According to Statisa, the US will have over 270 million online shoppers by 2024. Moreover, it is expected to increase this even further due to the COVID-19 situation worldwide. These are some great indicators to start your online boutique now!
This can be confusing if you don't know how to start. But don't worry, we've got you covered with our extensive eCommerce knowledge. In this article, you will learn:
- What is an online boutique?
- Benefits of having an online boutique
- How to start online boutique step-by-step guide
- Some real-life online boutique examples for your inspiration
First thing first, let's understand what’s meant by an online boutique?
What is an Online Boutique?
An online boutique is an ecommerce store that sells trendy clothing or accessories online. Like a normal physical boutique, an online boutique may sell high-end or trendy products much higher than a traditional retail store. The boutique is especially a small shop that contains some particular designer stuff. Be it jewelry, Apparel, etc., an online boutique is the best place on the internet to find the desired designer wear.
Image taken from Strikingly user’s website
Benefits of Having an Online Boutique
Starting an online boutique is much better and easier than opening a real store in the market. The rapid rise of digital marketing has taken the eCommerce sector by storm. Here are three of the most important advantages to open an online boutique.
- You can attract a huge number of visitors per day as compared to a physical store.
- Your supply and demand process can be very concise and accurate. The sales per month and the conversion rate will drive the supplies. There will be minimal wastage of supplies.
- The 24/7 availability makes the online boutique more accessible and profitable.
Step-by-Step Guide on How to Start Online Boutique
Are you thinking of starting an online boutique? If yes, make sure you read this post until the end. Following is a step-by-step guide for you to use for starting an online boutique.
1. Find Your Product And Its Niche
Finding your product and niche is the fun part. So, what is a niche? Starting an online boutique, including a fashion boutique, isn't for everyone. You want to target a niche market, whether children's clothing, hand-beaded necklaces, or men's hats. Consider your ideal client. Keep them in mind to ensure your products keep them interested.
Some businesses go beyond just selecting a niche to target. They create comprehensive buyer persona profiles. This means they prepare a very clear image of how their ideal customer would be. This helps the whole marketing team stay focused and target the right people for their products. The same would apply to your online boutique. If you know who you will be selling to, you will prevent yourself from wasting resources and efficiently allocating your marketing budget.
Image taken from Strikingly user’s website
2. Choose the Best Ecommerce Platform
It is time to build your online store now that you have a product to sell. Online businesses use eCommerce platforms. And there are some great options for beginners to start an online boutique. Ecommerce platforms like WIX, Squarespace, Shopify, and WooCommerce are a good way to make your eCommerce website.
One of the rising website builders is Strikingly, which enables any layman to create an online store or online boutique, as long as they have a basic understanding of using the internet. This is because we provide a user-friendly editor with a drag and drop interface and ready web page templates. All you need to do is select one that best fits your purpose and add your content.
You can also create product pages for your online boutique in the Strikingly editor with ease. By uploading as many product images as you like, setting up your product prices, and writing a catchy description for each, you can make your online boutique stand out from your competitors.
3. Make Your Business Plan
Let’s take a step back and think again. Before you create your online store or boutique, you must have a business plan. This will be your roadmap for achieving your goals. You can show your business plan to investors and banks when you need more money. Here are some key elements of your online boutique business plan:
- Do detailed market research to better understand your target audience.
- Choose a business model i-e dropshipping, print on demand, private label, etc.
- Plan the estimated costs and revenues.
- Choose a marketing strategy for your business.
4. Brand Your Business
Branding your business is one of the most important steps when starting an online boutique.
No matter how good your product is, people tend to forget or undervalue your products if you have not done the proper branding. Branding may include your online boutique’s logo, domain name, tagline, color schemes, etc.
The branding visuals that you create for your brand should be reflected all over your online boutique. Having consistency in the colors, styles, and overall design throughout your marketing channels and material can go a long way in building an impressive brand personality.
5. Find Your Suppliers
Even if you are making the product yourself, you need some raw materials. Thus, finding good suppliers that provide quality is necessary to open an online boutique. Before making the final selections, you can always look for their market reputation, supply quality, and professional commitment. This will help you find the right suppliers effectively and build an effective supply chain for your business.
If you don’t have suppliers, you won’t have access to the products or clothing items you want to sell through your online boutique. Hence, this step is very critical.
6. Create Your Website Interface
Got a product, ecommerce platform, and business plan for your online boutique? Now it's time to build your website’s interface or outlook. Here are some points on how to create a good web interface.
- Choose a theme/template according to your business plan and requirement
- Add images of products and their descriptions.
- Create a smooth and effective checkout process.
- Add worldwide accepted online payment systems like Paypal, etc.
This step might sound like a slight repetition of one of the points above. Nonetheless, this is where to actually implement it. If you would like to build your online boutique on Strikingly, the first practical step would be to sign up for an account. Once you have selected the template you want to use, you can continue working on and designing your web pages, including your product pages, to get your online boutique up and running.
Image taken from Strikingly
7. Apply Effective Marketing
Congratulations! You are almost ready to open an online boutique. Now you must market your boutique and build a loyal customer base. Here are some common marketing strategies you should use:
- Social media marketing
- Email marketing
- Hire influencers and brand ambassadors
- Use tv ads, radio ads, cinema ads, etc.
Image taken from Strikingly user’s website
Online Boutique Examples For Your Inspiration
Need more ideas on starting an online boutique? Here are some great examples of online boutiques to help you envision your own.
1. Bohemian Traders
Image taken from Bohemian Traders
If you're looking for ideas on how to design a clothing website, Bohemian Traders is a good place to begin your research. Visitors to this online boutique can easily navigate between clothing items based on the latest arrivals, occasions, accessories, and sale items, all given a bohemian twist by the website design. To sum up, the interface design has that bohemian vibe with easy navigation and user experience.
2. P&Co
Image taken from P&Co
P&Co's attention to product detail is one of the reasons they are included on this list. The design of this clothing website is, without a doubt, one of a kind. They display their t-shirts from a variety of different perspectives. They also have a plethora of different specifications for the item. A great online boutique design is just as important as having a great product to sell.
The navigation, product options, and overall buying process are unique and user-friendly. This online boutique ticks all the boxes to be the very best.
3. Bouguessa
The first thing you notice about Bouguessa's homepage is how luxurious it feels. All images are featured prominently, and navigation is kept to an absolute minimum by this ready-to-wear clothing brand. Long dresses and brightly colored clothing stand out well against the black and white backdrop. The Instagram feed, which is prominently displayed above the footer, allows visitors to better understand how the product looks on real people.
4. Bahia Blanca
Image taken from Strikingly user’s website
This one is built on Strikingly. This online boutique has a social feed section in it as well that gives a glimpse to the visitors to the brand’s social media feeds.
Bahia Blanca offers a range of women’s wear and other fashion accessories. Their diverse product lines and attractive designs can get good traction for the website and their business.
The merchant can update and maintain this online boutique with ease. If you also want to have an online store that can be run and maintained without any hassle, you can also create one today on Strikingly.
We enjoy seeing our customer base grow and are always available to resolve any technical issues or queries you may face.
