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Note: Make sure you read all the mistakes in by commentators! Thanks

I was looking through some of my notes for articles and just wanted to come up with something new that I haven’t seen on any other blog…at least in the manner that I am going to provide the information. What better way to learn than by knowing and listening to mistakes that other clothing companies in your field make. This list is going to go on indefinitely and I will re-post it to the top of the blog either weekly or daily depending on how popular it becomes. I know most of our readers either have or are in the process of starting a clothing line have made a mistake, wit their own stories to tell of were they ordered too many products or set prices too high while trying to start their clothing line or in their day to day business activities. So I am going to begin the post by listing as many mistakes that I have made and know other companies have made that can limit your chance of success as a clothing company.

Basically dyeing over the fabric or jeans to add another tone of colour…excess of color. Most often used is a ‘yellowy‘ overdye to create a ‘dirty’ look. Also can be applied with spray gun or paintbrush for local colouring. Applying another layer of color over the original fabric texture.

Here is an example of overdye below:

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Church Of One is a new up and coming luxury streetwear label specializing in contemporary womenswear with a European edge. As of now they have an open internship opportunity for a fashion design and production assistant in their New York location.

Some of your responsibilities include:

• Researching fabric trends
• Sourcing new fabrics and color palettes
• Working between Asian production teams
• Chasing in developments and salesmen sample ranges

No other information as far as requirements were made available. If you would like to apply for this internship please forward your cover letter, resume, and availability to sam@church-of-one.com.

For more information visit their website.

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Raymond Chu the owner of a sewing contracting company by the name of Divine Couture that does work for couture companies, pled guilty to charges that he was involved in a $480,000 tax evasion scam earlier this month.

According to court documents filed in a Manhattan federal court the period lasted from 2002-2005. Now this blog is about teaching how to start a clothing line not how to evade taxes so the following is for informational purposes only.

Raymond Chu cashed checks through a secondary service (check cashiers) instead of depositing revenue into a bank account during the above period of time. Instead of filing taxes on money earned he would use cash to pay wages to workers without social security or any income tax being withheld from the cash earned during each period. The complaint said that as part of the scheme Chu asked some customers to issue checks of less than $10,000 to Divine Couture. I read that any check cashed over $10,000 is automatically investigated by the IRS so that is probably why Raymond asked customers to issue any check below that amount to him personally.

What role do social networks like Facebook, Myspace, Bebo, and Blackplanet play as far as in online marketing for companies in the fashion industry or any business? If I forgot any social networks sorry your important also!

I remember writing an article about marketing on Myspace and how to get thousands of visitors back to your site or landing page it had a more then moderate response from online blogs and networks compared to most articles on Dobizo that just receive comments, but not many linkbacks due to the nature of the blog. You can see that previous article by clicking here.

I was reading through the Dobizo Answers page looking for some interesting ideas for topics or questions to answer when I ran across:

Jezzy Asks:

“How can I find out if someone has the same name as my clothing label?

If someone already has the same name I intended to use for my clothing label/company but not legally registered as a business will it affect me if I register my label, get a tax ID and license under the label name someone else has?

Thuy (pronounced “Twee”) is a designer womens ready to wear line that is a cross between a romantic-casual chic collection. For more see their website Thuy New York.

Thuy Fashions is offering full and part-time positions for the upcoming season. If you can start immediately then you may be able to help with Thuy Fashions participation in the New York Fashion Week 2008 on February 2nd.

This internship will expose workers to all aspects of the design and production process within the apparel industry.

Some of your responsibilities include:

• Supporting the design team in apparel development
• Interfacing with pattern makers/factories
• Helping with order fulfillment
• Pattern making and fabric cutting
• Flat sketching
• Ordering materials
• Interacting with the showroom
• Assisting with Public Relations and sample tracking
• Managing inventory

Every intern that is hired will have their experience catered toward their interest and skill set.

Requirements:

• Current enrollment as a student
• Minimum average GPA of 3.0
• Demonstrated interest and coursework completed in the field of Fashion/Textiles

This is more of a show for high volume buyers and mass producers that may have left over stock for volume retailers. (TJ Maxx, Burlington) Also buyers of boutiques and high end department stores will find manufacturers servicing their needs. Buyers from all over join in Turkey for this RTW trade show for the apparel industry.

The trade event will be held in Istanbul, Turkey on February 7-9, 2008 at the Tuyap Fair Convention and Congress Center.

Not much more information was available on RTW Instanbul not even an official website.

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Something we as the apparel industry don’t talk about openly is delinquent retailers and unpaid accounts or the many stores that just have a history of not paying for merchandise on time or not at all. Many don’t know that their are companies that are out there that make a habit of taking advantage of newbie designers with payment terms that weigh heavily in their favor and most are eager so they take what they can get usually ending up empty handed. (No merchandise, no payment)

I personally have retailers that still owe me funds to this date from Atlanta, Ga all the way out to Texas where Six Figgaz clothing are making major moves as a young entrepreneur.

Many of us don’t focus on is researching the retailers we work with. There are businesses who will do background checks on retailers small and medium to let you know about their payment history and if their are any debts owed to customers so that you can reduce the risk of not being paid, which is critical to a startup business with a small amount of capital or cash flow.

Sounds too good to be true right? Well it’s not Dobizo is going to be featured in a print and online magazine as a monthly contributor for the success in the fashion industry columns section.

What does this have to do with your free magazine publicity? Well I couldn’t have made this blog a success without your thousands of questions right? Exactly so I’m asking you guys once again for your help on making this venture for Dobizo another success in the making.

All you have to do is comment on this article with your ideas for monthly topics for the magazine column and whomever questions are chosen will be mentioned in the article for your support and a possible text link to your website in the print edition. Also the readers question chosen will be highlighted on Dobizo with a link back to their website monthly.

Questions that are submitted should be descriptive enough for a 400 word article on the topic you choose. Please no questions that are already answered on Dobizo.

A fashion studio of a Scandinavian designer in San Francisco is looking for an intern that would like to work within the public relations department mainly, but also learning some aspects of the production area. This is a great opportunity for anyone wanting to grow within a small company that has experienced rapid growth.

Interested candidates should be energetic and interested in the fashion industry. You must be passionate about the fashion and lifestyle industry, great writing skills, intuitive, creative, hardworking, self-motivated, fun personality and committed to doing a great job.

Some of your responsibilities will include, but not limited to:

• Plan and implement media time-lines strategies

• Research and develop profile of target audience

• Research media opportunities

• Assist in the development, presentation and pitching of story ideas

• Communicate and build relationships with editors

• Weekly meetings to discuss progress and strategy

• Share responsibility for the overall quality and success of the Public Relations campaign

• Research and keep updated media lists

Skills required for this internship position:

Fashion North is the only trade show dedicated to womens wear in Canada. Their brother show, which is dedicated entirely to the mens clothing industry will now coincide for the second year in a row with the womens show for a better all around experience for visitors, but beneficial to retail buyers shopping the show for the latest offerings from manufacturers.

Sorry so late but the deadline for exhibiting passed this late October, but booths may still be available on a first come first served basis. Still Want to exhibit? Hardwall booth packages start at $750 for a standard 10×10. Otherwise visit the Fashion North on February 3-5, 2008 at the Toronto International Centre. For more information visit their website by clicking here.

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L’Oreal a leader in cosmetics and beauty proposed to acquire YSL Beaute Holding for $1.68 billion. If they are acquired the transaction will include the Robert & Gallet subsidiary. YSL is partly owned by the PPR subsidiary Gucci Group.

Though not directly related to the fashion industry, but couldn’t have been done without the original fashion house and acquiring licensing and distribution for their beauty and fragrance division and something every designer will hopefully one day aspire to have a full empire grown from the idea of a clothing company.

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An abrasion test used to measure the durability or abrasion resistance of fabric.The warp and weft threads are abraded simultaneously when tested.

Picture of Fabric abrasion tester:

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