How to start selling clothes. What is profitable to sell on the Internet: options for goods and services, how to test a niche and check demand for free, online services for fully launching a business

Fewer and fewer people want to spend most of their lives sitting in an office from morning to evening. Many of them take risks and start selling online. The development of technology and the ability to go online at any time make online business projects attractive, simple and quite profitable. However, this simplicity is deceptive and is fraught with many unpleasant moments.

In order not to be disappointed in this type of activity before starting, it is necessary to clarify several key points:

• selection of the product or service offered;
• presence of a minimum client base;
• choosing a site for sale
• logistics;
• advertising.

Where to start selling online

Any business, including online, begins with the selection of goods or services that will be offered to consumers. At this point, the main thing is not to make a mistake. By choosing the least popular or completely unknown positions, you risk being left without earnings for a long time. A previously unknown product will be treated with caution. In this case, it is very difficult to develop a client base. But at the same time, there is one main advantage: low competition or no competition at all.

If you are promoting goods that are in steady demand, then a large number of competitors may simply not allow such a business to develop. Companies that already have their regular customers will not let them go just like that. And you will have to make a lot of effort to lure buyers to you.

• contextual advertising – corresponds to the content of the site on which it is placed;
• advertising banners – a graphic advertising “sign”, just click on it to get additional information;
• spam mailing – simultaneous sending of offers to many random email addresses;
• advertising in online games and social networks - as a rule, is both in the background and unobtrusively reminds of the advertised product.

Without meaning to, a person will pay attention to online advertising. The more creative the advertisement, the greater the likelihood of getting a client. Therefore, saving in this case is not worth it.

Issues of delivery and storage of goods should also be considered before sales start. In case of small volumes, it is possible to do it yourself. But if there are a large number of orders, you need to find and rent a room in which the goods will be stored. At the same time, remember that in terms of humidity and temperature parameters it must fully comply with the norm in order to prevent damage to the goods.

Delivery is also one of the important points. The faster it is, the better. Buyers don't like to wait very long, so fast delivery should be one of the benefits of a new business. If you can't handle it yourself, it's better to hire help.

Before you start selling online, you need to find out all the tax nuances. A competent accountant or economist will prevent all the troubles that may arise during the work process. You should not lose sight of such an important thing as taxes, since otherwise you may be left without a business altogether.

Platforms for selling goods on the Internet

Once you have decided what you will sell, you need to decide the next question: where? There are many platforms for selling goods on the Internet:

• bulletin boards;
• websites;
• price aggregators;
• lead generators;
• coupon sites.

At the very beginning of your online trading journey, as well as with a limited budget, it is advisable to offer a product or service on message boards. They are paid and free. That is why they are suitable for people with absolutely any starting capital. When working with such sites, it is very important to constantly update ads and raise them. All this doesn't cost a lot of money. A competent text is half the success. Come up with an unusual ad, focus on the advantages of the product, and the buyer will not keep you waiting. Of course, it is much easier to find your client on large message boards with millions of users, but you should not neglect small sites.

The most popular is your own website. If you really want to, you can create it yourself. There are many constructors on which you can build your own Internet resource for a nominal fee. A few hours of labor and the sales platform is ready. But this option is only suitable if you offer only one type of product or service. In case of a large assortment, more professional work will be required. Various web studios, freelancers, etc. will come to your aid. All you need to do is draw up a competent technical specification and wait a certain amount of time. The latter option is naturally not suitable for a quick start to sales, but in the long term it is quite justified.

Price aggregators are websites that combine information on the same topic. If the topic matches your offer, pay some money and place your offer. Several thousand people view such sites during the day, so there will certainly be potential buyers there.

Implementing a business remotely allows you to turn entrepreneurial ideas into reality online. Creating online stores, competent design of pages and profiles on social networks are mandatory and indispensable tools for a businessman who decides to promote his business via the Internet. This solution saves time and money for potential customers who are given the opportunity to make purchases without leaving home.

Online cooperation is usually characterized by favorable conditions, expressed in pricing policy and prompt delivery of purchases. Such advantages usually attract customers and encourage them to switch from real stores to virtual ones. Since such a business quickly pays for itself and is profitable, many beginning and existing entrepreneurs have the question of how to start selling clothes online, where to look for suppliers?

Types of doing business

To run a business, it is not necessary to make wholesale purchases; it is possible to work through a dropshipping system or be an organizer of joint purchases.

Sales through worldwide networks can be organized in several ways, based on the use of the capabilities of the following platforms:

• social networks;
• specialized portals;
• online stores.

Placing an offer on resources is not enough. To ensure prompt sales, it is necessary to launch advertising, hold promotions, competitions and constantly analyze the effectiveness of advertising tools.

Selling clothes online, where to start, how to find a supplier

Online trading business is available to any citizen who has free time, access to computer equipment, the Internet and a desire to earn money.

Any activity aimed at making a profit must be officially registered. For beginning businessmen whose sales volumes are not large, opening an individual business is enough.

Before registration, you should determine the scope of activity and draw up a business plan. When planning clothing trade, you need to identify a specific product group, which can be classified as women's, men's or children's clothing. An important criterion for choosing a product is its cost category. It is recommended to choose a specific niche, study it thoroughly and attract regular customers.

Today, clothes can be ordered not only in Russia and the CIS countries, but also abroad. Chinese manufacturers are profitable suppliers. On their sites you can order inexpensive, but high-quality and exclusive products, which are not possible to find in any Russian retail store.

Read also: Business plan for a household goods store

The advantage of cooperation with Chinese suppliers is the opportunity to choose a reliable partner, whose rating indicates the quality of the products offered and his integrity as a seller. Trading platforms also protect the rights of both parties by using a specific payment system that ensures that funds are credited to the seller's account only after confirmation that the buyer has received the product.

Do you need start-up capital?

When planning activities in the field of trade, the main problems of novice entrepreneurs are financial issues. According to statistics, to open and promote your own online clothing selling company you will need about 350,000 rubles. The main expense items are formed by:

• payment of the state duty paid upon registration of a business entity;
• creation and design of a web resource;
• renting premises for storing goods;
• conducting an advertising campaign;
• purchases of goods;
• wages of employees (if any).

How to minimize costs

To minimize costs, the search for clients can be organized on social networks by posting advertising posts. It is not necessary to buy or rent warehouse or office space.

By acting as intermediaries, you can earn decent money without even seeing the product being sold.

Buyers will order products placed on the intermediary's storefront, but located in the seller's warehouses. After the buyer submits an application to the intermediary and receives an advance payment, he transfers the received funds as an advance payment to the seller, who sends the goods to the buyer's address specified by the intermediary. The intermediary's earnings consist of the difference between the price he offers in his virtual store and the real cost of the product from the seller. Markups are usually carried out by increasing the principal value by a certain percentage.

Selling branded clothing via the Internet is profitable through the dropshipping system, since purchasing it for resale is economically unprofitable and risky, because this category of items is characterized by a high cost. An excellent solution in this situation would be to promote someone else’s product on your own web resources.

Selection of assortment

When choosing an assortment, you need to take into account the demand and relevance of items in the regions to which delivery is expected. You should study the offers of competitors and occupy a potentially in-demand, but not fully covered, niche. It is recommended to analyze retail web resources and get acquainted with the opinions of their customers on specialized forums. You should also find out statistical information about the average income of the population.

An inflated price can make the purchase irrelevant, while a too low price will certainly raise doubts about the quality of the product. To obtain successful trading results, it is recommended to focus buyers’ attention on those goods for which competition will be minimal.

Distance business has long ceased to be an unusual phenomenon. Proof of this is the numerous online stores, where anyone can make a purchase without leaving their home. Saving time and money are definitely benefits of online shopping. From this article you will learn how to independently organize a business selling clothes online, find potential buyers and successfully develop your business.

How to start selling clothes online?

Anyone can start their own online. Often this does not even require large investments. It is enough to have free time, constant access to the Internet and a desire to earn money.

For example, many housewives on maternity leave are attracted to selling children's clothing online. Potential buyers are fellow mothers who are looking for unusual and inexpensive things for their children. Having organized their business online, women are in no hurry to return to their usual routine work and continue to develop their profitable business even after maternity leave.

In order to start your online business, it is absolutely not necessary to make wholesale purchases and be afraid that the product will not be in demand. Selling clothes online allows you to act as an organizer of joint purchases. In other words, people will order the product they are interested in from you, make an advance payment, and you will buy it from the supplier and earn your percentage for the work done. Today, many individual entrepreneurs work according to this scheme, for whom it is much more comfortable to work at home on a computer than to trade on the market.

Deciding on the assortment

Let's say you decide to start selling clothes online. First of all, you need to decide on the assortment. The main criterion for successful online sales is the demand and relevance of things in the region where you live. Perhaps there are no beautiful evening and cocktail dresses in your city, or it is completely impossible to find high-quality children's shoes. It is important to conduct a comparative analysis of existing retail clothing stores, read forums and find out the opinions of your friends about what they would be most willing to buy from you.

An important factor is the average per capita income in the region where you are going to organize your online trading. Inflated prices can turn off potential buyers, and clothes that are too cheap can raise doubts about their quality. Try to focus on those products for which you will have as little competition as possible.

How to find a clothing supplier?

The wide variety of clothing suppliers can be confusing for a new online retailer. Today you can order clothes both in the CIS countries and far beyond the borders of the Commonwealth. The most profitable suppliers are, of course, Chinese clothing manufacturers. The leaders among resources offering online sales are AliExpress and TaoBao. However, if the latter site is aimed at native Chinese speakers, then users from all over the world can make purchases on AliExpress.

The advantage of Chinese suppliers is high-quality, inexpensive clothing. Through the Internet you can order quite exclusive things from China that cannot be found in any retail store in Russia.

The main rule for wholesale purchases on such a site is the rating of the selected seller. Make a transaction only after making sure of his integrity and the quality of the goods. You can check this by looking at reviews from customers who have already placed orders with this supplier.

The AliExpress resource protects the rights of both parties, as evidenced by a well-thought-out payment system. After selecting the desired product, the customer pays the full amount of its cost, after which the seller sends the product by mail. The money deposited into the system will be transferred to the seller’s account only after the customer receives his product and confirms its quality and safety during shipment. Otherwise, the buyer has the right to ask for a discount or a full refund. The system guarantees that any parcel will arrive safely, including clothes purchased through the store. The Internet in this case greatly simplifies the transaction process.

How to find potential buyers?

Once you have decided on a clothing supplier, you need to start searching for potential buyers who will be interested and profitable in your product. You can try to open your own online store, but this will require financial investments (creating a website, design development, promotion in search engines, finding a hired administrator, etc.) Therefore, the most rational way for a beginner to find buyers is a group or community on social networks.

You can create such a group absolutely free by advertising your services and posting an assortment of custom-made clothes. At first, friends and acquaintances can act as potential buyers. Gradually, people will start to learn about your online clothing selling community and will tell their friends about it. The principle of so-called “word of mouth marketing” works flawlessly to this day.

However, if financial resources allow, then you can entrust the promotion of the community to professionals who will invite potential buyers based on the principle of targeting. In other words, there will be people in your group who will actually start placing orders. Remember that buying clothes online should be as comfortable as possible for your potential buyers.

Payment methods for orders

To make transactions easier, you need to offer customers various payment methods for orders:

• Transfer to a bank card or money transfer to a bank account.
• Payment with electronic currency (WebMoney, Qiwi, YandexMoney).
• Postal order or cash on delivery.
• Payment in cash upon receipt of goods.

In addition, in order to insure yourself against the buyer’s refusal to order, you can introduce a prepayment system, which can range from 30 to 50% of the total cost of the goods. This item may even include making payment transactions much easier and more convenient, which significantly saves customers time and money.

Delivery of the order to the buyer

Proper organization of order delivery to the buyer will not only have a good impact on the reputation of the online store, but will also significantly reduce the time it takes to complete the transaction. You can arrange delivery in the following ways:

• Deliver the order to the buyer's home yourself.
• Deliver the goods at a pre-agreed location on neutral territory.
• Ask buyers to pick up goods directly from the seller's home.
• Hire a courier who, for a nominal fee, will deliver the goods to the right place and time.
• Send goods by mail with cash on delivery.

The advantage of online shopping is that you can buy this or that item without leaving your home. That is why it is better to give preference to delivery to the buyer’s home. It will be convenient if delivery is positioned as free, and you include its actual cost in the total cost of the purchase.

Agreement between seller and buyer

A well-drafted service agreement can protect the seller and buyer from possible misunderstandings during the transaction process. Moreover, it does not matter whether it is a legal document or a formal agreement in words. The main thing is that both parties fulfill their obligations.

For example, a mandatory clause of such an agreement may be an advance payment of 50% of the purchase price or a refund if the product turns out to be defective or does not fit in size. The buyer must be sure that he will not lose his money and will receive a quality order that will meet his expectations.

Taxes - to pay or not to pay?

Any business activity on the territory of the Russian Federation must be legally formalized and registered with the tax authority. Contributions to the state treasury will not only save you from possible problems, but will also help you create a confident future. After all, by registering as an individual entrepreneur, you will make monthly social and pension payments, from which your pension will be formed in the future.

However, if you are not yet confident in the success of your online business, you can try making a few trial orders for friends or relatives. If you see that selling clothes online is bringing positive results, then it makes sense to continue to develop your business by registering it legally. In the last few years, it has become possible to register online businesses in accordance with the tax code of the Russian Federation.

What else can you sell online?

Selling clothes online is not the only way to organize online trading. You can sell anything. The main thing is that the product is in demand and relevant among the residents of your city or region. Thus, unusual women's jewelry and accessories, various devices for the kitchen and home, car accessories and replica watches of famous brands are very popular. People will always be looking for unusual things that can be easily purchased without traveling abroad.

Online business is responsible and hard work. Selling clothes online or any accessories requires a certain amount of time in the early stages. However, with a properly planned business project, the result in the form of a stable income will not be long in coming.

Starting to sell clothes online is not very difficult, but the success of the business depends on preliminary preparation, taking into account investment risks, and a strategy for attracting customers. Just creating an online store and purchasing goods is not enough. It is necessary to develop a marketing strategy in advance, implement an advertising campaign and begin creating a client base.

Specifics of operating an online clothing store

Selling clothes via the Internet, including through social networks (VKontakte, Odnoklassniki), is profitable. A trading website can be created almost free of charge using a free engine (for example, Joomla, OpenCart, WordPress, osCommerce, Magento) or a social media application. To make a good profit, it is important to find a good supplier. This can be done through search engines, paying attention to offers from factories, wholesale clothing suppliers, official distributors, analyzing advertisements on the Internet, on thematic forums, in social networks, studying electronic catalogs and databases (optlist.ru, suppliers.rf, etc.).

You can open an online store and sell clothes, including children’s, in several formats, which is one of the advantages of such a trade organization:

• creating your own warehouse (allows you to quickly ship goods, but there is a need for large purchases and finding storage space, there is a possibility of a large amount of illiquid goods);
• clothes are sold after the goods arrive from the warehouse of the wholesale supplier (this will reduce the cost of purchasing and storing goods, create a wide range, but the delivery time of the goods to the client will increase, and problems with returns may arise in case of defects);
• dropshipping (the owner of an online clothing store plays the role of an intermediary between the supplier and the client, that is, he transfers the order and money to the wholesaler, and he then sends the goods to the specified address);
• affiliate program (clothes are sold through the partner’s website, when the client clicks Buy, he automatically goes to another resource from which the sale is carried out, the partner pays the assistant a certain percentage for this).

Increasing sales is a pressing issue for any entrepreneur, especially if trading is carried out via the Internet. To monitor the quality and volume of goods sold, it is always worth considering some factors: the number of visitors to the online store over a certain period of time, customers who made a purchase, the average check, the effectiveness of marketing regarding repeat purchases, the percentage of margin. By regularly monitoring these indicators and changes in them, an entrepreneur will be able to make the right decisions and sell things quickly and profitably.

When selling clothes via the Internet (including using the social network Vkontakte), it is important to take into account some of the nuances of online trading:

1. The client must always be warned that the color and appearance of the product may differ from that shown in the picture (if the item is not sent from a personal warehouse).
2. Warn about possible delays or indicate a delivery time with a reserve.

Before launching an online clothing store, you need to formalize your activity and choose its organizational and legal form - individual entrepreneur or LLC. The second format makes sense to use only if several people create a common business. In other cases, it is easier to register as an individual entrepreneur (individual). As for the choice of taxation system, the simplified tax system with a rate of 6% is considered the best option, which can significantly reduce the tax burden on the entrepreneur.

Selling clothes through social networks

Creating a trading website that is correct in terms of interface and SEO functionality will not ensure a successful start to trading. It is very important to conduct a high-quality advertising campaign and develop an effective marketing strategy to tell potential customers about yourself and interest them in purchasing. Selling clothes in an online store based on social networks (VKontakte, etc.) will be quick and easy. It is very easy to create on a free platform (product photos are uploaded quickly), and large product catalogs can be created in a short time. In addition, the organizer immediately gets access to a free tool for attracting customers (friend requests, sending personal messages with an offer to make a purchase) and can advertise their services for free (posts in thematic groups, on the pages of acquaintances, creating and promoting their own trade group).

Depending on the chosen format of the online clothing store on the social network (Vkontakte, Odnoklassniki, etc.), the seller must negotiate with the client all the details regarding the purchase and delivery of the goods. If an entrepreneur sells clothes on the dropshipping principle, then the buyer must be warned that the photo and description of the product are provided by the supplier and may differ in some parameters (shade, sometimes design) from those indicated. After all, only the client will be the first to see the thing in reality. It is also important to ensure the quality of logistics - packaging the goods well and meeting the promised delivery times. To start a successful online clothing trade, you can use the following approaches to organizing a business:

1. Specify order details and notify about shipment by phone.
2. Indicate additional communication channels in the Contacts section: email, ICQ.
3. Create your own database of clients, accounts, goods (this can be done using Excel, MyWarehouse, Client Base, etc.).
4. Offer several ways to pay for goods (transfer to a bank card, e-wallet, cash on delivery).
5. Organize several methods of delivery of goods (state mail, private, courier services).

Many aspiring entrepreneurs are concerned about the question of which store is best to open in a small town. It all depends on the interests of the target audience, the level of competition and purchasing power. But to start successful trading in an online store, including through Vkontakte, the number of people in the city does not matter, because work is carried out, as a rule, in several regions.

How to sell clothes online on VKontakte?

How to open an online store on VKontakte? The algorithm of actions is simple. A trading platform on this social network is often created in parallel with a full-fledged trading platform based on a free engine. But successful sales will begin only if you pay enough attention to SEO promotion and filling the online platform with quality content and increasing the number of subscribers. If an entrepreneur is not confident in his abilities, it is better to hire a freelance administrator for these purposes.

The first step is to create an online store, fill it, and implement advertising campaigns. Then you need to start attracting new customers, getting them interested in purchasing, especially repeat ones. The main factors that influence this process are assortment and cost. If you fill the catalog well and offer the buyer a favorable price, he will prefer to choose this particular offer. Using hashtags (for example, #obnova, #sale), which simplify the search for the right product, will help attract the target audience.

When selling clothes through VKontakte, you need to create a base of regular customers from the very beginning, do everything to ensure that they are satisfied and make a repeat purchase. It is very important to help with choosing the right size and style of clothing. In order to demonstrate clothes with the highest quality, you can post thematic videos on the site, use programs for virtual selection of clothes, provide a user-friendly interface and quick navigation through pages, and create an online consultation.

Advice: To get additional income in your free time, you should take advantage of the offers of sites where you can earn money by completing tasks (for example, SEOSPRINT, PROFITCENTER, Vktarget, Free-lance, etc.).

Selling children's clothing online

Trade in children's clothing is a business niche that will always be highly profitable. Starting effective online sales is not very difficult, the main thing is to approach the stages of creating your business responsibly. You can successfully sell children's clothing online in several formats:

• trading on social networks (dropshipping, creating your own warehouse);
• opening your own online store (promoting a website will require a lot of time and investment);
• work in an “affiliate” format.

Some entrepreneurs start their online work by selling used children's clothing. The operating principle of a consignment store is that the intermediary sells the item to the buyer for a certain markup. The owner of the product initially determines its minimum cost (usually 30-40% of the new price) and signs an agreement, which stipulates the terms of sale, return, and the percentage of the seller.

Advice: in order to successfully start selling clothes through an online store or retail outlet, it is advisable to create a business card website. This will help attract new customers and increase sales turnover.

1. It is advisable to create a range of affordable prices (the average price for one thing is 180-900 rubles, only 10% of buyers buy things more expensive).
2. It is necessary to create a wide range of products.
3. It is worth selling only high-quality goods and keeping delivery times to a minimum.
4. When specifying measurements of items, always take into account the possibility of an error of 1-2 cm.
5. It is better to group clothes by season.
6. To attract the attention of buyers, it is advisable to publish useful tips on the main page of the social network or create a separate section of the site for this.
7. It is advisable to regularly hold promotions, sweepstakes, and competitions with prizes.

As an option, you can expand your assortment with original products by making original designs using a printer for printing on clothes.

Save the article in 2 clicks:

The normal profitability rate for a children's clothing store is 10-15%. The success of trade, including through the VKontakte network, largely depends on the preparation of the entrepreneur, the choice of a good supplier and pricing policy. The same rules are also relevant when it comes to organizing sales of items for adults. To start successfully selling clothes online, it is not enough to simply create and fill an online store with content. It is necessary to first think over and implement a plan for its promotion, ways to increase sales, and attract new customers.