Fashion Industry: A Booming Destination for Entrepreneurs with Non-Fashion Background The industry has unorganized small businesses which are gradually becoming organized with more established large fashion retail chains and online marketplaces

The fashion industry in India is booming as there is a strong demand for fashion-forward clothing. Sold online, in mall stores and small boutiques, the fashion industry is growing each day. The industry has unorganized small businesses which are gradually becoming organized with more established large fashion retail chains and online marketplaces.

Fashion industry comprises of several segments such as women wear, menswear, children wear, luxury items, footwear, groom and bridal wear. Incepting, establishing and managing a business come with its own risk as it requires an investment of time and money. However, the Indian fashion industry is one of the largest in the world as it provides clothing for more than 1.2 billion people. The present Indian textile industry is estimated at $33 billion and unstitched garments comprise $8 billion. According to the Textile Association of India, textiles and clothing account for a phenomenal 14 per cent of total industrial production. There is tremendous scope for growth in this fashion industry and business. Witnessing this growth, many of the entrepreneurs who are neither fashion designers nor fashion graduates are entering the market to explore opportunities.

Here are some tips for non-fashion entrepreneurs to become a successful fashionpreneur.

Think like a businessman first

To start a fashion business, it's necessary to think and behave like an entrepreneur. For a beginner, it's better to learn from others who know about the business and benefit from their experience. It is important to build solid relationships with a wide range of people such as manufacturers, investors and buyers.

Know about your clients in the market

When starting a fashion business, it's important to know about the target customers or client. Without that, it's impossible to move forward, always need to remember that the Indian fashion market is enormous, and composed of a wide section of the population from all ages and interests. Knowledge about trending colors, styles, designs, along with studying the demographics and psychological behavior of your customers is essential. This will help in addressing the target audience, designs and advertising.

Right pricing of products

To run a successful fashion designing or clothing business, it is important to set the right prices for products. This needs in-depth knowledge about the purchasing capacity of the customer. The price should be set between the highest prices a customer can pay for the fashion product (on clothing, luxury item or footwear) and overall cost of production (expenditure on raw material and manufacturing of the product).

Build a unique brand identity

It's important to build a brand identity that is different and unique and for that promotion is necessary. Create a website for the brand where customers can search and shop their choice of products or services. Social media is a powerful medium. A majority of the target audience of fashion business are on different social platforms such as Pinterest, Instagram and Facebook. Social media marketing is important to reach out to a large audience and for doing a successful business.

To run a business successfully, make sure that business is financially stable. Never settled at one phase of the business, modifications and enhancements are always required to take fashion business forward in the competitive fashion industry. Create a brand identity, be present on social media and use every effective promotional medium to build your brand.