How to Build an Effective Retail Strategy for Your Clothing Store

Before you open a clothing boutique, you need to create a plan that covers everything from the location of your store to the products you’re going to sell, the prices you’ll sell them at and the techniques you’ll use to market them. This plan is called a retail strategy. 

A strong retail strategy can help you stand out from the competition, get new customers, make more sales and increase your profits. In other words, it directly influences the success of your fashion store.

But what exactly is a retail strategy? And how can you build one to make sure your clothing store remains successful in the long run? 

As part of our series on HOW TO START A CLOTHING BOUTIQUE, this article will show you how to build a solid retail strategy for your clothing store in 5 steps. 

Whola is a wholesale marketplace that makes it easy for online fashion store owners to buy hot-selling inventory with just a few clicks. SIGN UP NOW and start buying the newest styles from our 100+ unique Australian brands!

WHAT IS A RETAIL STRATEGY? 

In simple terms, a retail strategy is a holistic plan that allows you to optimise the way you market and sell products to consumers. 

A retail strategy has several pillars that represent key areas of your business, such as PRODUCT SOURCING, marketing, and pricing. 

The easiest way to understand what a retail strategy should cover is by looking at the four Ps of marketing: Product, Price, Promotion and Place. 

These elements make up what’s called the marketing mix. When used together, they will help you effectively market your product to your target audience and achieve your business goals.

Next, let’s explore each of the 4 Ps in detail.

THE FOUR PS OF MARKETING 

• Product: Your product is what you sell. For fashion store owners, it means stocking and selling clothing items that appeal to your target customers and set you apart from your competitors. Furthermore, it includes finding the best way to source products for your fashion store, for example, buying from WHOLESALERS. 
• Price: Price is how much you charge for your products. Building a pricing strategy for your fashion store isn’t an easy task; it can make or break your business. Your prices determine the amount of profit you earn, influence how your customers perceive your brand and can even give you a competitive edge.  
• Promotion: Promotion refers to the tactics you use to push your products. This includes everything from the in-store shopping experience to customer service, branding and online marketing. 
• Place: Place is the location of your store. For brick-and-mortar businesses, finding a strategic location is crucial, since your physical store acts as your number one marketing asset. However, it’s also important to consider building an online store, especially now that more and more people are shopping online.  

Each of these elements is linked to a major factor: your target market.

Every decision you make as part of your retail strategy should take into consideration your target market. For example, when deciding on what products to sell, ask yourself: What types of clothing is your customer interested in? When building a pricing strategy, think about: How much is your customer willing to pay for a certain product? When coming up with promotional tactics, figure out: What kind of messages does your audience respond to? And so on.

To have a clear idea of your target market, you need to do market research. Then, you should compile your findings in your retail business plan, create a CUSTOMER AVATAR and define a NICHE FOR YOUR CLOTHING STORE.  

Now that you know what a clothing store retail strategy entails, let’s look at 5 ways to attract new customers and boost sales.

5 RETAIL STRATEGIES TO MAKE YOUR CLOTHING BOUTIQUE STAND OUT

1. IMPROVE THE ATMOSPHERE OF YOUR STORE

The in-store shopping experience is one of the building blocks of a carefully planned retail strategy. 

The way shoppers feel when they enter your store is determined by the interplay of many different factors. Improving just one or two of them could make a significant difference to the shopping experience.

For example, you could design the aesthetics of your clothing store to match your customers’ style. You may not even need to do a full renovation: in many cases, changing some fixtures, getting new furniture and updating the décor is enough. 

If you want to take things even further, you can turn your store into a holistic retail destination that offers multiple products and services such as flowers, coffee, handmade art pieces, and more. Stores that double as cafés and galleries are very on-trend right now and have no trouble drawing in customers.

2. TAKE ADVANTAGE OF IN-STORE BRANDING OPPORTUNITIES

It’s easy to underestimate the power of in-store branding when it comes to promoting your fashion boutique and building a loyal customer base.

For brick-and-mortar stores, there are few more effective ways of capturing a customer’s attention than frequently updating your window displays. 

Channel your creativity and create unique storytelling through your styling that will appeal to your target audience. Window displays are also a great way to sell older stock by restyling it with newer pieces. If you need some inspiration, check out ANTHROPOLOGIE DISPLAYS on Pinterest: they create spectacular window displays out of upcycled materials.  

In addition, you should also make use of the curb space you have available in front of your store. Put out eye-catching signs that appeal to your ideal customers. You can promote seasonal discounts, highlight new arrivals or offer a free coffee to customers who walk in from the street.

3. BUILD A SOCIAL MEDIA PRESENCE

Social media is a powerful marketing tool that can skyrocket your fashion business. Focus on finding the best organic and paid tactics that will help you grow your customer base online. Here are a few points to consider:

• Identify the best channel for your business. Some social media channels are more suited to different target customers. If your niche is directed at yummy mummies, Instagram may be your best bet. If you’re targeting teens, you’re probably better off experimenting with TikTok. And, if mature customers are your target, focus on Pinterest. 
• Take advantage of the algorithm. Using the latest features of each social media platform can give your posts a boost since these are favoured by the channel’s algorithm. For example, right now, Instagram is all about Reels. Not only is video content crucial to making your account more discoverable and shareable but it’s also a great way to connect with your audience.
• Come up with formulas for success. Take notes on your best-performing posts. What spoke to your audience about the image or the caption? What hashtags did you use? At what time did you publish the post? If you can identify these key formulas, you’ll be able to replicate the success of your most engaging content.
• Consider hiring a social media manager. Creating and managing content and interacting with your followers can be time-consuming. If social media is proving to be a valuable marketing channel for you, it may be worth hiring a social media manager or outsourcing the management of your accounts to a freelancer.

Another fantastic way to promote your clothing store and reach new audiences on social media is by collaborating with influencers. There are different TIERS OF INFLUENCERS based on the size of their following:

• Nano influencers (1,000–10,000 followers) and micro-influencers (10,000–50,000 followers): niche following, cheaper rates, but smaller reach.
• Mid-tier influencers (50,000–500,000 followers) and macro-influencers (500,000–1,000,000 followers): larger and more general reach, but more expensive to collaborate with.

Opting for smaller influencers is a great way to align your clothing store with a niche audience. If your fashion boutique offers bohemian-style clothing, collaborating with an influencer who has a boho lifestyle account is the perfect way to reach more of your ideal customers. In many cases, the followers of smaller influencers are more engaged and trust the influencer’s recommendations more than those of large influencers. 

Before you hire an influencer, it’s vital to carefully vet them by looking at their audience data. This way, you can make sure that the collaboration will be worth the investment. Look for high engagement rates and follower growth. Avoid influencers who have paid followers (their engagement to follower ratio will be extremely low).

4. EXPERIMENT WITH EMAIL AND SMS MARKETING 

By collecting customer data, you can retarget your customers and promote products or deals that will make them want to return to your store. You can collect your customers’ email addresses or phone numbers either through your online store or a loyalty/referral program set up in-store. 

Here are some great automation tools for email and SMS marketing that you can implement into your retail strategy: 

• KLAVIYO: Lots of retailers use this email marketing platform because it has features that sync with Shopify, making it super easy to construct emails. The monthly price depends on the number of email contacts you have. 
• HUBSPOT: As one of the leading automation tools, Hubspot offers all-in-one email automation that includes email marketing insights. Priced at $50 per month. 
• CONSTANT CONTACT: This tool allows you to create unique emails with designs, as well as social media promotions. Prices start at $20 per month. 
• ACTIVE CAMPAIGN: Used by 60,000 organizations worldwide, Active Campaign allows you to create endless drip emails to deliver to up to 500 contacts for just $9 per month. 

If you want to deep dive into marketing automation, check out our MARKETING COURSE – it has helped established fashion retail businesses triple their turnover in just 3 months. We’ll help you build a do-it-yourself marketing strategy and start off on the path to success!

5. STEP UP YOUR CUSTOMER SERVICE GAME 

Last but not least, remember that customer service is key. 

You shouldn’t expect your stock to sell itself. Some of it will, but most of it will require some effort from you and your staff to get customers into the fitting room. Once they’re engaged in this way, you can provide an amazing customer experience by styling the perfect outfit for them.

The return on investment you get from providing great customer service is worth the time and money it takes to get it right. So train your staff and make sure they focus on personalising the shopping experience for each customer.

In the end, a positive experience is one of the best ways to increase your sales and customer loyalty. 

CONCLUSION: NOW YOU’VE GOT EVERYTHING YOU NEED FOR A SUCCESSFUL RETAIL STRATEGY 

As you can see, building a retail strategy isn’t that complicated once you understand exactly what it entails.

You’ll have a solid retail strategy in place once you’ve given attention to all 4 Ps of marketing: Product, Price, Promotion and Place.

And remember, always think of your target audience when coming up with new tactics. 

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT BUILDING A RETAIL STRATEGY FOR YOUR CLOTHING BOUTIQUE

WHAT ARE THE COMPONENTS OF A RETAIL STRATEGY? 

A retail strategy has 4 main pillars that make up the marketing mix. These are Product, Place, Promotion and Price. These 4 elements can be broken down into more specific components that you can focus on, such as customer service and online marketing. 

HOW DO YOU DEVELOP A RETAIL STRATEGY FOR A CLOTHING STORE?

To develop a successful retail strategy for a clothing store, focus on one main thing – your target audience. Then, use the basic marketing mix model to serve as the foundation of your strategy. It will help you come up with ways to optimise your store for your target market. 

WHAT ARE SOME EXAMPLES OF A RETAIL STRATEGY?

Some great examples of a retail strategy that will make your clothing store stand out include perfecting your customer service, making the most of email and SMS marketing, building a social media presence, and improving the atmosphere of your store. 

Whola is a wholesale marketplace that makes it easy for online fashion store owners to buy hot-selling inventory with just a few clicks. SIGN UP NOW and start shopping the newest styles from our 100+ unique Australian brands!