Growing Your Business: How To Get to the Next Level with a Major Retailer

Running a business is like running a marathon. You've made it through the starting gun and established your pace, making it through developing a business plan, finding and managing initial startup funding, producing your line, forging relationships with writers, editors, and buyers, built your e-commerce website and your Facebook shop, and you're getting your product into your target customer's hands. (Note: if you're reading this and your business isn't at that level yet, visit the Business of Fashion's excellent series on Basics.)

You're ready to grow your business. But the big question is how.

Expanding your distribution is a natural step, and working with a major retailer (like Macy’s) can be a tremendous part of achieving that goal. But to be successful in taking this major step, there are some key things you'll need to do.

Do Your Homework

Understand the retailer you're targeting. What's their business model? Who's the customer? What are their price points, and what value do they offer their customer? Have an understanding of the range of business models, including pricing structure, staffing requirements, and marketing needs. You've got to be able to describe how your line fits with their business model, and how your products enhance their offering and their relationship with the customer. We see a lot of vendors who lack basic knowledge about the business of retail, which doesn't set them up for success.

Know Your Competition

A major pitfall for emerging vendors is a lack of knowledge about the competition. Who are you competing against? What are their strengths and weaknesses? What is your unique advantage? Where are your competitors in the retailer you're targeting? Make sure you know their distribution, how they're merchandised, and what value your brand brings to the table for the retailer and the customer.

Add Up the Value Equation

To be successful in the retail environment you must be able to articulate the value and pricing equation and have a fully intelligent and realistic conversation about what the customer is willing to pay. Know this will vary from retailer to retailer, be prepared to talk about where your product falls on the value price spectrum and why it makes sense. Carefully target the retailers that are the best fit for your product line and your value equation.

Know the Numbers

To scale up to working with a major retailer, you have to be able to show the demand for your product. A presence in smaller retailers and a solid e-commerce presence in your own right will help demonstrate your financial backing and your growth – both key elements of successfully growing your business through a major retailer partnership.

Sustainable Growth

Filling that first big order from a major retailer can be daunting, and many emerging vendors find they have to make a big stretch in order to fulfill it. It's great to hit that "I've made it!" point and get that order out the door, but it's critical to understand that's not the pinnacle.

The real test is how you handle the second order, and the third, and how you maintain that ability to fill orders over time. Make sure your growth is sustainable and that you not only have an in-depth understanding of what's required to succeed in your targeted area of business, but also shore up the resources you'll need to compete.

Prove Yourself, Every Day

In this industry, you have to prove to the customer every day that you deserve her dollar – consistently, every day, with every touchpoint. Remember who your customer is and who your retail partners are.

Train, Learn, Grow

All these topics and much more are covered in our Workshop, a free 4 ½ day training course for emerging women- and multicultural-owned vendors. You can apply for the 2012 class here on our site between now and Sunday, January 22, 2012.