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Fuel4Fashion

~ The official blog of Supriya Ghurye, Founder of a niche Freelance Fashion Designer Agency & Brand Consultant helping international start up fashion labels and growing fashion brands to plan and create great products from concept sketches to final launch.

Fuel4Fashion

Monthly Archives: June 2015

How to select the perfect fashion brand name in 7 easy steps.

30 Tuesday Jun 2015

Posted by Fuel4Fashion in Fashion Business

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

fashion blog, fashion brand, fashion design, fashion designers, fashion illustrations, fashion label, fashion world, fashionbrands, freelance fashion designer, logo, prints, proto, target audience

As you prepare to launch your own fashion label, you face the challenge of deciding on a brand name. While the fashion world is full of names that are easily recognizable, finding one that fits you and the particular segment of customers you are targeting can be a challenge that many first time fashion entrepreneurs feel overwhelmed with.

Coming up with a name for a fashion brand involves a lengthy process, and is not something that can be accomplished overnight. Here are a few steps that will help you structure that process and hopefully make it easier.

How to select a perfect brand name and logo

Selecting the perfect brand name and logo for your fashion start-up

Focus on your target audience

A brand should appeal to its target audience. What segment are you looking to appeal to – youthful, sophisticated, urban, and edgy? Your brand name needs to be a reflection of this key trait. This is why sports brands are usually short – Nike, Reebok, Fila, Puma – and so on. Torrid, a brand that focuses on large sizes for teenage girls and younger women, appeals to the romantic predispositions of this audience.

Determine your brand personality

Fashion brands tend to represent the personality of the designer, and it’s not surprising that many brands are the names of their owners themselves – Tommy Hilfiger, Calvin Klein, Donna Karan – but if your name is not as easy to roll off the tongue, you’re better off creating one that is a reflection of the personality – like Forever21 appealing to young women. A combination can also work if paired well, either individually or as a mash-up of the two words.

Be Innovative and edgy, but don’t go over the top

Many fashion entrepreneurs are disposed towards creating a brand name that a reflection of current trends or fads by being sharp and memorable, but this can backfire over time if the trends change. Being too edgy can also hurt, as the name loses its shock value over time – FCUK being a prime example, says Steve Manning of branding and naming consultancy Igor.

Watch out for Copyrights

While many find it tempting to use permutations and misspellings of common names, it might misfire if your audience doesn’t know how to spell your name correctly. If people can’t read, pronounce or remember a name it’s definitely the wrong one, so avoid names like Wynd, Phyre, etc. even though they might be tempting. And do check copyright and trademark registries to avoid taking one that already owned by someone else. Using a foreign word might be an interesting way to project your brand, but be sure there’s no one using that brand in the markets you are looking to target.

Simple Tests to Determine the Success of Your Brand Name

Alexandra Watkins, CIO of Eat My Words, a brand creation agency advocates two tests to determine if the brand name will be likely to succeed, which she calls the SMILE and SCRATCH tests. The test to check what qualities your brand name should have is the SMILE Test. Essentially it stands for

Simple – easy to understand

Meaningful – one which your customers easily relate

Imagery – creates a strong visual association

Legs – it should have the ability to stay relevant for a long time

Emotional – builds a bond, entertains, evoke a strong feeling.

The SCRATCH test is one to determine the qualities a brand name should not have. It stands for

Spelling – it should not be complicated to write or remember

Copycat – should not sound like or remind one of a similar brand

Random – one which has no association with the product

Annoying – evoking negativity

Tame – has very feeble associations

Curse of Knowledge – is understood only by insiders

Hard to Pronounce – If they can’t say it, they can’t remember it.

A good brand should be able to pass each of these tests, for it to be memorable.

Make Stakeholders part of the process

Once you’ve drawn up a short list of the brand names you’d like, share them with a small circle of influential people. These include investors, suppliers, your designer, employees and consider their opinion, although you should be the one to make the final decision. This helps you get an outside feel for the brand as well, and makes decision making easier.

Build a suitable image or logo to go with the brand name

The name is one part of the branding process. The logo and color palette that make up the logo are also part of the branding process. A suitable color palette and image will support and enhance the name, make it more memorable and easy to recall.

When we launched our business, the name came out of a simple understanding that we were here to help a fashion brand achieve its goals – hence the fuel that drives fashion brands, or simply put, Fuel4Fashion. The alliteration also helps us in building recall, and it simplifies what we do for our target audience, namely fashion entrepreneurs and growing fashion labels.

Building a brand takes time, and fashion brands require more due to the crowded nature of the market. But with a good brand name that represents the style of the clothes themselves, you are likely to build a stronger brand following and better recall as the years go by.


Supriya Ghurye is the founder and owner of Fuel4Fashion, the freelance fashion design studio for multiple product designing in apparels that caters to start-up fashion labels and growing fashion brands with a diverse portfolio of design services. She is a member of the Cherie Blair Foundation’s Women Entrepreneurship Program and has over a decade of fashion industry experience with international labels and start-ups.


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Art Prints Every Fashion Lover Needs

23 Tuesday Jun 2015

Posted by Fuel4Fashion in Colors & patterns, Styles & Trends

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apparels, colors, concepts, fabric, fashion blog, freelance fashion designer, pattern, prints, trends

When you scan the runways this season you may notice something bold standing out from every designer. Prints have made a big splash this season, but how do you mix and match patterns like a pro? There are a few go-to art prints that every fashion lover needs in their wardrobe. By curating just the right prints in your closet, you’ll be able to take any outfit from ordinary to runway ready.

1. Florals

As with most prints, there is a right and wrong way to wear floral. There isn’t much middle ground when it comes to styling this pattern. With florals you need to go either extremely bright or completely subdued. A bright neon floral should always be paired with a neutral to avoid looking too gaudy. You can follow Peter Som’s lead by matching a bright floral blouse with a black skirt as shown in his 2012 runway show. On the other end of the spectrum, a subtle, pale floral dress may look too boring alone. Use accessories to spice things up. Metallic shoes or a bright red lip can pull it all together. Try to view the print as your focal piece and build the rest of your outfit to highlight the pattern.

Floral Blouse from Peter Som

Peter Som’s Floral Blouse

Image courtesy : ManRepeller.com

2. Stripes

Stripes is a tried and true print for many of the fashion elite. Nothing is more flattering than vertical stripes and it’s hard to find something which can be styled in such a wide range of ways than a striped blouse. Stripes are one of fashion’s most versatile looks. From punk rock to prep, you can tweak this print in so many ways. Another benefit of stripes is it’s ability to play well with others. You can mix this pattern with another bold prints and look chic and discerning. Look to Juan Vidal’s Spring 2015 runway show for inspiration and you’ll be effortlessly stylish.

Striped Casual Suit by Juan Vidal from Spring 2015 runway

Striped Casual Suit by Juan Vidal

Image courtesy : Thebestfashionblog

3. Tribal

A newcomer to the print party, tribal print has been making a big statement all over the runways. With a huge rise in popularity in the last few years, tribal prints are everywhere. You’ll want to be sure you don’t look too trivial when wearing tribal, so choose a print that is bold and unique. Choose a well made fabric so the print doesn’t stretch and distort on the body. Mara Hoffman creates stunning tribal printed garments and is well known for her body-conscious swimwear, kaftans and bodycon dresses. It’s an excellent choice for someone looking to incorporate more tribal print into their wardrobe and are especially perfect for summer.

Tribal print dress by Mara Hoffman is a perfect mix of traditional printed married with the contemporary dress with stylishcut

Tribal print dress by Mara Hoffman

Image courtesy : Huffpost

4. Vintage

Whether it’s truly vintage or a contemporary reproduction of a vintage fabric, incorporating a reminiscent print into your wardrobe will make you instantly stylish. With the popularity of Mad Men, designer have incorporated vintage fabrics across the runways. Let everyone know you’re in touch with the trends by wearing a jewel toned jacket or retro patterned skinny pant. Pair it will a modern clutch and you’re sure to get jealous glances and compliments all day.

Vintage print jacket with a contemporary reproduction of a vintage fabric.

Vintage print jacket

Image courtesy : thebestfashionblog

Every fashion lover has a favorite print, but by adding these artsy favorites, your ensemble will look contemporary and noteworthy. Experiment with combining these prints with your wardrobe staples and mix them with each other to freshen up your look and make this your most fashionable year yet.

Author: Jane Blanchard is a blogger, home design geek, and graphic designer from Savannah, GA.  She currently writes for Modernize.com, the place where you go to get inspired, see what’s possible, and connect with a professional who will make your dream home a reality.


Supriya Ghurye is the founder and owner of Fuel4Fashion, the freelance fashion design studio for multiple product designing in apparels that caters to start-up fashion labels and growing fashion brands with a diverse portfolio of design services. She is a member of the Cherie Blair Foundation’s Women Entrepreneurship Program and has over a decade of fashion industry experience with international labels and start-ups.


 

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