Opening a Lingerie Store

Business Overview:

Opening a lingerie store is a fun and exciting way to be your own boss while helping to boost the self-confidence of women. The lingerie industry is worth over $29 billion (USD) annually. Even with plenty of competition, if you position yourself correctly, you could earn a piece of that pie. As you learn about how to open a lingerie store, you’ll need to decide who your target market will be. Lingerie runs the gamut from conservative to risqué so the type of items you carry will have a great impact on who your customer base is. Women will buy on average two bras and five pairs of briefs a year for everyday wear. So focusing on just the “basics” will bring in a steady stream of ladies looking to buy replacement items or something new that they saw on TV. In addition to carrying standard items, you might also carry specialty items like maternity bras, larger sizes that are usually hard to find and mastectomy bras. If you’re interested in racier fashion, you can carry lacy items and nighties that are not designed for everyday wear. In either case, you have the option of purchasing a franchise to help get your business started. A franchise will come with some inventory, marketing assistance and name recognition. If you are not interested in opening and closing a physical store each day, you can easily run your store online. If you choose to go this route, you will need a robust website and a storage facility for your inventory. Considering the demand for high quality lingerie and the popularity of shopping via the Internet, opening a virtual lingerie store is one of the smartest business ideas available today. Typically, online shoppers know what sizes to order but you should include a size chart and customer service contact information on your site. If you operate a physical store, especially if you stock everyday-wear items, you should be familiar with how to measure women to see what size bra they should buy. Or you can hire a bra fitter to work in your store which would free up your time so you can concentrate on overall customer service and marketing your business. Spread the word about your lingerie boutique to area wedding shops, fashion stores and maternity shops. Online stores can advertise on websites that also target your customer base. Keep in mind, you don’t have to choose between a physical store or an online store; you can have both. This would take more work, and more staff, to maintain both the shop and the website in order to keep customer service standards high, but it will greatly increase your market share.

A Day in the Life of a Lingerie Store Owner:

If you operate a physical store, you will make sure your lingerie items are neatly displayed before opening for business. You will spend your day helping customers find the right items. At the end of the day you will record your receipts, make your bank deposit, and tidy up for the next day. If your business is online, your hours are not so rigid but you will need to check emails from customers and ensure all orders are shipped out in a timely manner.

About Your Customers:

Your customers will be women (or men shopping for women) looking for lingerie items for themselves or as gifts.

What You Need to Start:

• Lingerie store business plan
• Storefront or website (or both)
• Lingerie to sell
• Storage facility if selling online
• Computer with finance software

The Good:

• Lingerie is a must-have for almost all women so demand will always be there.
• You can sell high quality items for top dollar.
• It’s rewarding to help customers find just what they are looking for.
• A lingerie store is a fun and exciting work environment.
• As an industry insider, you will be the first to see new trends and fashions.

The Bad:

• It can take some time to build up your client base.
• You have to be mindful about how much of each size to keep in stock so you’re not left with a large amount of unsold items.

Resources:

• Intimate Apparel Council
• American Apparel and Footware Association
• Bureau of Labor Statistics on Clothing, Accessory and General Merchandise Stores
• Wikipedia on Lingerie

About The Author

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