Buttons
Whatever is in or out of fashion we will always need buttons.
Most large scale manufacturing of buttons happens in developing countries now, so unless you plan to develop the requisite language skills and contacts it is unlikely that you can get into business supplying clothing manufacturers with buttons, so why have I come up with this idea?
Tens of thousands of people in your area still make their own clothes, or repair them. The arts and crafts industry continues to boom as we find more and more leisure time. Buttons are necessary not just for those involved in needlework, but also knitting and crochet. You will also find numerous small businesses that need a range of buttons of you look for them.
There are two clear focuses here, handicrafts and small businesses. For once we will not recommend opening a shop, whatever form your distribution takes this can be done from home initially and from an office cum warehouse as you expand.
Your distribution may include one or more of these ideas: -
Sell to handicraft shops
Sell to knitting/wool shops
Sell to fabric shops
EBAY
Set up a website
Sell to tailors
Sell to fashion designers
Sell to schools
Handicraft shops are the obvious starting point, as there is clearly a demand
for buttons for all kinds of handicrafts. These shops will already sell buttons
and will know whether what you have is: -
a) Unusual
b) Reasonably priced
You will therefore need to do some research on these kinds of shops, what they tend to carry and what they charge before you start offering them your products. If you can show them that there is a demand, or are prepared to allow them to sell on consignment then you will probably get your foot in the door.
I have separated knitting or wool shops from handicrafts as many knitters do not consider what they do to be handicrafts, and may never go into a handicraft shop. You may also explore knitting machine shops as a sub category in this kind of shop. Your approach will be the same as for handicrafts however. Understand what they sell and then make them a compelling offer to stock your goods.
Fabric shops are a little different in that many do not sell buttons or other accessories, they focus solely on fabric. Your offer here may be to pay for a display stand of some description. Work with the store owner on how best to do this, ideally you want your stock to be at the checkout where it can become an impulse purchase. Again consignment selling may be your best tool for persuading them to start carrying your product lines.
EBAY should be great for this type of product. Your target market is likely to browse the available buttons and you have an opportunity to build a company brand by carrying a number of lines. Price will be less important if you have a range that is unusual, or rare. You may want to source some of your stock from thrift shops etc. where old/antique buttons may be found on older garments for next to nothing. Remember to link all your adverts back to your website or blog.
Setting up a website is useful for any business but will not drive traffic in itself. Providing you can promote it you may well get many repeat orders this way. I would recommend having the web address on every packet of buttons that you sell, as well as on any advert that you carry on EBAY or similar auction sites. You may choose to advertise in trade magazines as your business develops, and these adverts should also carry your web address, as should your business cards. Its amazing how much traffic you can generate just by letting interested people know where to look.
There are several tailors in most cities, some specialise in alterations, others in either men's or women's clothing. Their customers tend to be affluent and demanding, using a tailor to get details right that cannot be bought in a clothing store. Good quality buttons are a real bonus to these guys. You should have no trouble getting them to view your range, although the quantities that they order are likely to be small, if you are prepared to do the leg work you should see a steady stream of business. Leave some spare business cards in case the tailors want to pass them on to clients who are particular about their buttons.
Local fashion designers will go to handicraft stores, knitting shops, fabric shops etc. and so hopefully will become aware of your business. As you become aware of them court them, offer them discounts and try to get them using your stock. The hope is that they will gain a modicum of fame and you can use this as free advertising for your customers. Wouldnˇ¦t it be great to show them pictures of D&G, or Chanel clothing and tell them that those are your buttons? (donˇ¦t do this if its not true someone might just sue you). The other benefit is that they will work and socialise with other designers, so some word of mouth should see your trade increase.
Schools can be a great place to sell buttons, not just because many offer sewing or textiles related courses but the art department may also need buttons for collage and other projects, and the drama department may also be interested. Of course if some of the students accidentally note the web address off of your packaging that won't do you any harm either.
You will probably get your buttons loose in large multiples but you will sell them in small packets of 6-12. Make sure you know what the standards are for this and adhere to them, if similar buttons always come in 6s and you sell in 4s you may lose business.
You can find all kinds of buttons on www.alibaba.com but remember to search in your local area using www.google.com or a similar search engine. You may also find some more specialised hand made items in your local area, and may want to try places like France and Belgium where prices will be higher but the perception of quality will increase your available margin.
As suggested above, there is definitely a market for unusual, antique, or collectors buttons. Keep an eye out at garage sales, thrift shops, and make friends with your local house clearance business owners. This will be particularly useful if you plan to exhibit at craft fairs, or sell direct to tailors or fashion designers.
You can start very small with this business, order a few hundred buttons in different styles, package them using simple cellophane wraps and you are able to get going. Even selling a few packets means you are officially in business but if you are committed you could make this a sizeable business.