[COVER PAGE]
Business Plan for Fashion Boutique in the GCC
 
Table of Contents
Executive Summary
Industry Analysis
Company Description
Vision Statement
Mission Statement
Key Values
Products and Services
Legal Status and Ownership
Market Analysis
Market Segmentation
Demographic segment
Psychographic Segment
Target Market Selection
Buyer Behavior
Competitor Analysis
Mondanisa
Niswa Fashion
Economics of the Business
Marketing Plan
Product
Price
Promotion
Distribution
Sales Process and Tactics
Product Design and Development Plan
Operations Plan
Geographic Location
Management Team and Company Structure
Overall Schedule
Financial Projections
Sources and Uses of funds
Pro Forma Cash Flow
Pro Forma Balance Sheet
References
Appendix
 
 
Executive Summary
The aim of this report is to explore and outline the plan for launching a fashion boutique in the United Arab Emirates. The purpose of this fashion boutique is to produce and sell fashionable Arabic clothes in the local market. The product aims to satisfy customers both men and women who are looking to purchase fashionable clothes such as abayas and thawb’s respectively. The aim of the business is to grow and provide value to the customer in terms of unique product offering, sustainable fashion products and quality product.
Industry Analysis
            The fashion industry is one of the biggest and fastest growing retail industries in the world. According to Shahbandeh (2021), the global apparel market has been estimated to grow from an evaluation of $1.5 trillion in 2020 to about $2.25 trillion by the year 2025. According to (Iftahy, Mellens, Walia, & Youssef, 2019), in the Middle East, the fashion sale market is valued at $50 billion with the highest spending per capita (between $500 and $1600 per person) in Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates (Jain, 2021). These figures show that fashion clothing in the GCC, especially in the UAE is a promising industry and is growing at a faster rate which is advantageous for new players entering the market to provide fashion goods and services.
            The fashion industry represents a fragmented industry where many market players exist but no single player attains domination over the other. Clothing thrives on a variety of design options for consumers and with rapidly changing trends in fashion. New businesses are additionally empowered thanks to the low barriers of entry due to unique designs being a driving factor, pulling in customers looking for the new trendy designs and unique offerings.
            According to the Dubai Chamber of Commerce, clothing sales totaled $12.3 billion in 2018, growing 4.8% from the year 2017 and is projected to grow strongly through to 2023 (Mack, 2019). According to the report, womenswear has accounted for 34% of total sales, however it is projected to grow at faster rate for the forecast years of 2019-2023 at a rate of 4.9% compared to menswear at 3.8%. These estimates show that there is a growing demand for womenswear in the UAE.
            Additionally, a rising trend for fashion retailers is the adoption of e-commerce platforms for selling and marketing fashion products. The rising implementation of omnichannel distribution is evident as the result of one survey conducted by Briedis, Harris, Pacchia, & Ungerman (2019), shows that 6 out of 10 people use a minimum of one digital channel during their purchase of apparel garment. The survey further reported that omnichannel customer purchases were “70 percent more often than an offline-only shopper and reports spending more than $2,000 on apparel each year” (Briedis, Harris, Pacchia, & Ungerman, 2019). The United Arab Emirates presents the best environment to utilize the e-commerce channels as there is a high internet penetration rate among the population (99%) and the highest average spending per household on e-commerce ($2554), twice the global average (Iftahy, Mellens, Walia, & Youssef, 2019; Jain, 2021).
Company Description
The company, a fashion boutique, will produce original Arabic apparel for the UAE market and sell them via stores and online channels. The company aims to create Arabic clothes, the traditional abaya for women and thawb’s for men, with a focus on modern designs and embroidery that add to the stylistic value of the apparel. The apparel will feature a company logo and purpose its marketing as such to promote the attractiveness of the logo. The brand will focus on the following mission, vision and key values:
Vision Statement
“To inspire and empower generations of Arab people with fashion of their taste”
Mission Statement
“To introduce and inspire modernity and sustainability into the Arab fashion world by fusion of modern arts and cultural clothing of the Middle East.”
Key Values
The key values offered by the business to its customers is a unique product offering, sustainable apparel products and quality in produced works.
Products and Services
The boutique store will produce and sell various fashion apparel related to Arabic clothing such as a custom range of abayas, thawbs, and various other clothing accessories such as earrings, headbands, hijabs etc. Services will include custom fittings and alterations based on customer requirements that will be provided at minimal cost.
Legal Status and Ownership
The boutique store business will run under a sole proprietorship business structure. This is a project I am passionate about and I will dedicate all my time and resources to this business. Within a sole proprietorship structure, owners make all the important business decisions and have more control on the day to day of the business running. The benefits are that all income generated can be strategically used by me to re-invest into the business and create a brand that is closer to its customers and the values set by the business. In the future, based on growth rate, provisions will be made to expand the business by introducing partnerships to bring more capital investments and addition of management expertise to the brand and business.
 
Market Analysis
            In order to focus our marketing efforts and develop a strategic plan we identify the segments of the market our business will participate in. The following section identifies different sections of our conducted market analysis and details the Market Segmentation, Target Market Selection, Buyer Behavior, and Competitor Analysis.
Market Segmentation
Market segmentation is defined as the process in which our target market into different approachable groups based on four known categories: geographic, demographic, psychographic and behavioral. The two prominent segmentations chosen for our brand is described below:
Demographic segment
The demographic segment would represent the age, gender, and other demographic characteristics of the target population. Based on our intended products of modern clothes, our target demographic would be the age group of 18 to 32-year-olds, both males and females. This group represents the young population who would be looking for an addition of fashionable clothing choices to their wardrobes. Another demographic aspect would be the income group and based on our product pricing, our target audience would be working graduates and students with income of AED 9,000 to 20,000.
Psychographic Segment
This type of segmentation represents the psychological characteristics of the target market. For fashion customers, this segment would be represented by those that are outgoing, sociable, and who tend to value appearances when deciding on the purchase of their outfits. Another aspect would the attitude of the customer towards changing fashion trends where basic cultural clothes are altered to meet the needs of present fashion. Customers receptive to changing fashion trends would represent this psychographic segment.
Target Market Selection
            The segment that we specifically target is the psychographic segment that is based on customer lifestyles and values that will drive sales and attraction towards our brand. The target audience is hard to differentiate based on gender alone but however given the lifestyle choices and modern thinking of the youth, this target market represents the customers willing to embrace the change brought by our apparel products.
Buyer Behavior
            Insights into buyer behaviors have been researched from various resources online. Buyers of fashion especially the younger generation are looking towards reasonable prices but greater quality of products (Vogue Business, 2021)          . Additionally, the research shows that buyers are more attracted towards convivence of online shopping. Buying behavior has been known to be influenced by consumers peers and social media. Since the product offered by our company is not going to be overpriced or ultra-luxury, buyer decision making is more of variety seeking, where they would look for clothing that is unique and different from other brands in the market. Buyers are often influenced through social media and make a decision based upon visual imagery they come across about the attractiveness of the apparel. They would then look for sizes and fitting before making the final purchase.
Competitor Analysis
Our brand is a new initiative in the local market and thus it is hard to conduct competitor analysis in the local market. However, when compared with international brands, there is a level of competition due to already existing businesses aimed at modernizing Arabic clothing to suit the changing fashion needs of target audiences. Analyzing such competitors helps inspire new ideas and helps us develop strategies in order to gain competitive advantage over them.
Mondanisa
Modanisa is an online clothing retailer that focuses on stylish and modern modest clothing, offering worldwide delivery from its home country. As shown in Figure 1 below, the brand focuses on modernity and latest designs for women.

Figure 1: Modanisa Homepage (Modanisa, n.d.)
            On further detailed analysis, we learn that the company is limited in boutique locations, primarily focused on the UK market. Moreover, the brand focuses only on women clothing with no option for men. Although the brand has marketed itself as an international store that can ship products to any country, it lacks physical stores and an omnichannel experince where customers could potentially try out the clothes before purchase. Lastly, the clothing lines are missing cultural elements found in local dresses of the UAE and thus would not suit well with the wants of customer base in the UAE.
Niswa Fashion

Niswa Fashion was established in 2016, to provide customers with modest fashion for women with different modern designs (Niswa Fashion, 2021). The fashion studio is based in the state of Illinois, United States, with a physical branch there and sells in retailers in Canada and Australia (Niswa Fashion, 2021). The website also sells using its online platform and attracts customer using sales and discounts. The brand has an active following on social media with 165,000+ Instagram followers (niswafashion, 2021) and uses various promotion tools such as giveaways, affiliate programs and gift cards.
One drawback of the business is that it is primarily centered around women fashion, and although it has the right products, it is limited in geographical range of western countries. Our aim would be to bring modern designs to the GCC market while also catering to apparel for men.
Economics of the Business
Marketing Plan
The marketing plan for my fashion label and boutique business has been detailed in this section where I have detailed each aspect of marketing mix: product, place, pricing and distribution for the business marketing purposes. The aim of strategic planning is to help achieve the objectives of the business by understanding key marketing aspects to improve the effectiveness in marketing our brand.
Product
First and foremost, the product being offered to the target market is quality material, unique designs and clothing made out of sustainable practices. Our clothing products include formal and casual wear for both genders male and female and launch designs for corresponding seasons (Summer, spring, winter, autumn collections etc.) every year.  Furthermore, our product will reduce waste by incorporating recycled hangers and use of sustainable materials in the product. The product furthermore will have the brand logo to make it distinct from other clothing available in the market.
Price
Our pricing strategy to provide affordable prices compared to the big fashion labels in the market. Our clothing lines will have different categories with the everyday styles at affordable prices and the high-end occasion clothes such as wedding dresses and party dresses at a premium price. In order to enhance the attraction with customer and ensure sales of leftover stock, end-of-season/clearance sales with discounts up to 50% to ensure that the stock is cleared to make room for the upcoming seasons and new designs. Additionally, fitting services will be charged at fixed rates in addition to the purchase of the clothing product and dependent on the type of alteration required.
Promotion
For our promotion marketing we will use advertising such as billboards and shopping mall displays as well as promotion on social media. In-store and store displays of various clothing on mannequins will promote the prominent designs to the customers visiting the mall or passing nearby the shops. Additionally, social media influencers will be partnered with to promote our brand dresses in their posts to their followers. Emphasis will be placed on the brand logo to promote attraction towards the dresses based on built prominence and brand image.
Distribution
The distribution channel will be through our stores and outlets in various malls around the UAE. Given the increasing retail activity taking place in prominent malls across the emirates, we will strategically select and launch outlets in those malls. Furthermore, we will launch an online retailing platform that serves as a virtual store where users can browse our catalogue and order clothing from the comfort of their home and from anywhere in the UAE. Customers can visit the stores to try on the different sizes and request alteration based on their measurements by visiting one of our various stores found around UAE.
Sales Process and Tactics
            The sales process would involve directly selling to the customer. However, to enhance the relation with the customer and to assist in making a successful sale. Employees will be trained on good customer service and regarding various aspects of fashion such as color coding, sizing etc. in order to assist the customer and build in-depth knowledge of the product. Customers visiting the store will be greeted and shown the latest fashion designs. Interested customers will be shown catalogues and suggestions based on their requirements. Every successful sale will contain a follow up strategy such as the use of loyalty program and customer feedback request in order to improve the service and increase loyalty for future sales. Additionally, online sales will be enhanced through a referral program that rewards customers for sharing our products, which would represent word of mouth marketing.
Product Design and Development Plan
            In order to create the product, designs will be created from scratch with inspirations taken from various modern designs and colors. In order to create products that match with the wants of the customer, we will first conduct preliminary design, followed by an interview with fashion experts and conduct focus group studies in order to judge their perception to the new designs.
            Fashion design experts will be hired to create and decide on designs for each line of products corresponding to the seasons and themes for the year. Sketches will be prepared and vetted for final decision by the head designer. Once approved, prototyping will begin. This will be led by the manufacturing department of the company. Prototype dresses will be prepared and inspected for any manufacturing defects or further alterations.
            Initial production will include a few hundred units that will be used primarily for marketing purposes and to tease new designs prior to official product launch. Full production will take place once all outstanding issues with the current designs have been resolved.
            Product design in the fashion industry poses a lot of risks due to the emphasis on design and looks, more than the emphasis on functionality which is the objective of other products.  Thus, the products need to be designed in a fashion that does follows trends, and if a new trend is to be created, which would be profitable, we need to ensure that the design will be successful and does not ruin the brand image.
            Fashion is a competitive landscape where unique designs are the selling point for clothes. With increasing threats of copycats and copyright infringement in the fashion world, it is important to create protections to guard the creative works of our company. First and foremost, the brand logo and name will be the trademark used across all products and services. Appropriate legal channels will be used to register our trademark logo and name after selecting and ensuring no duplications exist with other trademarks. For our clothing products, to prevent copycats, we will apply for copyright protection on the range of products in order to protect our products from being copied and discourage copying through legal means.
 
Operations Plan
            Our business operations are divided into three activities. On the backstage, we would have the production and management operations, and on the front stage we would have the marketing operations and the running of the stores.
            The backstage activities would involve the setting up of production facilities to process fabrics into finished clothing apparel products. The management operation would be the hiring of staff and ensuring management of the company to ensure smooth running. Additionally, this would involve maintaining relationships with suppliers, dealing with them and ensuring that all management related issues are sorted out in a timely manner.
            On the front stage, our marketing operations will ensure that customers are well informed about our products and its value to the customer. Furthermore, marketing operations will include covering every research on the markets to develop and target new segments based on gained feedback. Lastly, the store operations would ensure that products are rightly stocked, dresses are correctly displayed, and customers are well interacted with to increase sales.
Geographic Location
            Our headquarters will be located in Dubai Design District. The location is strategic as it connects many other fashion, arts and design companies and talent from around the world and is well connected to various fashion events taking place in the country. It is near Downtown Dubai and close to Dubai Mall which gives us an advantage in being heart of the fashion related activities and managing the business.
            Our boutiques will be launched in various malls in the UAE such as Dubai Mall, Abu Dhabi Mall etc. Shopping malls are popular in the UAE and oversee much of the retail activity in the region. According to one survey, 6 out of 10 residents visit the mall once weekly and spend AED100-500 per trip with a majority spending on clothes and goods (Maceda, 2015). Thus based on our research, malls are the perfect place to attract customers for our business.
            Our manufacturing location will be situated in industrial areas such as Musaffah, to help lower the cost of transport and logistics. Industrial areas contain many other manufacturing businesses and suppliers and thus would be a strategic location for our clothes factory, reducing any risks of raw material shipping delays or logistical failures.
Management Team and Company Structure
The business would function under Sole Praetorship and thus would have a lean organizational management structure. This is due to the small size of the business initially. In due time once a high level of growth is achieved the firm will plan to expand into different company structure such as a corporation. However, in the beginning, the operation size will be small and thus the organization chart will be as detailed in Figure 2. A board of directors will be elected in the future once the firm has gained enough growth. They will be hired based on experience in the fashion industry and qualifications from reputed institutions and specializations that are advantageous to the organization. The company would additionally look towards hiring board of directors that are in line with the company’s vision and values, with the emphasis on sustainability. Additionally, strong ethical values would ensure that people working in the organization are inspired and pick up on those values, creating a strong ethical culture in the company.

Figure 2: Organizational Chart of our fashion startup
            Lastly, a board of advisors would be elected, consisting of individuals with years of industry experience in the world of fashion and fabric businesses. This would help bring more experience to the management aspects, enhance problem solving and help mitigate issues before a disaster can happen based on the insights of the board of advisors hired by the firm.
 
Overall Schedule
            The business plan has been categorized into 5 stages. The first stage would be the business planning stage whereby all business-related planning occurs including market analysis, product research and design, marketing planning and researching suppliers for the business.
This would be followed by incorporating the venture: capital will be raised over a period of 3 months to fund business operations. Once enough capital is secured, business, trademark and other legal registrations will be conducted. Facilities, office space and commercial space for the boutique store will be rented after that. Staff hiring will take place over the next two months and the website platform will be launched.

Figure 3: Project Schedule
            The next stages would be the development of the product and initiating the production processes for the clothing apparel to build inventory for the launch of the brand. Marketing will follow where social media ads and influencer partnerships will be used over a period of two months. During these two months outdoor advertising tools such as billboards, mall advertisements etc. will be used along with placed advertisements in fashion related magazines. On conclusion, the product will be launched along with the opening of the stores to sell the product to the awaiting customers. Detailed Gantt Chart is posted in Appendix A.
References
Briedis, H., Harris, T., Pacchia, M., & Ungerman, K. (2019, August 09). Ready to ‘where’: Getting sharp on apparel omnichannel excellence. Retrieved from McKinsey & Company: https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/retail/our-insights/ready-to-where-getting-sharp-on-apparel-omnichannel-excellence
Iftahy, A., Mellens, M., Walia, N., & Youssef, A. (2019, December 06). A closer look at the fashion industry in Gulf Cooperation Council markets. Retrieved from McKinsey & Company: https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/retail/our-insights/a-closer-look-at-the-fashion-industry-in-gulf-cooperation-council-markets
Jain, S. (2021, December 13). UAE ranks 14th globally in retail spending, survey shows. Retrieved from The National: https://www.thenationalnews.com/business/2021/12/13/uae-ranks-14th-globally-in-retail-spending-survey-shows/
Maceda, C. (2015, October 04). About 6 in 10 UAE residents visit a mall at least once a week. Retrieved from Gulf News: https://gulfnews.com/business/retail/about-6-in-10-uae-residents-visit-a-mall-at-least-once-a-week-1.1594705
Mack, B. (2019, August 26). Revealed: The value of retail fashion in the UAE. Retrieved from Gulf Business: https://gulfbusiness.com/revealed-value-retail-fashion-uae/
Modanisa. (n.d.). Modanisa. Retrieved from Modanisa: https://www.modanisa.com/en/
Niswa Fashion. (2021). About Us. Retrieved from Niswa Fashion: https://www.niswafashion.com/pages/about-us
Niswa Fashion. (2021). Retailers. Retrieved from Niswa Fashion: https://www.niswafashion.com/pages/retailers
niswafashion. (2021). niswafashion. Retrieved from Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/niswafashion/
Shahbandeh, M. (2021, January 22). Global Apparel Market - Statistics & Facts. Retrieved from Statista: https://www.statista.com/topics/5091/apparel-market-worldwide/
Vogue Business. (2021, August 20). Gen Z shopping trends uncovered. Retrieved from Vogue Business: https://www.voguebusiness.com/consumers/gen-z-shopping-trends-uncovered-pay-pal
 
Appendix


Units

Fixed Cost

Variable Cost

Total Costs

Revenue

0

150000

0

150000

0

100

150000

5500

155500

18000

200

150000

11000

161000

36000

300

150000

16500

166500

54000

400

150000

22000

172000

72000

500

150000

27500

177500

90000

600

150000

33000

183000

108000

700

150000

38500

188500

126000

800

150000

44000

194000

144000

900

150000

49500

199500

162000

1000

150000

55000

205000

180000

1100

150000

60500

210500

198000

1200

150000

66000

216000

216000

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