How to Start a Fashion Accessory Business

 

Why start a fashion accessory business?

Starting a fashion accessory business allows you to express your creativity, all while making a profit from it and selling the designs you love.

Fashion accessory businesses can be extremely broad, with different small businesses focusing on their own unique styles and designs. Due to this, it can be easy to find a demographic that likes and is interested in your products.

 

What a fashion accessory business looks like

While not every fashion accessory business is the same, a lot of small businesses will generally create products such as:

• Hair accessories
• Belts
• Scarfs
• Bags and purses
• Sunglasses
• Broaches

Essentially, a fashion accessory business creates a variety of individual designs based on current fashion trends, customer research and their own personal style and aesthetic.

 

What you need to start a fashion accessory business

What you need to start a fashion accessory business will depend on the types of accessories you want to make.

Generally speaking, you will need a good understanding of current trends and a strong, well-defined business plan. You will likely also need to have design skills and production capabilities, either in-house or through a manufacturer.

Some equipment you may need includes:

• A sewing machine
• Fabrics
• Measuring tools
• Designs software
• Packaging material
• Specialised tools

 

Creating a business plan for a fashion accessory business

When you’re starting a new fashion accessory business, it’s important you have a strategy that will help to make the right choices as your business grows. This is usually something that is outlined through a business plan.

Your fashion accessory business plan should include:

• An executive summary
• A brief description of your business
• A mission statement
• Some competitor analysis
• Your businesses financial projections
• Budgets

You should also sit down and think about what you’d like to do with your business and who your target customer base is. Having a solid idea for the direction of your business will better equip you to make decisions that will help your business to thrive.

 

Insuring your fashion accessory business

One of the most important things you will need to consider when building your fashion accessory business is craft insurance. With CraftCover, you can have the peace of mind knowing your fashion accessory business is fully protected against possible claims that may be made against your business.

Our fashion accessory business insurance includes:

• Public Liability Insurance– This type of cover protects your business against compensation costs that may arise if there is damage or an injury as a result of your businesses activities.
• Product Liability Insurance– This type of cover protects you for the production, sale and supply of your fashion accessories.

If a customer experiences an issue as a direct result of your business practices, you may be held liable for paying compensation costs if a claim is made.

 

Ensuring your fashion accessory business is legally compliant

There are a few different aspects of your fashion accessory business that you should consider in order to keep you legally compliant.

• Product safety standards – Product safety standards play a pivotal role in fashion regulations and you must ensure your products meet stringent safety measures. Textiles must comply with regulations that address flammability, provide clear and concise care instructions and meet international safety standards if your products are being sold globally.
• Labelling requirements – Correct labels are a crucial part of your products that contributes to transparency and informed customer choices. Your labels must adhere to country specific regulations and accurately represent the materials used.
• Environmental compliance – Environmental compliance is an increasingly important aspect of the fashion industry. You must adhere to regulations that restrict or ban the use of harmful substances and chemicals in the production of textiles, dyes and finishes. You should also optimise production processes to minimise waste.
• Intellectual property rights – You must be able to navigate the complex nature of trademarks, copyrights and designs to ensure your creations are legally safeguarded.
• Customer protection laws – You should adhere to advertising principles by accurately representing your products, providing clear and transparent pricing, establishing fair return policies and information on warranties and implementing secure online payment systems.

 

Marketing your fashion accessory business

There are a few different ways you can market your fashion accessory business.

Social media is one of the best ways to market your business, especially with the likes of TikTok and Instagram. Platforms like this can be invaluable when it comes to building a community and encouraging customers to purchase your products on repeat.

You can also market your business through physical methods such as business cards, flyers and posters. You could even consider visiting local business markets and craft fairs.

 

Selling your handmade fashion accessories

There are a number of different places you can sell your handmade fashion accessories.

Some popular online marketplaces that many crafters use to sell include:

• Etsy
• Folksy
• Facebook Marketplace
• Depop
• Ebay

It’s worth bearing in mind that some sites will take a percentage of your sales and may even charge a listing fee, which may be costly if your business is new.

As we’ve mentioned, you could also sell your products at local craft fairs and markets. The UK has a great craft fair scene and there are a wide variety of different themed events, so finding the right one for your brand shouldn’t be an issue. We can help by providing you with craft fair insurance for the whole year or one-off craft fair insurance if you’re new to selling at markets.