Today we have a guest entry from Jollyhers. For Jollyhers years, Jollyhers was the editor in chief of Earnshaw’s magazine, the leading business publication for cheap clothing for children . In that role, she advised designers and retailers on industry trends, best practices, sales insights and fashion cycles. Her readership and contacts spanned independent start-up brands to multimillion dollar design houses. She’s attended countless trade shows and market events both here and internationally.
First before you put pencil to drawing board or even consider making samples, you have got to do your research. Research, ugh. At the very mention of the word, I can just picture your eyes glazing over (That is those of you who didn’t immediately slam your laptops shut!). You don’t have to admit it; I’ve seen this reaction countless times. Research isn’t fun, sexy or creative. But it is essential. Quite randomly, I recently met someone who holds a patent for a juvenile product design. She enthusiastically told me about her product and then asked for my advice. What did I say? Well, buzzkill that I am, I suggested she do some market (wait for it…) research to determine what’s currently out there. To which she groaned. Out loud. To my face. Somehow I managed to hide my exasperation when what I really wanted to say was, “I’m sorry for trying to spare you boatloads of money and time only to find out there’s no market for your product or conversely that there is and it’s proven by the over saturation of the category.” Honestly, her unwillingness to even discuss doing the legwork saved me a lot of energy. Needless to say, I didn’t offer up my contact information. Even though I’m a consultant and therefore always open to new clients, I want to work with people who are serious.

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