Fashion Entrepreneurship: Retail Business Planning » (1st Edition)

Michele Granger is department head and an associate professor in the Applied Consumer Sciences Department at Missouri State University. Her involvement in business and fashion outside of the college includes membership in The Fashion Group International and the International Textile and Apparel Association, for which she was a recipient of the Special Recognition of Outstanding Fashion Merchandising Education Award.
Tina Sterling is the founder and president of T C Strategies, Inc., a marketing and management consulting firm specializing in entrepreneurship, strategies, research, and evaluation. She is a consultant and strategist to the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, the largest Foundation in the country with entrepreneurship as it primary area of focus. Sterling has facilitated workshops and consulted to both start-up and high growth companies throughout the country. She has served with the nation's thought leaders in entrepreneurship education, has been a judge for national business plan competitions, and served on various boards and advisory teams. Tina also serves as adjunct faculty for Stephens College, teaching entrepreneurship.

This text provides a background in entrepreneurship for apparel, accessories, textiles, and home furnishings business development. In addition, the text delivers the information needed to develop a comprehensive, effective business plan. The chapters include information on merchandising, operating procedures, human resource development, and financing. Further examined is the development of a fashion retail business from concept articulation to exit strategies. Included is a discussion of brick-and-mortar businesses, click companies, and service firms in the apparel and soft good sectors. The last chapter of the text presents a sample business plan.

• Taking the Road to Entrepreneurship
• Analyzing the Product
• Researching the Industry and the Market
• Strategic Planning from Entry to Exit
• Finding a Location for the Business
• Becoming an E-Trepreneur
• Strategy for Penetrating the Market
• Exploring Management
• Merchandise Planning
• Selecting a Business Entity
• Creating and Understanding the Financial Plan
• Developing Operating and Control Systems
• Planning Growth Strategies
• Constructing the Business Plan - Creating the Roadmap