaigns through Kickstarter and Indiegogo it seems like this trend won’t be disappearing anytime soon. While, we may think crowdfunding is an easy and simple effort in actuality it requires extensive thinking and planning. What makes a crowdfunding campaign successful? Many would ask. To explore this question, let’s look at five tips for crowdfunding success.

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Do your research. When planning a crowdfunding campaign, research is a crucial step that shouldn’t be overlooked. Research provides the building blocks to understanding your key demographic, competition, and place in the market. By doing your research, you can stumble upon other successful crowdfunding projects, which could lead to inspiration and ideas for your project. Additionally, you’ll need to research relevant media and keep an ongoing list of people who may be interested in your project.

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Define the specifics: Defining and knowing your brand is important. For instance, spend time planning out your goals, missions, and any descriptions that resonate with your product. Here, you should consider the perks or incentives that will encourage people to get involved and support your campaign.

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Communicate your brand: While, knowing your brand is important you’ll need to communicate it to others. In order for potential backers and media to support you, and the crowd to follow, make sure your pitch is genuine and well articulated. Simply telling people about your product won’t lead to success, you’ll need to create a story for your product. Resist the hard facts and tech specs, and opt for a story that connects with people in a meaningful way. Add in some creativity and weave in videos, images, and anything that will catch people’s interest.briseeley

Leverage your social networks: The words ‘hype’ and ‘buzz’ should resonate with your ambitions for a successful crowdfunding campaign. Get heavily connected to social channels to help spread the word about your crowdfunding efforts. You’ll want your crowdfunding project to be promoted to people in your personal social networks and beyond. By reaching out such as through a tweet, you can connect to like-minded and tech-savvy people to start channeling the interaction about your efforts. In addition, you can generate a lot of buzz by reaching out to bloggers, journalists, and reporters for potential press coverage and media recognition.

crowdfunding

Always recognize your contributors and supporters: Have a ready to go list of core contacts that can help promote your crowdfunding efforts. These contacts will help contribute and make the project successful, and also give you the extra confidence and positivity needed for launching. Even after the initial burst of energy after launching, you’ll need to stay engaged, which requires frequent updates to your contributors and supporters. These contacts can do wonders for your campaign, but you’ll need to find ways of returning the favour to make them feel important and appreciated for their effort.

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Article written by Raylin Grace aka the Red Curl Owl with Luevo. You can follow Raylin at@raylingm

Business Fashion & Beyond with Hannah Yakobi

FAJO is Canada’s leading digital fashion magazine. Started in Canada, the publication is international in Italy, the USA and the UK. Hannah Yakobi, the Editor-In-Chief of FAJO was the main speaker for the Fashion, Business & Beyond event. One of the topics discussed was harnessing the digital space for a brand by explaining the importance of quality photos, shortening links and creating specific hashtags.

FAJO_Hanna Yakobi

Quality photos may sound like an obvious positive brand experience but is often overlooked with small labels. A little effort goes a long way – nobody expects professional imagery for start-ups, but effort is required. Taking quality photos is about promoting the brand, so jeopardizing it with poorly executed photos should be avoided. If a brand is not willing to put effort into displaying pieces, certainly nobody would be interested in investing time or money with the brand. Utilize a historical building, a beach or a park. Ask around for help, photography students or a friend who takes pictures as a past time.

Secondly, shortening links is an easy yet vital part of operating a successful in the digital realm. It’s no surprise that having a digital presence is a necessary part of operating in the twenty-first century. Use it effectively, for Twitter and Facebook, shorten your links. You only have 140 characters on Twitter to sell the brand so there is no room for long links. Give followers something clean and professional to look at. Websites like Bitly or Google URL Shortener are free options to use to shorten links.

Finally, create a memorable and unique hashtag to help followers be able to connect with how others are experiencing the brand. Whether it is campaign specific, or something the brand will use time and time again, a quick search on Twitter will allow you to know how many people – if any – have used the hashtag. It’s an opportunity to own a piece of digital space, if marketed effectively enough it will be instantly recognizable for your brand.

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Fashion is a competitive world and these changes in the digital space for your brand are necessary to stay competitive. Take the time, make a plan and dedicate time to learn to make the above three habit. The only thing more exciting than creating the labels next collection is having an engaged audience to motivate and cheer you on along the way.

 

Guest Blogger: Bhreigh Gillis, Community Manager at Luevo and blogger.

Feature image and Hannah Yakobi photo credits to Fajo magazine.

 

Style Starts Within – Bishme Cromartie, Fashion Designer

Clearly emerging fashion designer Bishme Cromartie of Baltimore, MD was born with the fashion bug; as a little boy he used socks and scraps of fabric to make clothes for his toys. At the age of eight he began putting his creative visions on paper sketching designs for women’s clothing. I would love to see the early designs of a young and uninhibited Bishme with his own imaginings of what the female should look like.

[two_third]February 9, 2007 was a defining moment for the 16 year old Bishme; destiny knocked on his door and he showcased his work at his first solo fashion show. His designs were remarkably chic and very well made for someone of his age. Word spread quickly about this wiz kid designer on the rise. Today Bishme’s architectural-looking creations are modish, vibrant and over dramatic; and have been featured in Elle Vietnam and on Vogue Italia’s website. R&B singer Ashanti wore his design on a “Good Morning America” appearance. Who says dreams don’t come true, in the “Emerging Designer” category? Bishme showed his exhilarating pieces at New York’s Fashion Week 2013!

Bishme’s collections are strong and beautifully sleek sultry works of art. They are eye catching with exaggerated shoulders and hips. His collections absolutely tell a story of strength and are not for the faint of heart. Women who wear his clothing must not be shy or afraid of having all eyes on her.[/two_third][one_third_last] BishmeC_Image1[/one_third_last]

 

[one_half]Bishme is never afraid to go against the wind with his line, so he is inspired by designers that are the same. One of his favorite designers is Giambattista Valii, who is known for being dramatic and paying the upmost attention to detail. When asked what was so special about this designer, Bishme told the team at Greedmont: “[he] is never afraid to go against the norm and it is a very pleasing thing to see such creative work from [him]”. [/one_half]
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You can view Bishme Cromartie’s full collections on his personal website.

Guest Blogger: Elaine Crocker

Sitting Down with Lois Laine – Part2

This is part 2 of a two part interview with Toronto based independent fashion designer Lois Laine. Lois designs eco-friendly clothing with fabrics and labour sourced in Canada. If you haven’t already, check out part one of this interview here.

What do you hope your consumers see when they are attracted to your brand?
I want them to see that it’s unique, but not showy. It’s unique and subtle, just something that they want to grab on to every day.

Lois Laine Fashion Designer

What are some of your fashion goals?
You know I really know that I should have it more defined, but my main goal is to be able to keep doing what I do. I have envisioned a couple of different scenarios: I think generally people have to get bigger to sustain their job in this industry, for me that’s not the most important thing; if I need to get bigger I’m happy to do that. But if I can keep going like this where I have been up till now designing for the upcoming season, and I really enjoy doing that and I can take advantage of doing those limited yardages and I can be more on the season because its coming right up. But if I go into the wholesome market, which is generally how you get bigger then I need to be able to order a 100 meters of something and so I won’t be able to do some of these other nice little treaty things. So my plan is to do two fall/winters this year, so that I can get into the wholesome market and see how that goes. I’ve been in contact with Ana Caracaleanu from Luevo and I am very excited about their idea, the platform would allow me to keep going with the fabrics that I can just grab onto and do small scale or big. That is just very exciting to me. I’m still doing some artisan sales like: the Wearable Arts Show in October from the 24th-26th at 918 Bathurst St. Also, I’ve been invited into the Fresh Collective in the fall (August/September).

 

For more information on Lois Laine collections please go to the designer’s website: loislaine.com
Guest Blogger: Tiffany D’Souza, tiffanydsouza.com

FAT – Fashion Art Week in Toronto

A giant warehouse, an oversized lumberjack style plaid shirt, top-notch street style and great music could only be all at FAT Fashion Week. Well, that is what I have been led to believe since moving to Toronto. You see I’ve never had an opportunity to attend FAT being from the east coast, but so many people love this ‘alternative fashion week’. I was wholeheartedly not disappointed. I had the opportunity to attend the Thursday night events on April 25th and watch six runway shows out of nine.

What FAT really specialized in was bringing the art scene back into fashion. Of course that seems obvious by the name, but if you’ve ever attended other fashion events you would quickly learn that it is not the case. I had to notice that fashion and art here was really at its core. There wasn’t a ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ feeling of pretention and ‘that’s so last season’ that you may expect. Instead, it was a venue for people who love fashion as an art form and use it as an expression as ones self, not as a status symbol. It was everything fashion should be and it was beautiful.
FAT - Arts and Fashion week Toronto

The patrons at FAT for the most part did not wear high-end big brands, but really rocked the more rare pieces from smaller designers. I’m used to opening conversation with somebody during Fashion Week by commenting on a person’s newest big designer item, but at FAT, you would have instead asked where they purchased the item as so many people were wearing indie. Because of so many unique brands and styles being put together, FAT has amazing street style. Even between fashion shows, you were treated to unique pieces, wearable art and many beautiful combinations. When attending a previous fashion event earlier this year, I noticed that while yes, everybody had beautiful style and a chic way to wear items the event was lacking on the street style front. Where was the fashion and beauty that inspired street style blogs and popular photographers like The Sartorialist? Where are those people who love to mix high-end fashion from decades past with local favourites? If you don’t know Scott Schuman of The Sartorialist, you should check it out here. You won’t regret it. It was of course the shows themselves that displayed the most creativity, but the patrons attending were a close second. FAT bar-none had the best street style.

The runway shows were also a great mix of art and fashion. The first three shows of the evening had an edgy rocker and sometimes-gothic theme. Many of the pieces were wearable, but of the first three shows they each sported something that was un-wearable and simply for art. The next set of three shows featured more wearable pieces that focused more on beautiful tailoring. These shows made you anticipate what you would like add to your wardrobe more than shock value. Below is one of the better shots I had taken, evidently with my favourite piece of the night from the emerging independent fashion designer B.E. Shields.

Fashion art Toronto B.E. SHIELDS

For better quality images, have a look at the FAT blog on their official website and you’ll get an idea of the creativity that takes over the runway.

Guest Blogger: Bhreigh Gillis, Intern Community Manager at Luevo, Fashionista and sailor enthusiast.
Twitter @Bhreigh
Personal blog

Fashion Designers Apply Now to Fund Your Next Collection!

We are so excited to have seen a wonderful 2014/2015 season with so many amazing collections being funded on our platform!

Here is a short list of FAQs to prepare you for the application process:

Q1. I am fresh out of school can I still apply?

A1. Yes. Your acceptance depends on a combination of  factors: experience, education, skills, awards received, uniqueness of products. We are looking for talented individuals  that have the potential to grow when using our service.

Q2. I am a somewhat established independent fashion designer, what can I get from your service?

A2. As an established designer  you can use the Luevo platform to test the market desirability of  your new products. Better yet, you gain more followers, pre-sell your collections and further strengthen your brand!

Q3. Can I just post my design drawings?

A3. Unfortunately, no. Our customers want to see exactly the final product they will be buying. You will have to produce a sample and post high-resolution images that show the details of your product.

Q4. Is Luevo manufacturing my products once they are successfully funded?

A4. NO. You as a designer are in charge of your own production.

Q5. Do my products have to be handmade?

A5. NO. This is not a site for handmade products only. You can choose to make your own production or outsource. We encourage using local manufacturers and suppliers.

Q6.What happens with the returns?

A6. You are responsible for accepting returns and refund the customer.

Q7. Do I have to compromise on price because I am pre-selling my products?

A7.  You are responsible for determining the appropriate price for your products, based on your costs and required profit margins. If your minimums are high then it makes business sense to reduce pricing accordingly.

Q8. Does Luevo own the rights over my designs?

A8. NOPE. You own full rights over your designs, products and brand.

Q9. Do I have to be based in North America to post my products on Luevo?

A9. YES. Currently we can only launch US and Canada based designers.

Q10. Do I have to pay to have my products on Luevo?

A10. NO. It is free to post products and request pre-orders. We only make money if you do, after you successfully fund your products.

If you are a fashion designer ready to crowdfund your next collection, please use our online application HERE. And if you’d like to learn more, don’t forget to check out our free tips and sign-up for courses and webinars.

 

3 Tips for the Emerging Fashion Designer

Yet another week of fashion extravaganza stormed through our city, and many emerging fashion designers have had the opportunity to mingle, network or even launch their collections.

I am a big follower of everything that moves in the fashion industry: bloggers, stylists, designers, fashionistas and pretty much anyone that cares and is involved in the local fashion scene. I lived every moment of the fashion week by digesting Twitter feeds , Instagram pictures and Facebook posts.

And here is tip #1: If you are an aspiring or emerging fashion designer – you must stay connected to your local fashion influencers! Twitter is a good place to “stalk” them and stay up-to-date with latest news and events in the fashion industry. Find bloggers, stylists, fashion publications and organizations that will surely overload you with the latest fashion news.

Indeed, during fashion week it can be a little overwhelming with all the media hype around the big established designers and the runway shows. But learn to listen and filter to what is of real value to you
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Tip #2: Attend smaller events where you can get valuable networking done.

Best part of fashion week is the high concentration of fashion influencers, but you will have to find the appropriate event to network with them. One of these opportunities was the speed-networking event organized by Fashion Group international and Fashion Takes Action. This event is typically sold-out, and you can meet with potential clients, HR recruiting firms specializing in fashion, bloggers, boutique owners and mentors. I recommend these types of events to anyone starting up in any kind of industry, and make sure you bring tons of business cards!
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Tip #3: Enroll in industry specific organizations before the fashion week.

You are very lucky to be able to start a fashion business in a city like Toronto. Bigger metropolitan cities typically have fashion hubs that come with non-for-profit organizations, incubators, and an abundance of mentors. Being part of these will give you access to latest news, reduced ticket prices to fashion events and more networking opportunities.
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Here is a short list of organizations that as an aspiring or emerging fashion designer in Toronto you should seriously consider:

Toronto Fashion Incubator – an innovative and highly respected non-profit organization dedicated to supporting and nurturing small business entrepreneurs in the fashion industry.

Fashion Group International – global non-profit organization of executives, designers and entrepreneurs in more than 30 chapters around the world. Toronto is their only Canadian chapter.

Fashion Takes Action – Canada’s premier non-profit organization that focuses on sustainability in the fashion industry.

pre-ordering retail fashion for independent fashion designers

Crowdfunding and Crowdsourcing Fashion

In one of our previous posts we highlighted some of the challenges that aspiring fashion designers encounter when starting up their businesses (you can find the full article here). To sum up, here are the top three problems:
INITIAL FUNDING – FORECASTING DEMAND – GETTING PRE-ORDERS

Let’s be honest, the fashion industry does not take full advantage of the advancements in IT, and the designers have to be very creative to overcome their challenges. Many resort to major online marketplaces to sell their creations. These work for designers offering custom made products – and they can sell one item at a time based on customer’s requirements. On the downside, the designers can’t source materials in large quantities because of the unpredictability in demand and they end up sourcing expensive supplies and pass that cost to the buyer. Furthermore, it is very difficult for the buyer to find a particular designer as these marketplaces become more like a universe of everything for everyone (For example, Etsy reportedly has over 800,000 active shops).

What we’ve recently noticed is that independent fashion designers are now appealing to the public to support their businesses and they do it on crowdfunding websites. Still, the fashion category on Kickstarter has the lowest success rate. We believe this is because the existing crowdfunding platforms don’t make for an elegant e-commerce solution. Consumers can’t really shop the designers’ products, but rather “donate” in return for different types of rewards. Crowdfunding works for fashion retailers that sell single products (such as the super-famous pebble watch); however, they don’t work as well for fashion designers that sell multiple products. crowdfunding fashion

Finally, a lot of new designers try crowdsourcing their designs, which takes care of the second obstacle they encounter – forecasting demand. By using a voting, liking and sharing system you can learn from your potential buyers more than if you were to investigate yourself. You can choose to produce only the most popular products or modify your collection based on consumer’s feedback. Still – desirability doesn’t necessarily translate into orders, as the potential buyers are not required to commit to a purchase.

At Luevo, we are working hard to develop a new kind of crowdfunding solution specifically targeted at aspiring and emerging independent fashion designers. We will use a combination of best practices from existing crowdfunding and crowdsourcing business models to create one solution to a designer’s top three challenges. We understand that as independent fashion designers you have certain production requirements. On our platform you will be able to obtain the pre-orders you need by crowdsourcing your demand.

You can find out more on how our fashion crowdfunding platform works here.

Challenges of an Aspiring Independent Fashion Designer

As an aspiring fashion designer, creating patterns and designs is fun, creative and for some – a relatively easy process. But, consistency of sales and strong demand forecasts is the most difficult aspect of starting up a fashion business. Here are some obstacles that you will have to overcome in order to achieve a sustainable business model.

You will need an initial capital investment to produce your first collections. You will either outsource your production or open your own studio and you will require funding. But, the fashion industry is high-risk, capital intensive and highly seasonal. This is one of the main reasons why banks don’t easily hand out loans or lines of credits to support independent fashion start-ups. You will have to rely on your personal savings and assets or borrow money from friends and family.
Fashion business funding

Then, you need to decide on the production method that works best for you. If you are outsourcing, consider the shipping costs, lead times and the minimum requirements for each order. Unless you have paid in advance pre-orders that can secure a large production batch, it is best if you start with smaller quantities to avoid holding a large inventory. Also, the location of your manufacturing facility is important; closer to home means quality control trips are easier and more affordable.

Fashion design is fun and creative.

Forecasting your demand is a daunting task. Big retail chains and established fashion businesses can easily forecast their demand by using historical data and predictive algorithms. However, when you are just starting up in the industry, you don’t have the historical data you need to build such forecasts, nor do you have a known brand that will guarantee you the traction of sales. So, the biggest question remains: how do you know exactly which products are going to sell and in what variations (sizes, colors)?

woman shopping for fashion

There are several steps you can take at any stage of your business to better understand your demand. First, determine who your customers are and get to know them by asking questions. Go beyond your close friends and family, as you are most likely to get positive reinforcement anyway. Start with your professors, peers and go to local meet-up groups – you will receive criticism and unbiased opinions. Then, generate a conversation on forums and on your Twitter and Facebook pages. Grow a customer following that will provide you with real-time feedback.

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In a way, you are “Crowd-sourcing” your designs, by learning what your ideal customer is most likely to buy. Always network with your peers, search for support from your local fashion incubator and don’t sign away rights over your designs. The fashion industry is not very regulated when it comes to design protection; you want to ensure that when selling on a third party’s website, you retain rights over your designs.

Our mission at Luevo is to change how aspiring independent fashion designers do business. We want to help independent fashion designers streamline their production processes, minimize financial risks and increase the success rate of fashion start-ups. Click here to learn how we plan on achieving this!