
Turn $100 into a $1,000,000 Dollar Boutique
Is it really possible to turn a small investment into a thriving million dollar boutique? Of course it is! For starters I did it myself and in fact the majority of small boutique businesses start with virtually nothing. Let's explore how you can do the same. The Principle of Turnover Before we get into specific boutique clothing details I would just like to point out the notion behind taking a small investment and turning it into much much more. The principle is called capital turnover, this is how it looks: Spend $100 on inventory, sell for a profit of $100, total = $200 Reinvest $200 on inventory, sell for a profit of $200, total = $400 Reinvest $400 on inventory, sell for a profit of $400, total = $800 Reinvest $800 on inventory, sell for a profit of $800, total = $1600 Ok, you get the point, like a snowball, each time you reinvest your capital into inventory and successfully sell that product, you double your investment. Once you find a working business equation you repeat the process for as long as you can. Now let's dive into three things you can do as an entrepreneur to get rolling. 1. Pouncing on Emerging Trends The clothing boutique industry is a tough market and something that can make it easier to emerge in is pouncing on a new trend. Take for example the rise of TikTok. Had you been on TikTok from the beginning, building a following with creative content and unrelenting passion you could have built a worthy audience perfect for selling too. Once you begin to infuse capital and appealing merchandise to potential customers naturally sales would begin to generate and suddenly the ball gets rolling. In fact what you do next is really the easy part! Building a Shopify store, exploring and buying more merchandise, negotiating better rates, etc. The most difficult thing in business is creating an audience and had you been on TikTok from the beginning with a committed and strategic plan you would be rolling right now. Tiktok is just one emerging trend in recent years, here are several others to illuminate the point: Drop Shipping Facebook/Insta Live Sales Flash Sales Capitalizing on emerging trends is listed #1 for a reason, every prominent boutique that exists today became huge off of this technique. This technique also requires discipline because if a strong trend and potentially a solid economy is not on your side then you need to be patient and wait possibly another season or year until such emerges. 2. Focusing on a Niche Focusing on a niche is a tactic both small and large capital boutiques utilize. However if you really have $100 to spend then you need to be significantly more niche than others. Being narrow on your offerings allows you to be an expert on what you are offering. For example if camo prints break out as a Fall trend next season than you can buy several styles in this trend and be able to attract customers who are looking to sport this print with several options. As you attain more capital you can explore new trends and prints. Fashion trends aren't the only thing you can focus on, you can attempt to showcase solely dresses, plus size or other criteria. 3. Controlling Your Expenses There is virtually only one element that you can beat a larger business on and that is controlling your expenses. Every business owner has been there before, creating a business on a shoe string budget and trying not to spend money on anything you don't have to. Here are some of elements you can save on: Warehousing (Just use your house/garage.) Employees (Do it all yourself and employee helpful family members.) Marketing (Go after friends and family, those get everyone started off.) The three crucial element will help you take that $100 dollars and get rolling but there are also countless other tips and resources you will need to perfect your business. Here are a few: Find Wholesale Clothing Distributors Creating an Online Boutique Attending Fashion Expos and Events Dropshipping 101 How to go viral Find Affordable Products Another question I get asked is what to choose when registering and filing taxes. My suggestion would be to file self-employed and when your ready become an S-Corp. This will allow you to pass-through many home expenses that you use for your business to write off. In the beginning years you will need to keep your profits by continually reinvesting in your business and utilizing any expenses you can incur to keep as much capital as possible. In final, it goes without saying that you need to get used to long days and tough hours. The first two years of a boutique business are make or break and only the fittest survive.