Will a Kickstarter Campaign Work for your Fashion Brand?
Will a Kickstarter campaign work for your fashion brand?
This is one of the most common questions holding people back from using crowdfunding to launch their brand.
Whether you have one signature product or a full 10-piece collection, today I’m going to show you that it’s absolutely possible to raise money for your brand no matter how many products you have.
With the help of crowdfunding, these four Factory45’ers successfully launched their brands through Kickstarter:
1 PRODUCT
The World’s Most Comfortable Blazer by Trace Fashion
Founder Kristin Salat launched her Kickstarter campaign based on one signature piece, the Kimono Blazer. Similarly to how I launched the Versalette in 2011, this approach lives and breathes one product that’s presented in a variety of colors.
If you look at the rewards column of Kristin’s campaign, you’ll see that she was able to create multiple rewards even though she was only selling one piece.
She raised $32,949 in pre-orders to fund the first production run of Trace Fashion.
2 PRODUCTS
The First Leggings Inspired to Dress Up or Dress Down by Parallel Connection
Mother-daughter co-founders Allie and Carol Levy took it a step further by creating a Kickstarter around two products. They designed two styles of leggings that were only slightly different from each other — a classic legging and a slim pant legging.
By offering two different styles, they were able to appeal to a wider audience of women including those who wouldn’t typically buy leggings. Additionally, Carol and Allie made a conscious decision to offer a larger than normal size range from XXS to XXL, as well as multiple prints.
They raised $19,518 in pre-orders to fund the first production run of Parallel Connection.
6 PRODUCTS
The Ethical Women’s Capsule that Redefines Loungewear by Nine56 Studio
The capsule collection is the most popular approach I’ve seen from the entrepreneurs I work with. Whereas the two campaigns above offered multiple colorways, founder Meg Rohs launched her capsule collection with only two colors — black and white.
Because of fabric minimums, some brands choose to limit the color options so that they can offer more products and styles.
Meg raised $15,510 in pre-orders to fund the first production run of Nine56 Studio.
10 PRODUCTS
Naturally Dyed & Size Inclusive Lingerie by Unity Outfitters
And then there’s the 10+ product approach that is the least popular campaign choice, but definitely still possible. Founder Katina Gad is a trained seamstress so she was able to create all of her samples and patterns without outsourcing and paying the upfront cost.
She pre-sold a range of products, styles and colorways, while also offering a size-inclusive range for all body types. Because naturally-dyed lingerie is more niche, it was important that Katina expand her offering to reach as many women as possible.
She raised $8,626 in pre-orders to fund the first production run of Unity Outfitters.
So there you have it, crowdfunding can work for one signature piece and it can also work for a full collection.
Although I only shared examples of womenswear brands, it’s important to note that there are plenty of men and childrenswear brands that successfully launched on Kickstarter.
If you’re ready to raise money for your fashion brand, enrollment my self-study course The Crowdfunding Factory is now open here.
This is the course that teaches you the complete strategy to create a fully-funded Kickstarter campaign.
If you’re considering joining Factory45 next May but don’t want to wait to get started, this self-study course is a great way to get ahead.
It’s open for one week only.
