Website for Up & Coming Fashion Designers... Thoughts?

[xJunho]

Hello,

I'm new to this forum and just wanted some feedback about an online website I'm currently putting together. I'm starting a website for up & coming fashion designers. Basically, it will be a site that allows college students and fashion designers to showcase their work through a profile webpage. In their personal profile, they can post up their art work, pictures of their manufactured products/apparel, etc.

I don't want to give all the details away... but basically, I want to use this site as a bridge to mainstream for new fashion designers.

I also want to make this into a site where fashion designer (w/manufactured products) can sell their items as well. I haven't worked out all the details on the sales aspect of the site, but that's an idea floating around right now.

Thanks in advance for your replies! I'm really inspired by all the stories that I read on YoungEntrepreneur.com. It's great to see so many individuals with a lot of goals =)

Good luck to all of you.

Thanks,
Ray

[nellyshark]

Good idea.

Students are often looking for places to sell.

An idea for sales might be to give the designers a platform to show case their stuff and you charge a % of the sale and they do the shipment. While it might be a big deal for a college student to sell 4-5 items a year, if their items can be showcased with 100's others its not such a big.

Gettin a bit muddled there, I hope u understand what I mean.

[xJunho]

Nellyshark, thanks for your reply.

I was thinking about that too.

[yourhostingspot.com]

I am a fashion designer and am always interested in what other designers are doing, even if it has nothing to do with what I am. I would definitly get involved with a site like this. Good idea.

[xJunho]

yourhostingspot.com -- thanks for your reply. it's nice to get feedback from a fashion designer =)

[akula]

Good idea.

Students are often looking for places to sell.

An idea for sales might be to give the designers a platform to show case their stuff and you charge a % of the sale and they do the shipment. While it might be a big deal for a college student to sell 4-5 items a year, if their items can be showcased with 100's others its not such a big.

Gettin a bit muddled there, I hope u understand what I mean.

there's no need to post when you have no idea what you're talking about

the problem for designers isn't a shortage of distributors, the problem is finance and being able to access this multitude of distributors - which doesn't happen for the lack of finance, credibility and inspired designs

[akula]

I'm new to this forum and just wanted some feedback about an online website I'm currently putting together. I'm starting a website for up & coming fashion designers. Basically, it will be a site that allows college students and fashion designers to showcase their work through a profile webpage. In their personal profile, they can post up their art work, pictures of their manufactured products/apparel, etc.

I don't want to give all the details away... but basically, I want to use this site as a bridge to mainstream for new fashion designers.

I also want to make this into a site where fashion designer (w/manufactured products) can sell their items as well. I haven't worked out all the details on the sales aspect of the site, but that's an idea floating around right now.

Ok Ray, let me give you some feedback.

I'm closely familiar with problems faced by new designers.

The problem you've defined is non existent. If a designer wants to "showcase their work through a profile webpage", they'll just set up a site or a blog, because designers appreciate aesthetics, choice and independence.

The real problem designers have is inspiration (like yourwebhosting mentioned), finance and credibility.

What I encourage you to do is the following:

1. Use Pligg to set up a site like digg.com
2. Contact major fashion labels and sell them a newsletter where you profile upcoming designers.
3. Use these subscriptions to encourage nascent designers to post designs on the website (and use the data from the website to make the newsletter).

This solution will solve the designer's 3 problems. Most voted designs will gain credibility, other designers will gain inspiration from most voted on designs, the most popular designs will get exposure to potential acquirers and distributors.

[akula]

I'm new to this forum and just wanted some feedback about an online website I'm currently putting together. I'm starting a website for up & coming fashion designers. Basically, it will be a site that allows college students and fashion designers to showcase their work through a profile webpage. In their personal profile, they can post up their art work, pictures of their manufactured products/apparel, etc.

Other than what I've already posted, you need to pay attention to the following:

1. You are way off the mark, in terms of elegantly solving an important problem for designers.

2. The problem is credibility. The most difficult thing for a designer is to make their product "cool". "Cool" only happens when enough people buy the product and agree that it's "cool", and that only happens when the prduct is already "cool". It's a catch 22.

3. The solution you need to create is a universal "coolness index". This is a rank/number that's printed on clothing tags to tell the consumer if what they're baying is cool or not.

4. These kinds of ranking systems exist for financial products (i.e. S&P ratings), movies (i.e. IMBD ratings) and almost everything else -from cars to politicians. You need to create such an index for clothing, where I, as a lame consumer can go into a shop, quickly pick out a pair of jeans and not be afraid that they're not cool.

5. With this solutions you will make millions (like S&P Inc.) when all manufacturers/designers will be paying you to put a score on their products.

[xJunho]

Akula, thanks a lot for your reply. What you stated makes sense... I'm glad I got feedback from you. I'm in the process of changing my plan a bit.. I'll provide an update soon.

[akula]

good good.

try to elegantly solve an important problem for your target market.

"elegantly" means you have to be a substitute without substitutes

[Dylan Phelan]

Hi

Try looking up a company called YDE or Young Designers Emporium - they are not web based but offer an interesting solution. They rent floorspace to young designers... It's a South African company that has done really well - maybe you can take something from that?!

[syia]

Is your concept something like what threadless.com is doing? but threadless just get the tshirt designs and if selected as the winner the tshirt will be printed out..and sell by them