Are you passionate about fashion and dream of offering your own products to customers? From project to first sales, we give you all the advice you need to launch an online fashion boutique.
The e-commerce market continues to grow in France, with more than 37 million consumers online and a third buying via smartphone. 85% of Internet users made at least one online purchase in 2017 and there are currently more than 180,000 active e-commerce sites in France.
The online store has many advantages: no physical frontiers to sell fashion products, lower cost of doing business, wide choice of products in just a few clicks, comfort when shopping... Today, e-commerce is all the rage, and it's essential to have an online store to stay competitive.
Steps to opening your online store
Once the store project has been defined and the market study carried out, the launch of the online store takes place in several stages.
1. Definition and registration of the company's legal status
There are several legal statuses for a business. If you decide to open your online fashion boutique on your own, choose the auto-entrepreneur status and register your company with INSEE.
2. Choice of domain name
Once you've chosen a domain name, you need to check its availability. It's best to register a domain name that matches your company's name.
3. Creation of e-commerce site
You can use a CMS dedicated to e-commerce or a sales medium such as Ebay to develop your online store. Ready-to-use e-commerce solutions are available to easily set up your store: Oxatis, Planet Ecommerce, ID Commerce...
4. Site content writing
Customers like to have as much product information as possible, so you'll need to write product sheets to highlight your fashion items. Don't forget to include the mandatory information: company name, address, e-mail address and telephone number, capital, SIRET, VAT identification number, hosting conditions...
5. Data protection
As your site collects data via online ordering, it is mandatory to comply with personal data protection rules. Ideally, you should seek the advice of a Data Protection Officer (DPO).
6. Supplier search
Once you've set your budget, it's time to find reliable suppliers. You can look up the names of suppliers on trusted sites such as Yellow Pages or Kompass.
7. Choice of carrier
You can negotiate a contract with La Poste or another carrier such as DHL to obtain advantageous rates.
8. Online payment
There are secure payment solutions available without a distance selling contract, such as Payline, ePay or Cashtronics. If you prefer to pay by credit card on your site, it is essential to contact your bank to set up this system.
9. Promote your online store
Once your online boutique is ready, it's time to get the word out to as many customers as possible: post on social networks, interact on forums, create a blog, run e-mail campaigns... Your online fashion boutique needs to prosper quickly, and enable you to make a living from your business!
If you want to develop your fashion business, Isal Paris can help you with promoting your fashion brand, don't hesitate to Contact ISAL PARIS.
