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Starting a company

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T-Holt
Posts: 5020 - Karma: 639
I have been thinking about starting a outerwear company aimed at skiing, but I have no idea where to start, what supplies i need, what funding i need. Do i need to get mad photoshop skills to design the jackets and pants? Or maybe drawing? Both? I'm 16 btw. I'm not gonna try to start it right now (i'm way to young) but i want to know so i can start working up to it. I saw the ON3D skis thread, and that's what made me really wanna try it, cus before it was just like a cool idea.

Any advice would be appreciated.
Oct 16 2008 10:32PM
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VCharette
Posts: 4276 - Karma: 1,047
well i'd tell you to go to school in business management or something around that it'd be very helpfull. You should start drawing either on photoshop or on a paper as long as you get the sketchs drawn and then once you get you drawings well i guess you go see a bank present them a plan and show ask for some money or maybe some investors who arent banks but try to go ask a compagny that is already doing it for some tips, especially if you wanna make outwears make sure its quality and advertise a shit load since your a new company, heres what i would do ...
Oct 16 2008 10:44PM
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T-Holt
Posts: 5020 - Karma: 639
thanks, that helps a lot. i'm glad i hav a solid goal now. I'm gonna start drawing ideas on paper, and trying to finalize them in photoshop once i get good. eventually i'll post pics, but not for a while, cus i don't really hav the skills right now.
Oct 16 2008 10:50PM
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Coalescent
Posts: 4871 - Karma: 2,063
Go to college and major in business admin or something along the lines like the guy above said, take some classes in design/graphic design as electives and then learn to sew!
Oct 16 2008 10:53PM
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VCharette
Posts: 4276 - Karma: 1,047
^yeah man np but if you wanna make it in the outwear, its not like making t shirts, its a bigger risk so make sure your suits are sick.. i mean SUPER sick, you gotta compete vs saga, lethal descent, volcom, 686, salomon ETC ETC... but good luck bro!
Oct 16 2008 10:54PM
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T-Holt
Posts: 5020 - Karma: 639
o yeah that makes more sense.
I took a photoshop / illustrator class in 7th grade but i don't really remember much of it at all now
Oct 16 2008 10:59PM
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T-Holt
Posts: 5020 - Karma: 639
thanks.
i hope by the time i actually try to start it, i'll hav a bunch of designs with feedback from people, and a much better knowledge on fabrics and the technology of it.
Oct 16 2008 11:00PM
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VCharette
Posts: 4276 - Karma: 1,047
^you'd need more than 7th grade illustrator skills :P but i guess if u cna draw them u can ask someone to put them on illustrator pretty easily thats not much of a problem!
Oct 16 2008 11:01PM
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T-Holt
Posts: 5020 - Karma: 639
yeah, lol. i was more making the point that i realize that illustrator would be better than photoshop for it.
Oct 16 2008 11:03PM
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skiP.E.I.
Posts: 7822 - Karma: 21,855
It is going to be really important to find other people who are interested in the idea, and as enthusiastic as you are about it, and are willing to work to make it happen, especially people that can handle the parts of a business that you wouldn't want to. If you are more interested in the design side of outerwear, it would probably help to take some art classes to learn more about how design works, and develop ideas you might have. You also are going to have to do endless research about how outerwear works (i.e. fabrics, waterproofing, stitching, basically whatever you can think of that relates to outerwear.) It probably would be very useful to interview people involved in the outerwear industry about what it takes to get a company on the go. You have to be ready for there to be a myriad of little things you would never think about, and just like everything, tackle problems head on, try to find creative solutions instead of going around the problem.
Oct 16 2008 11:08PM
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T-Holt
Posts: 5020 - Karma: 639
cool, thanks
i guess its a good thing that i'm planning ahead, then.
Oct 16 2008 11:12PM
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VCharette
Posts: 4276 - Karma: 1,047
yeah you should decide what things you good at and that you like to do and again make sure your stuff is SICK AS AIDS other than that you'll just loose your cash which would suck!
Oct 16 2008 11:15PM
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hemlockjibber8
Posts: 5977 - Karma: 3,549
Hint #1. youre gonna fail

its like your mommas ass. oversaturated
Oct 17 2008 4:08AM
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Danger.
Posts: 3476 - Karma: 58
You're gonna have to bring something unique to be a player in the outerwear game. If you're more graphic design oriented get a good foundation in illustrator before you attempt anything. Don't put out every design you come up with either, make sure your final product is quality.
Oct 17 2008 4:10AM
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reverendwrong
Posts: 3145 - Karma: 142
dude u are not alone, I for one am working on a buisness plan for class, and to get an "a" it has to be ready to present to a venture capitalist or bank to get financed, so for right now its just a project but theres a good chance that i may end up actually doing it, U really need to do a shit ton of research, ive allready spent 10hrs plus on that and ive barely started the thing, honestly all i can say is be prepared to work at it, this isnt gonna be easy at all, From the survey i posted (then was deleted, thanx mods!) ive found out that ppl arent just gonna buy from u cuz ur a startup thats geared onle twards skiing, a few will, but not enough to justify starting up. U need quality thats as good or better than anything out there, and style to match, and on top of that u need to have it be compareably priced. If u think u can find a way to match all 3 criteria id say go for it and more power to u, but u need to realize the amount of work its gonna take.
Oct 17 2008 8:21AM
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urbanjib
Posts: 1801 - Karma: 255

well look up factories, and what not

talk to other outerwear designs, smaller ones, like LD

figure out costs, and material

Just ask questions

Oct 17 2008 8:32AM
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Greenish
Posts: 2047 - Karma: 367
not to be a buzz kill, but honestly, i would definitely not try to get into the ski outerwear business
there's already lethal descent, saga, sms and a few others for like "core" smaller company outerwear as well as oakley, orage, obermeyer, spyder, dna, etc. as bigger names
and predator/aeryx and siver ended up going out of business as outerwear companies

Oct 17 2008 10:36AM
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cobra_commander
Posts: 16909 - Karma: 4,686
where are you going to get the cloths made

what will the cloths be made out of
    water proofing
    insulation
    material
    coating
    colors
    cut
    more

how will you sell the cloths? how will you market them? whats your distribution going to be? whats your intended market? how will you reach that market? why would some one buy from you over some one else product.

how much money are you going to need up front? whats your initial cost? what is your expected revenue going to be? how is that going to grow over the first few years? how are you going to increase your market share over the years? how much money are you spending on manufacture? how much on marketing? how much on distribution? how much on salary?

where will you get the money you need? You will not be able to get a loan in today's market. that is a flat out fact. You will need investors, why should they invest in your company, why is it a good investment for them? How long will it take you to buy the company back from them?



you had better have an answer to every one of those questions ready, as well as a solid business plan. 
Oct 17 2008 10:43AM
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AlexMartini
Posts: 2989 - Karma: 1,905
in my opinion there are already WAY too many of these companies, give up, and help of of the other homies who's already working at it
Oct 17 2008 3:23PM
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motzybrdr
Posts: 64 - Karma: 20
your a dick. try being a little supportive he real young and we should be stoked about young kids trying to get involved in the skiing community. 
Oct 17 2008 4:00PM
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KABURGS
Posts: 31 - Karma: 10
keep in mind that very few people get paid, like some skiers out there (J-O).  If you put passion into it the rest will come with time.  Oh yea...MONEY
Oct 17 2008 4:59PM
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hemlockjibber8
Posts: 5977 - Karma: 3,549
haha, dude. sorry for the drunkin posting. didnt mean to get your panties in a knot.

Check out Crowe outerwear. A guy started that himself and made it fairly decent. They are on hiatus right now, completely redisigning how they do their stuff. Inspirational I guess
Oct 18 2008 7:58PM
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Static
Posts: 8553 - Karma: 4,089
just get some patches made, buy cheap outwear from tjmaxx and ross, and throw you patches on them
Oct 18 2008 8:29PM
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