How To Start A Footwear Business Online?

About the footwear sector, India is the second-largest producer of footwear in the world, only behind China, which by far remains the king of the industry; coupled with this, leather is also another of its great strengths, which represents them nationally and internationally, that is why it is together with plastic the preferred material when producing footwear.

The entire sector that stands up for the production and marketing of footwear is divided into two large groups: the perfectly organised macro-companies, with work teams and acceptable economic capital, and the artisan sector that is slightly less organised and dedicated to more rudimentary tasks, many sometimes from their own homes or small workshops. This conglomerate of large, medium or small factories is distributed in Kanpur, Delhi, Ambur, Agra, Calcutta, Pune, Mumbai and Calicut.

Step 1

Create a name for your online footwear business. Register your business name or do business as an application through your city or county administration office. Get a license from a supplier through the government office itself, as you will have to pay sales tax in other customer states.

Step 2

Determine your target customer. For example, selling ​​women's footwear is since women tend to buy and own more footwear than men. Determine a variety of footwear that you want to sell.

Step 3

Call various wholesalers and manufacturers. Find out which ones offer shipping services, as this will keep your inventory levels low. Choose the wholesaler or manufacturer that offers you the lowest cost per unit for footwear.

Step 4

Create a website for your online footwear shop, or hire a web designer. Ask your supplier for photos of footwear for your website—order footwear samples for which there are no images. Take photos with a digital camera, then post them on your website.

Step 5

Create a URL or name for your website. Use the company name as your URL. Check domain availability sites to make sure your address is available. Buy the domain name.

Step 6

Order from your footwear supplier when people order. Pay the supplier the wholesale footwear's cost, and mail footwear to customers in boxes with a shipping label.

What is the expected sale market for your footwear?

The difficult thing is not to make the footwear, but to find clients for your designs. You will need to determine this BEFORE you order from the factory. The big footwear brands have orders in hand before producing the new models.

Before starting a footwear business, you will need to know where the designs are going and where they will come from. Determining this may depend on the style of the footwear or your marketing plan.

Who is your target customer?

Find out who is the end-user of your footwear. Business executives? Rockers with tattoos? Young students? Knowing your future customers will allow you to establish the price, appearance, and materials for your new model. Decide what kind of footwear you want to make, casual, high-performance sports, focused on fashion, or a totally new idea.

1. Research, and continue researching on the footwear market

Try paying a visit to your retailers to investigate the variety of footwear your future competitors sell and the price they charge for each product. Study the design, use the logos, the materials they use, and any features you can see.

Finding a footwear buying agent or footwear factory can be difficult. Search the internet; many companies can help you get started. Visit the main footwear fairs; there is always an area set up with factories looking for new customers.

2. Business Nuances

You have to consider that it is seasonal. Whether the winter collection batch was sold or not, you need to buy footwear appropriate for this time of year when summer comes.

The buyer should buy new footwear models and choose them according to the feet's size. And if you only have one or two sizes of footwear in stock, then the customer can head out and buy from your competitors.

3. Business Plan

When developing a footwear store business plan, you need to clearly define what the "public" for consumers will target. If they are people with a low-income level, then it does not make sense to follow the latest fashion collections "shoes scrupulously." They can become elementary illiquid.

Instead, wealthy customers should not be offered, budget models. Also, consider what age group your footwear will wear. Maybe you'll focus on adult footwear, maybe on children. In general, the choice is yours!

For these purposes, you will have to spend quite seriously. In the document above, you need to reflect your potential income to calculate how long it will take you to return your investment.

Also read: Shoe Manufacturers in India

4. Documentation

For your business to be legal, you must obtain the appropriate documents from government agencies.

Besides, you must have all the necessary certificates in hand to confirm that the footwear sold is of high quality. Don't forget to get your outdoor advertising passport and conclude a contract for waste disposal.

5. Equipment

It should be noted that the equipment for a footwear shop can be very diverse. It all depends on the thickness of the wallet and the width of the flight of the creative imagination.

Think carefully about the room's design. Decorate the shop windows as brightly as possible, take care of the right lighting, and air temperature in your boutique.

Visiting your point of sale, the customer should be loaded with exclusively positive emotions. If you manage to achieve this, you should know that the volume of turnover will increase significantly. Don't know how to arrange the interior of the store properly? Use the services of professionals.

6. Pricing Policy

When you open a footwear store, you should decide the price segment. Who will be your main customer? What is their income? The most popular stores in peripheral cities are the stores in economic format, which target "average" and "below average" income levels. The choice of footwear suppliers depends on the price group in which you will work.

It will not be superfluous to organise all kinds of promotions, contests with gift certificates and other loyalty programs. You can create club cards with discounts on the cumulative system - 5%, 7% and 10%, depending on the number of purchases. This will increase the flow of regular customers and your profit accordingly.

How to sell footwear online?

The biggest problem people face when buying footwear online is not being able to view the product. The presence of high-quality photos can help solve the problem. At the very least, a side-to-side shot of both the front and back boots and the upper and sole are required. If there are any deficiencies, be sure to report them. Photos must be taken from different angles.

What information should be included in the product description?

If you sell footwear from the factory, please include the original size, international equivalents and the manufacturer. If the original size is unknown, please indicate the length of the inner insole. Describe as accurately as possible the colour, type (evening, casual, sports, etc.) and style (oxford, shoes, etc.) of the desired footwear. List the materials from which the product is made and, if possible, describe the production method.

Conclusion

Running a successful footwear business line would need an entrepreneur who has innovative concepts to bring it to market. Customers love innovation, but they also love convenience. When bringing innovations, don't sacrifice your customer's comfort.

The footwear business can bring a stable income and grow only through constant costs and purchase prices. You also need to learn how to increase sales - without it, your savings won't help. Your store should focus on increasing sales as well as increasing business efficiency. In this case, success will be in your hands.

Also read:

1) How to Start the Footwear Business in India?
2) Want to Start a Footwear Store? Here's your step-by-step guide
3) How to start a Branded Clothing Store Business in India? Your A-to-Z Guide
4) Online Business Ideas You Can Start Quickly
5) Best Shoe Brands in India

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FAQs

Q. What is the basic production plan of a footwear factory?

Ans. Footwear production comprises different phases, finishes, discontinuous flow, with stops and starts. The important thing is that it is developed with bottlenecks, little variability, efficient inventory management, and waste reduction: productivity.

Q. What is the difference between a reseller and a distributor business?

Ans. A distributor buys products for resale from a manufacturer and sells them to an end consumer or simultaneously manages multiple resellers. In a resale business, there is no inventory of merchandise to be resold. A reseller acts as an intermediary between the manufacturer and the customer. The resellers usually do not have such a close relationship with the manufacturer between a distributor and a reseller.

Q. What kind of online footwear shop should you have?

Ans. You can create an online store with stock and own a warehouse, production and distribution of own products and sale of third party products on commission. In this case, you are an intermediary. An agreement is signed with a brand or company from which you sell their products in exchange for a commission.