(You can check out my March vlog update here).

Hello, Jamina here! 🙂 As you may know, I’m starting a luxury slow fashion brand, JAMINA JOY, with help from the funded PTY Enterprise Pathway by Student Enterprise. I get to work on my business for a year instead of doing a traditional placement! Each month I’ll be posting a vlog or blog to share my updates.

What was I up to in April?

This month the second set of samples were made. Samples are products that the manufacturer makes to assess the size, fit, style and quality of the garments. This set of samples are made using the final fabric that will be in the collection. It’s important that the samples are finalised before going on to the manufacture the collection. I will now be embarking on the manufacturing of the clothing! This process may take up to 7 weeks before completion, but I’ve learned that patience is key.

In my spare time, I have managed to look at sustainable packaging for the product. It’s great to see more biodegradable poly-mailers available, but there is still much room for improvement! I hope to see more innovative and sustainable packaging options soon.

Goals for next month:

Next month I will oversee the manufacturing process and create content for social media. Additionally, once I receive the final sample, I can start organising a photoshoot for the launch. This will help me in marketing and promotion. Ideally, this was supposed to take place earlier this year. I had changed my mind about the manufacturer that I wanted to go with, which caused a delay. It’s very important for me to stay true to the core values of sustainability and slow fashion, which is why I made that decision. Different manufacturers also have different lead times which took some adjusting to, but still reserving a positive attitude is important.

I also need to do more research into the logistics of the business. This includes how the product will be stored, received, and shipped to the customer. Since it’s a small business, I can store the clothing from home and send it directly to the customer. This will help me save money on overheads as I won’t be needing a warehouse. However, if the business and inventory grow (which hopefully it does!) I’ll need to outsource a third-party to help with fulfilment.

My next steps:

Oversee the production of the clothing.

Create social media content.

Do more research on logistics.

Thanks for reading!

Thanks so much for reading. Check out the socials: linktr.ee/Jaminajoy