- Useful Tips for Starting an Online Fabric Business
- How to Build a Fabrics eCommerce Website
- How to Optimize Your Online Fabric Store for SEO
- WooCommerce and Shopify–Which Platform to Choose?
- Online Store Setup Service
- Online Fabric Store Themes for Inspiration
- Conclusion
In recent years, due to various fashion trends, the number of small ateliers and private craftsmen has increased. Their business keeps growing since they offer a unique design that our modern society likes so much. If you adore interesting prints, colors, fabrics, and textures, you should definitely monetize your passion. Today we will talk about building an online fabric store.
Opening a fabric store is a very promising type of business that can bring significant profits. In addition, there are no age, seasonal, or geographical restrictions in this area. This is a business for a large city with a good number of potential customers, both retail and wholesale. It is important to provide a wide range of products and optimize the business to increase sales.
If you are thinking about opening a fabric store, please make every effort to maximize the potential of this business idea. You will have a number of questions ahead - what to start from, whether you need a business plan, what e-commerce platform to choose, how to attract more clients, etc. Sure thing, the hardest hump to get over is actually getting started. Let’s cover the most important questions for you to kick off and introduce a successful online fabric store to your audience.
Useful Tips for Starting an Online Fabric Business
- As a person who has a good eye for cloth and accessories, go through various fabric stores and evaluate the market. Define what you like and what you would like to avoid in your business. You need to be different to attract clients.
- Think over the name of the store and choose the domain name for your website. ‘Fabric store’ as a part of the name will make much more sense than just something like ‘Julia’s store’.
- A good business plan is an essential part of any business. Many novice entrepreneurs are afraid of it, because they do not know how to create a business plan and don’t understand why they should do it. The document will include information about the products and services, production, sales markets, market analysis, marketing, organizational structure, and financial productivity.
- Reselling applies to a variety of industry areas, and fabric is one of the simplest. Search for suppliers of the products you are going to sell. Study the offers, pay attention to their location, quality of the products, working conditions, and the purchase price. Look for a middle ground and read reviews to choose the best suppliers.
- Think over the content for your online store. This is very important both for optimization and for customer loyalty. Take quality photos of the products and include detailed descriptions.
- The promotion of an online fabric store is a key factor of any business. Increasing the targeted traffic and site conversion will certainly help to increase the number of orders and your overall profit.
Your online store selling fabrics can bring a stable income. The proper organization of all the work processes will lead to the first profit within 6 months. Remember, your potential customer loves innovation, loves different types of discounts, and actively participates in loyalty programs. Try to offer your target audience something that your competitors do not have. All doubts aside, take this niche right now to launch the best store selling fabrics!
How to Build a Fabrics eCommerce Website
You can be sure that you are running a fabrics eCommerce website effectively only if all the elements of the project are in complete harmony with each other. We have already gone through some effective points. Let’s check what exactly you should pay attention to.
- Once you have a computer connected to the internet, it is time to choose one of the platforms for creating an online store. Every business owner comes across a huge number of various platforms. And it is very difficult to choose one because they all have similar features, advantages, and disadvantages. Take into consideration popularity, working conditions, ease of installation and setup, functionality, SEO-friendliness, and support.
- The style and design of your online store selling fabric matters a lot. The design of the resource partly determines the popularity of the project, as it directly affects usability. The website should be not only beautiful, stylish, and memorable, but also practical, convenient, and functional. There are two ways to customize the web page design: either by using ready-made templates or by developing an individual project.
- Fill your website with the products you are going to sell. For each product, you need to create an individual card, fill in its description, upload images, and specify the price and delivery options.
- Once you add the products to the catalog, take care of the optimal payment options. Most web stores use several methods at once to satisfy various clients and their preferences. It is possible to set up payment upon receipt of the goods or with order via e-wallets or bank cards.
- When selling fabric online, decide on the shipping and delivery methods for your products. Do your best to be flexible and convenient for the customers. Cooperate with reliable shipping companies to deliver the goods in perfect condition.
Well, finally, your online fabric store is created, customers visit the site, and the products are sold. There is enough money to cover the development costs. The further course of actions should be focused on a qualitative analysis of the market and the promotion of your brand to keep up the great work.
How to Optimize Your Online Fabric Store for SEO
In the world of e-commerce, a tempo-battle is not just one of the components of a development strategy, but a necessity, a guarantee of dynamic growth in the face of rapid competition. Every site owner wants to get as much traffic as possible. You will sell fabric, and your store is no exception. More than 90% of users usually stop at the first page by clicking on a site from the top 5-10 listed in the search results. It is logical that the one who is higher in the search results will get more visitors. And it is better if it is you, not your competitor.
What is SEO and why is it important for online fabric stores? SEO (search engine optimization) is a set of measures to improve the site for the growth of organic traffic from search engines. When you sell fabric online, the SEO optimization of your business is an action aimed at making your online fabric store appear in the top 10 of the search engine's search results.
What kind of work does SEO optimization of an online fabric store consist of? Let’s check a few steps.
1. Optimization of the website structure of the online fabric store. A properly optimized website structure must match users' search engine queries.
- Create an intuitive and logical website structure that makes it easier for the visitor to navigate (Home -> Categories -> Product pages/Article pages).
- Make sure the navigation menu is always visible and displayed on all pages of your online fabric store.
- Use "breadcrumbs" to improve the navigation and usability of the site.
2. SEO-optimization of meta tags Title and Description on the pages of the online fabric store. The content of both tags is the basis on which the web page snippet is generated in search results.
- The content of the Title/Description meta tags must match the content of the web page and briefly characterize it.
- Use relevant keywords.
- Use conversion words like buy, price, reviews, and the name of the target city in the headings.
3. Create search engine friendly URLs. Proper URLs help robots and users understand what the page is about. Using 60-80 characters for the address of online stores is the maximum.
4. Image optimization for an online fabric store allows you to solve two main tasks: speed up the loading of the web pages and increase the amount of traffic due to the growth of clicks from image search.
5. SEO optimization of the main page. Make sure the menu block and one of your popular products catches the attention of your website visitor and encourages him to interact with your website. Under the block with the products, place a small text block with the main information about your store. Mention the main target queries that you would like to see in the search.
6. SEO optimization of product pages. The product pages are the main target and conversion pages on the site, so you need to give them a special role. H1 tag, meta tags, Title and Description, unique product descriptions, optimized photos of the products, social buttons, and much more really matters in this case.
7. SEO optimization of H1-H6 tags. They not only form the structure of the web page but also attract and focus the attention of search engines to your page.
8. Responsive design is not a brand, it is a necessity. Arrange the web page elements for convenient browsing on any modern device screen. It should be convenient to browse the website of an online store both on a large computer monitor and on a small smartphone screen.
9. Creation and optimization of «404 Not Found» page. A well-designed 404 page is able to keep the user on the site and engage him in further interaction with the web page. This is important since the loss of even a small number of visitors will become lost profit.
10. Improving page loading speed. Excessive load time has a negative impact on the behavioral factors that search engines take into account when ranking. For an online store, the recommended download speed is 2-3 seconds.
Basically, each project requires an individual approach, but these specifications above are some key elements to optimize an online store for SEO.
WooCommerce and Shopify–Which Platform to Choose?
If you are thinking of launching an online fabric store, now is the time to do it.
WooCommerce is a free, open-source e-commerce plugin developed specifically for WordPress. This is a great platform for stores of all sizes. WooCommerce has a number of features, such as different delivery and payment methods, customizable product types, and more.
How do you start an online fabric store with WooCommerce? Let’s review the process step-by-step.
1. Let’s pretend you already have a website on WordPress. First, install WooCommerce from the directory of free WordPress plugins.
2. Follow the on-screen instructions to set up WooCommerce.
- WooCommerce will notify you when you can create the main pages (products page, shopping cart, checkout, and my account) for your online store on WordPress.
- Set up the location, currency, weight, and unit of measurement for your store.
- Set up the delivery and taxes if necessary.
- Choose the acceptable method of payment for the product.
3. Now you can add and manage the products in your online fabric store.
- Add the products (choose product categories, attributes, and types).
- Management of the products means you can delete, edit, or duplicate them. You can also select multiple products so that you do not have to edit them individually.
4. WooCommerce management:
- Orders management (you can view and edit the purchases completed on your website)
- Coupon management
- Reports management
- Settings (main settings/delivery/payments/account/etc.)
Moreover, numerous beautiful WooCommerce themes are available to save you time. With just a few clicks, you can create an attractive design for your web store. All these premium solutions can boast of responsive design, intuitive admin, clear settings, and tons of customization tools.
WooCommerce is undoubtedly an excellent tool for turning your WordPress into a fully functioning online store. You do not even need to have a profound knowledge of programming to start making sales.
The alternative e-commerce platform to start an online fabric store is Shopify. It is one of the best platforms for creating online stores. Shopify is simple, clear, and convenient. The whole process takes little time and does not require any special skills.
Among its benefits, I would point out the following:
- You can manage the store from your smartphone.
- Shopify has integrated the largest number of payment systems.
- You have more than 500 add-ons to increase the number of sales and the quality of services provided.
- You can create a store without the participation of a designer or programmer.
To start working in a fully functional online store you need to go through a few steps like registration, setting up the store, design customization, adding products, selecting the payment methods, and choosing delivery options. That’s it!
If WooCommerce and Shopify are both great solutions for any online store, how exactly does Shopify differ? Let’s find out.
- If you do not have a website and need an all-in-one product, Shopify is a good catch.
- Beautiful Shopify themes are available for your convenience. No need to hire a designer to dress up your fabric store.
- Shopify’s pricing policy is very clear and straightforward.
- Shopify is very easy to use and beginner-friendly. Click the sign-up button and it will take no more than a few minutes to set up.
- The platform offers a number of additional apps to add more functionality to your store.
- Very good support is available 24/7.
At the same time, if you plan to sell complicated products with lots of variations, and you’re looking for the most cost-effective variant with full control of your web store, WooCommerce is the right option for you. Evaluate the needs of your business and pick the best solution for your specific preferences.
Online Store Setup Service
In the modern rhythm, people are constantly in a hurry. And fortunately, there are products and services that will help you to achieve a result with no hassle.
When talking about an online fabric store, it is worth mentioning Online Store Setup Services by TemplateMonster. Today you can order expert services to set up your web store promptly.
How does it work?
- You are providing essential information about your store (your web address, store details, currencies, taxes, shipping options, etc.), FTP and MySQL access or cPanel access, as well as content details).
- Experts will take 1-2 business days to set up your online store according to the instructions provided.
- You enjoy the result and share your feedback.
You are welcome to choose any of the four packages available.
| Quick | Classic | Premium | All-in-one | |
| Template Installation | + | + | + | + |
| Currencies, Locations, Taxes setup | + | + | + | + |
| Payment & Shipping Adjustment | + | + | + | + |
| Store Contacts & Logo Adding | + | + | + | + |
| Navigation (menu, links) Update | - | + | + | + |
| Products Import | - | + | + | + |
| Languages Installation | - | + | + | + |
| Google Analytics Integration | - | + | + | + |
| Home page + 5 CMS pages content update | - | - | + | + |
| Basic SEO & Speed Optimization | - | - | + | + |
| 15 Images of your choice from DepositPhotos.com | - | - | - | + |
| Content Writing Service | - | - | - | + |
| Extended On-Page SEO Optimization | - | - | - | + |
The services are helpful for those, who do not want to go through the complete process to set up a store on the web.
The developers will configure payment and shipping settings, update store contacts, and add your logo. Next, they will import your products, set up menu navigation, add your content, and create up to five new pages. Moreover, you do not need to worry about backend settings that include generating the robots.txt and sitemap.xml files and installing up to five languages. Another great thing - you will also get Google Analytics integrated for optimization of the store. That’s definitely worth trying!
Online Fabric Store Themes for Inspiration
A website is the face of your business on the web. I am sure you will agree that no one will be interested in a company with a boring, ugly, uninformative site.
A ready-made fabric store theme is an awesome solution to dress up your online fabric store. Ease of use, an intuitive customization process, and cost-effective time-saving layouts attract happier users.
Below I have listed a few brilliant themes for your online fabric store to improve the sales.
Thread And Needle - Sewing Store Modern Shopify Theme
If you are thinking about selling fabrics and all the stationery essentials, Thread And Needle is a great solution to try. With the help of Shopify visual builder, you can play with various layouts. Just add, reorder, and remove the sections. Your fabric business will stand out from the competitors with a set of powerful customization features and tools. You will be able to take advantage of banners, featured products, Instagram feed, testimonials, gallery, etc. Forget about code-related hassles, you will build your perfect website with a few clicks.
More features:
- Fully responsive design
- Multilingual
- Social options
- Ajax cart
- Google map
- Valid semantic coding
- Sorting options
- Documentation
Home Made - Hobbies & Crafts Multipage Clean Shopify Theme
Home Made is a creative and eye-catching solution for your online fabric business. Selling fabrics online with beautiful and intuitive design has never been easier. Are you curious about what exactly is inside? First of all, the theme comes with a fully responsive design. Anyone can order a product or service quickly and comfortably from a smartphone or tablet on the go. This is very convenient.
Moreover, the theme includes a customizable homepage with ready sections - banners, blog articles, gallery, map, product carousel, slideshow, etc. Sell fabric with Home Made design to be different.
More features:
- Cross-browser compatibility
- Parallax effect
- Valid semantic coding
- Multilingual
- Social options
- Ajax cart
- Add to wishlist
- Slider
Crafts Responsive WooCommerce Theme
Let more people know about your fabric business with the help of a beautiful website. The Crafts Responsive WooCommerce theme is here to help you complete the job with a few clicks. Whether you are opening a fabric store, starting one for crafts and DIY, or desire an arts and crafts store, this design is an excellent solution.
The theme is created with the help of Cherry Framework 4. Its options enable you to design any site, from a particular blog to a webshop. There are no design restrictions. Thanks to the WPML module, you will be able to translate the website content to numerous languages and expand your audience.
More features:
- Fully responsive design
- Intuitive navigation
- Clean coding
- SEO-friendly
- Google fonts
- Social options
- Detailed documentation
- Round-the-clock support
Fancywork Store WooCommerce Theme
Simple and intuitive design, soft and pleasant colors, great functionality, and tons of customization options come along with this theme. The main goal of the site is to show all the advantages of the company and its products or services. You will be able to adjust the theme to your business needs with no technical skills.
The Fancywork Store WooCommerce theme is optimized for search engines in order to obtain a better position in search results. Clean coding ensures pleasant customization. Enjoy selling fabrics online with a ready-made theme. More sales are ahead!
More features:
- Fully responsive design
- Cross-browser compatible
- Testimonials section
- Intuitive navigation
- Cherry Framework 4
- Portfolio
- WPML ready
- Google fonts
Sewing Supplies Shopify Theme
Make sure your talent and passion are well represented on the web. Start selling fabric online with a professional design that will please your customers’ eyes. Choose the Sewing Supplies Shopify theme to demonstrate catchy images and beautiful topical colors, arrange the items in groups, and offer a pleasant shopping experience.
Search engine friendly layouts of the theme are enhanced due to modern-day SEO standards. This increases the opportunities that they will be acknowledged on the internet, and your audience and sales will grow. Refer to the detailed documentation in case any issues appear.
More features:
- 100% responsive layout
- Cross-browser compatible
- Bootstrap framework
- Featured products
- Easy navigation
- Banners
- Live demo
- 24/7 support
Stitcher Shopify Theme
The Stitcher Shopify theme is your perfect choice that was specifically crafted for sewing stores. Save your time when starting a fabric store and choose the best products to succeed. The theme offers a fully responsive design and numerous customization tools. All the layouts are equipped with pre-integrated features, so you will not need any coding experience to deal with it.
Parallax scrolling effect will give your visitors an illusion of depth in the 2D spaces of your website. It will make your resource more vibrant and exceptional. Bootstrap guarantees an easy to modify environment. At the same time, you can rely on a professional support team in case you have any questions or concerns.
More features:
- Tabs and banners
- Slider
- Social media block
- Newsletter subscription form
- Google map
- Blog posts
- Documentation
- 24/7 support
Made with Love - Hobbies & Crafts Creative Shopify Theme
Try Made With Love to sell fabric online in the most attractive manner. An adaptive design is very important nowadays - your visitors will want to browse the website from any modern device. The developers of the theme have already taken care of 100% responsive design and cross-browser compatibility. Moreover, the theme features Parallax effect, blog module, Google map, slider, and other useful modules.
Share blogs, products, and promotions with your customers. Play with text columns and images. You can choose small, medium, or large, and add up to 6 blocks. Selling fabric online is not time-consuming any longer.
More features:
- Multilingual
- Social options
- Ajax cart
- Search form
- Google fonts
- Collections catalogue
- Newsletter subscription
- 24/7 support
Our selection of Hobbies & Crafts Templates and Themes is perfect for small businesses looking to launch or develop.
| Theme | Features | Vendor | Price |
| Thread And Needle - Sewing Store Modern Shopify Theme | Fully responsive designMultilingualSocial optionsAjax cartGoogle mapValid semantic codingSorting options Documentation | Zemez | $139 |
| Home Made - Hobbies & Crafts Multipage Clean Shopify Theme | Cross-browser compatibilityParallax effectValid semantic codingMultilingualSocial optionsAjax cartAdd to wishlistSlider | Zemez | $139 |
| Made with Love - Hobbies & Crafts Creative Shopify Theme | MultilingualSocial optionsAjax cartSearch formGoogle fontsCollections catalogNewsletter subscription 24/7 support | Zemez | $139 |
| Stitcher Shopify Theme | Tabs and bannersSliderSocial media blockNewsletter subscription formGoogle mapBlog postsDocumentation 24/7 support | Zemez | $139 |
| Sewing Supplies Shopify Theme | 100% responsive layoutCross-browser compatibleBootstrap frameworkFeatured productsEasy navigationBannersLive demo24/7 support | Zemez | $139 |
| Fancywork Store WooCommerce Theme | Fully responsive designCross-browser compatibleTestimonials sectionIntuitive navigationCherry Framework 4PortfolioWPML readyGoogle fonts | Zemez | $114 |
| Crafts Responsive WooCommerce Theme | Fully responsive designIntuitive navigationClean codingSEO-friendlyGoogle fontsSocial optionsDetailed documentationRound-the-clock support | Zemez | $75 |
FAQ
Fabric shops have traditionally been very profitable specialty retail operations as the markups applied to fabrics for retail sales can exceed 100 percent or more. Online fabric stores have all the chances to bring profit if they are set up and optimized properly.
Shopify comes with several SEO-friendly features right out of the box, but there is so much more you can do to climb up in the rankings. While SEO relies on keywords, it takes more than just sprinkling some keywords into your site's content to get your site ranking higher.
Products import is limited to 1000 simple products, i.e. products without options, attributes, or combinations. On top of that, you must provide a valid CSV file containing all the products. Afterward, you will be provided with the sample file complete with instructions on how to edit them.
The major advantage of purchasing a Shopify theme is the price. You get a high-quality design for just $20-$70. You do not have to hire a web designer or web design studio. The second advantage is the time frame. It usually takes 5-15 days for a good designer to produce a web page of such quality.
Conclusion
Hopefully, you have just received a short guide and the answer to the main question - How do you start an online fabric store?
From a technical point of view, opening an online fabric store means launching a website with photos and descriptions of products that visitors can add to the cart and order. It is important to choose the best e-commerce platform for your business to run an effective store. Today, there is no need to start building an e-commerce website from scratch. Ready-made web solutions and online store setup services will make it possible to start an online fabric store within a few days. Follow the tips provided in the article to be on the right track and enjoy the profit.
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