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Ask HN: Feedback our Startup Garmz.com - Start your own fashion label

17 points by andreasklinger ↗ HN
Hi all,

i know several HN members have a family and/or professional background in the fashion industry so i am really keen to get feedback :)

We do Garmz.com Garmz.com is essentially a webpage where you can start your own fashion label.

What we basically do is we provide online portofolios for upcoming fashion designers (think fashion students or young fashion designers).

They can upload their fashion designs and get feedback votings etc.

If we see demand for a product WE do the actual production and sell it in our webshop and in partner webshops.

We launched the very first version of our platform - nothing but an upload button - middle of june and recieved uploads from all over the world within the first week. (Hongkong, India, Brazil, USA, Kanada, Australia, Vietnam, All over Europe - like in a Bad Hollywood Startup Movie but for real)

We launched the Design pages end of July and recieved above 10k votes within the first few weeks.

The day before yesterday we published the very very first product and made it available for preorders.

We had the first pre-orders coming within the first hour we tweeted about it. But of course the payment system was broken. (GeekHighFive)

We are now shipping new products regulary and depending on pre-order we decide to do serial production for the stock or not.

We completely focus on the designers and try to do the products as good as we (or the industry) can.

The label in the back of the product is the label by the designer. We discuss the full prototype process with the designer to make sure we can realize the product in a way he imagines it to be. We share the revenue per piece with the designer (5% of shop price) but keep all the risk to us.

What we really want to do is to enable fashion talent.

We strongly believe that there are people out there with the ideas of the future of fashion and not the market possibilites to actually get them to the customer.

The Team is part tech geeks, part fashion production and part economics. The HQ is currently based in Vienna but will move to London within the next months. The products and prototypes are produced in bulgaria. Prototypes are done in house by our team members.

Link: http://www.Garmz.com

TL;NR: crazy startup tries to change fashion. Does crowdsourcing of fashion labels and their designs. Does actual production. Shares profit with the designer.

11 comments

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nithyad
This is a great opportunity for the designers for they can acquire a sense of what the market needs. Also, I am sure designers have a better chance of visibility using a service like yours than setting up their own online stores.
robfitz
Garmz was my fav company at Seedcamp this year. Looks & sounds like it's moving forward well -- congrats.
DevX101
So, you do marketing, production, distribution but only take 5% of retail price?

Sounds too low at first glance.

andreasklinger
the designer gets 5% we need the rest to cover the costs of the above mentioned + profit
Fdebong
Known you since ooooooh 1.5 years so I've seen your development. Impressive.

How's your network with fashion events and conferences, magazines and newschannels - would be a strong driver of fresh talent.

What other sales channels than own webshop have you thought about?

andreasklinger
> Known you since ooooooh 1.5 years so I've seen your development. Impressive.

Thanks Appreciate. Disclaimer to YCombinator - fdebong is squating our office today ;)

> How's your network with fashion events and conferences, magazines and newschannels - would be a strong driver of fresh talent.

Its hard work but we try to build it up. If anybody has contacts that might help please send me (or them) a short info. Thanks upfront!

> What other sales channels than own webshop have you thought about? We are in talks with other webshops. Currently its crazy future talk but we are very sure we can adapt to their cost structures (2011) and even go retail (2012).