The Guide To Starting A Italian Shoes Business 

If you want to know everything about Italian shoes for men and women it's the article for you. Know what it's behind shoes business and Italian shoesmakers.

GIULIA ROMITI
Contributor

Introduction

Starting an Italian Shoe Business is an exciting plan. But to execute it perfectly, it is important to have a bulk of knowledge about every aspect of the business. Otherwise, the exciting idea can soon turn into a disastrous decision, and you may end up abandoning the business.

There are examples from around the world of success stories for this type of business. For example M.Gemi is a brand based in New York, which produces shoes in a small town in Italy. Same thing for Velasca, which has a worldwide distribution, but continues to produce in Montegranaro, a small town in central Italy.

Why this choice, wouldn't it be better to produce in China or somewhere else? The truth is that Italian shoes makers have an incredible knowledge of the product. If you choose to produce in Italy, you can make use of skilled Italian shoes designers and real masters of production.

So before you jump on the grounds of doing business, it is better to map out the process of starting an Italian Shoes Business so that you don't fall out of the path and navigate to the destination of establishing a great business.

This blog is a step-by-step guide for you to discover how you can start creating successful made in Italy shoes. 

Find out about the market

To run a business properly, you must have complete knowledge about its various subjects. It requires a lot of research and project analysis.

Setting up the production of shoes is not the sole thing required to run your Italian shoes business. Rather, you must define your target audience and figure out every single detail of the industry that can affect your business.

Things you must cover in the first step 

● Cost of Materials and Manufacturing
Obviously, the more you enter into high quality shoes, the higher the budget you need to start your business. The industry of Italian Shoes is a competitive arena and requires you to spend on experienced designers, pick accurately your shoes manufacturer.

But you should always keep the budget closer to what you can afford and make a decision accordingly.

● Ongoing expenses
Learn about the ongoing expenses that you and the owner of an Italian Shoes Company have to pay. Some of them are -
1. Materials for shoes
2. Production/manufacturing charges
3. Retail space
4. Marketing/website costs
5. Employee salaries

● Define your Market
Research well on what type of customers you want for your business and continue with the manufacturing of shoes dedicated to the defined audience.

You can choose to start a shoe line that serves people who demand designer shoes and can run a secondary line that serves customers who prefer to buy inexpensive shoes.

But keep in mind which type of shoes you want to produce. They can be leather shoes, heels, boots and sandals: each pair of shoes has its own specificity.

● Choose your niche
You need to choose a niche before you start any kind of business. This will help you focus on what you do best. It also prevents you from wasting time in things you aren't good at.

It is important to ask yourself the right questions before starting, as well as not to hesitate too much, because certain answers only mature with experience.

To start you have to think about your business model: how can I generate revenues? What is the optimal selling price? What is the margin, and what are the costs? These are all fundamental questions you need to ask yourself.

After investigating every question and collecting the needed information, you'll have a solid base to move further. 

Where Do They Come From? - Choose your product line and production

Since now you have a defined customer base, you can decide on a shoe line that you think can produce better results for you as a business.

This would require you a little more research so that you can choose a profitable shoe line or the one you have enough knowledge of.

Choosing a product line is essential for you before stepping ahead, as then you must decide whether to go into production yourself or contract with another manufacturer.

To produce your own shoes, you'll need to choose between two options:

1. Wholesale
2. Retail

Wholesale means selling directly to retailers, while retail means selling through stores. Wholesale is usually more expensive than retail because you pay a commission to the retailer. Retail is less expensive because you only pay the cost of materials and labor.

Choose your distribution model

It is crucial to consider what kind of distribution model you will use to sell the Italian Shoes of your brand.

Decide how you want to sell the shoes, whether you want to sell them online or through brick-and-mortar locations. It will also include looking for suppliers that help you deliver your goods to the final customers.

Also, understand how you can monitor the quality of the shoes sold under your brand name. If you're attempting to build a wholesale Italian Shoe Business, you need to work directly with factories to make sure that the manufactured shoes meet your quality standards.

In the other case, if you're manufacturing yourself and want to sell through retail outlets, you must perform your own quality checks.

Start the production

It is the step where you will start manufacturing shoes for your brand new shoe line. If you choose to manufacture the shoes yourself, you will be required to set up a manufacturing facility where you will produce shoes and take them out for sale through your chosen suppliers - retail or wholesale.

You can also choose to get the production done through a third-party manufacturer that will reduce your upfront costs of setting up a manufacturing plant. 

This is the strategy used by many brands, including important ones such as Giuseppe Zanotti, Sergio Rossi, Salvatore Ferragamo or Alessandra Milano.

Do you want to sell or buy italian shoes?

If you are already into the Italian Shoe Business and looking for a great marketplace to sell them, Ad Hoc Atelier is the best marketplace to sell Italian shoes online.

We are a popular online marketplaces known for Ethnic Italian Products, where you can list your Italian Shoes for sale and fetch a great response from users. It'll add another great point of sale for your business that will increase your revenue multiple times.

If you are looking for inspiration, or you want to buy a pair of shoes manufactured in Italy for yourself, you are in the right place. We have a wide range of brands for men and women, which produce exclusively in Italy, following artisanal productions. Come and discover us and learn the secrets of the best Italian shoemakers.

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