Marketing plan for Julia Grant's freelance fashion styling business

Marketing Plan- Julia Grant

Marketing Plan: Julia Grant, Freelance Fashion Stylist / Consultant

Business Overview

In the 2008 industry outlook report for the designer fashion market in Australia, revenue from the retail clothing industry will grow 16.3% until 2013, with an annual growth rate of 3.1%. Further, the report identified Australian states wherein key markets can be tapped:

(1) New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland- majority of apparel sales

(2) Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth- high fashionable boutiques

(3) Melbourne- mass market retail, like Myer, Coles (owner of Target and Kmart)

(4) Sydney- headquarters for David Jones, buying centre for tourists, duty free outlets

(5) Queensland- designer fashion, resort, swimwear, and leisurewear

In addition to growth in these markets, the emergence of Internet technologies made it possible for fashion designers to market their creations through online retailing (or e-tailing). Fashion e-tailers have expanded the Australian designer fashion market towards a more global scope, encompassing Asian and even North American and European markets.

These growth areas in the Australian designer fashion market provide new opportunities for up-and-coming creative fashion designers to further enhance the growth of the industry through these identified markets. This business environment is especially favorable for freelance fashion stylists/designers, whose innovative designs and global approach to marketing allow them to market their services and clothing line to a broader audience. Because of the broad scope of marketing involved in e-tailing, fashion stylists / designers further reinforce their style identities to further differentiate themselves from a the highly competitive designer fashion industry, both in Australia and worldwide.

II. Brand Profile

Julia Grant is the foundation of JG Creative direction. As a freelance fashion stylist / consultant, JG specializes in high-end conceptual-based editorial of art and fashion magazines, including advertising for selective champagnes and special projects focusing on runway, music and film styling. Working for both Australian and international brands, JG creates a Unique Aesthetic Experience, expressing Artisanship and Creative Integrity, the driving forces behind all JG projects. Highly influenced by fashion history, music, art and film, JG considers styling as a medium of choice where Optimistic and Innovative Ideas can be expressed.

JG's brand philosophy:

The identity of JG Creative Direction is imagery. She is Strong, Independent with a sense of Mystery and Intrigue. She has her feet on the ground and her head in the clouds; at times unpredictable, but always in control. Living to inspire, reflecting the Italian mantra: La Bella Figura: Dressing and behaving with a sense of style.

JG reflects the global fashion stylist of today, altering the idea of what is possible, that the ability to perceive a reality beyond the status quo is to be able to make a difference to it. This requires having a vision of what is "optimistically innovative" in fashion, which JG believes to be shaping the culture of the new decade, allowing JG to go beyond and endure new visions for each respective clientele. Working with a supporting group of Australian artistic talent -- photographers, models, designers, hair and make-up artists -- JG strengthens her creative and personal idiom, allowing her stylistic visions to become a reality.

III. Brand Positioning

As a freelance fashion stylist, JG works with niche clothing labels and magazine agents.

Working with niche clothing labels, JG has the experience, training, and innovative competitive edge necessary to break out from a highly competitive area of expertise. Creating a balance between global marketing competitiveness and development and creation of innovative ideas, JG's style image can be considered Bold, Inventive, and alternately Unique Tailored.

As designer/stylist to fashion magazines, JG recognizes the need to express ideas and vision of interest representative of a creative, cultured demographic and for boutique labels.

JG's fashion style is characterized as a mix of the following genres: commercial, trend-based, art focus / cultural / theme-based, couture high fashion and mid-market. In essence, JG's fashion style encompasses from low to high fashion markets, historical to contemporary arts and cultures.

V. Marketing Strategies and Tactics

JG plans to promote its creations and artistic fashion expertise using both traditional and electronic/online marketing channels. JG will market is creations and expertise using the traditional channels, mainly through direct and retail marketing (thru consignment). Online marketing strategies, meanwhile, include the creation and establishment of an electronic storefront, placing online advertisements and engaging in electronic forums, newsgroups and bulletin boards. These channels will be planned out and balanced to create equal weight for both direct, retail and electronic storefront marketing, to be supported by online ads placement and e-community engagements.

Direct and Retail Marketing

Networking would be the key and critical element to JG's direct and retail marketing strategy. JG will engage in direct marketing by establishing key contacts and referrals in the fashion editorial and retail industries. As a fashion consultant, JG will conduct prospecting by discussing business and project opportunities with JG's known contacts, colleagues and new relations established in the industry. Concurrent with this direct marketing effort, JG will also engage in retailing through consignment partnerships with multi-brand niche stores and boutiques. Minimum mandatory selection requirements for consignment partners would be that the stores and boutiques are consistent with JG's style/fashion image and target groups.

Online Marketing (e-store, ads, and e-community engagement)

For scoping beyond the Australian market, it is necessary for the development and establishment of a JG online storefront. This JG e-store will promote the fashion stylist's creations and expertise on a global scale, targeting markets beyond Australia. The e-store will complement rather than supplement JG's marketing efforts in Australia. Its business strategy in Australia is 'high touch,' and its global strategy (i.e., non-Australian market) will be developed to maintain its high touch strategy using a broader scope -- taking into consideration JG's non-Australian consumers and target groups.

As a support to its direct, retail and online marketing efforts, JG as a fashion styling/designing expert and consultant will further ramp up its visibility in online communities by actively participating and providing expert consultation on fashion and art through e-communities/e-groups. A more direct showcase of JG's expertise would be through online ads, posted through the e-store, freelancing sites, and social networking sites (specifically for fashion and art). These online efforts would be supplementary tools to strengthen the JG brand and bolster its presence in the designer fashion industry.