Staying on Top of Current Trends

Following the current trends is unquestionably one of the most fun aspects of running a maternity boutique or store. It is also essential to your store’s survival and should be fully integrated into your store’s merchandising and buying roles. Today, moms-to-be do not want to sacrifice their style while they are pregnant. They want to look fashionable and put-together! Thankfully, maternity trends fall right in-step with ready-to-wear trends.
Since trends are constantly evolving, some will affect your business and some will not. This is the fun part – you get to decide which trends complement the vision of your store. Keeping on top of trends does not have to take a lot of time, but it does require a broad awareness on a few different levels.

Attend Markets

Maternity markets are in March, August, and October in Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, Dallas, and Atlanta. Plan to attend these three markets in the city that makes sense for you. These are very important because you will get to see the next season’s new merchandise and get a feel for new trends. This is an exciting and fun time that really sets the direction of your store’s merchandise for the next few months. Maternity markets are run concurrently with ready-to-wear markets. Plan to devote part of your time to look at ready-to-wear lines. Not only will you find many styles that will work for maternity customers, you will also get a feel for the season’s ready-to-wear trends.

Build Strong Relationships with Your Vendors

I cannot express how important this is! Without your vendors’ support, your store cannot succeed. Share your story, your vision, and your goals with them. Remember that your relationship with them is a partnership. When your store succeeds in selling a vendor’s merchandise, it is a win-win situation for everyone. Your vendors will be able to keep you on top of trends, insider industry information, key product information and selling and merchandising strategies.

Interact with Your Customers

What are they wearing? What are they asking for? Listen to them. Spend time in the store. Get their feedback on products you have in your store. In today’s fickle economy, it is in your best interest to take your customer’s feedback to heart. Staying in-tune with your customers will greatly benefit your business!

Log on

Subscribe to trend-tracking websites that send out daily or weekly trend updates. These will give you a leg up on trends and new product launches. Follow your favorite boutiques and product lines via social media sites. Keep an eye on celebrity baby blogs, celebrity mom blogs, competitors’ websites, and style and fashion websites. Bookmark a few of your favorite sites and check them every couple of weeks. This is a quick and easy way to stay updated on the fashion world.

Read

Dive into anything that you can get your hands on about retail. Newspaper articles, fashion magazines, women’s magazines, local business magazines, local lifestyle magazines, celebrity gossip magazines, and books. This will keep you in-the-know on numerous levels, all keeping your business moving in the right direction.

Shop

Check out your local boutiques and shopping districts. Pay attention to what products they are featuring, what colors are displayed, how the mannequins are dressed, what customers are trying on, and, well, anything that catches your eye! This is a great way to get inspired. You never know when you might find new products or merchandising ideas for your store.

It is essential to communicate your trends to your store. This is probably obvious but the time you put in here really pays off. You have purchased inventory based on your interpretation of the trends and your store or stores need to know how to put together these trends for your customers. Your store employees will love knowing the trends and being part of this process. They probably even have some ideas of their own to contribute! Trends are constantly evolving, especially in today’s retail landscape.

Editorial provided by Sara Afdahl. Sara is a mother of two children and the maternity buyer for Hot Mama boutiques. Visit www.shopmama.com for store locations and information.