The sportswear industry is growing immensely, especially during the current situation where more people are health conscious. Not only that, but more and more consumers are looking into wearing stylish, functional, and versatile sportswear to use as casual outfits! That’s why we can see why there are many entrepreneurs investing in their own sportswear brand, such as 412 Athletic Clothes.

However, just like running any other business, expect some challenges and obstacles. There is a lot to think about when getting into the sports clothing business, and this article will tackle what you need to do.

1. Assess the competition

Conduct a thorough market scan, searching the web, visiting physical stores, reading relevant articles, and talking to consumers. Learn more about your target audience and the competition, gaining relevant insight and data. Use your collected data to create a plan and strategy to stand out, finding your target niche.

If you continue following brands the way they are, then you’ll always be the second choice.

2. What’s your product mix?

With so many product styles and designs, think of two things as you determine the product mix:

• The products that competitors have
• Your target audience’s sporting profile

Let’s say your local community is very much into football as evidenced by the media, sporting venues, and your competitors. You should look into having more inventory of football clothing and covering other sports categories.

Besides this, you should define your collection and perform the process of product development and creating your sports garments. This will all depend in your brand identity and what you want to convey to your target market. Once you’ve done this, you can design it yourself or have a designer begin sketches.

Once you have a clear design, it’s time to go sourcing, or finding suppliers, materials, accessories, and factories to create your clothes. This will help you work out your pricing based on production costs.

3. Set up your shop

It isn’t just about having a physical store but thinking about the rent, shipping terms, and even a website where you can sell your sportswear online. Think about your physical store first if you are planning to sell to your local community. It should have attractive and interesting displays and interior design, décor, and dressing rooms.

The same would go for your online shop, with a navigable interface and easy buyer’s journey for people to be inclined to invest in you.

4. Bring in customers!

Once you have everything set into place, it’s time to bring in customers to your sportswear business. Follow shopper-friendly marketing approaches, such as sending out a store newsletter, opening discounts and promos, even contests and customer recognition days! These can all generate sales and build customer relationships to have a group of loyal customers who will purchase from you and spread the word.

Starting a business is no easy feat. But when you have the design and business plan to move forward, you can take advantage of the high demand for sportswear and gain a ton of sales. Good luck!