Meaghan Brophy

You want to start a clothing business, but what does that mean? Clothing businesses take many forms—you can sell to consumers or to other businesses, you can offer high-fashion designs or cater to those looking for a bargain, and you don’t even have to design clothing yourself. There are many retail business ideas to help…

Direct-to-consumer or DTC ecommerce is a retail model in which a business designs, creates, and sells its products to the end consumer. DTC has increased in popularity over the last 10 years, largely due to prominent startups like Warby Parker, Casper, and AllBirds that follow this model. But while high-revenue startups have popularized the DTC…

Affiliate programs are one retail marketing strategy you can tap into to drive awareness and sales. It’s essentially a win-win professional relationship: Affiliates promote your brand, and you only pay them when they’ve successfully made a referral. The benefit for retailers is that you don’t have to pay them until they’ve successfully done the job….

Cycle counting is a proactive and dynamic approach that allows retailers to maintain precise inventory records, identify discrepancies, and drive continuous improvement—key components of effective inventory management—without disrupting daily operations. In this post you’ll learn the importance of cycle counting for retail, how it can help your retail business, and how to do it in…

SEO, or search engine optimization, is the process of making your business and website more findable via search platforms. SEO is an important component of your retail marketing strategy, especially since a majority of consumers begin their shopping journeys with an online search. When it comes to retail SEO, there are two primary goals: driving…

Poshmark is an online marketplace with nearly 8 million active buyers. It allows individuals to buy and sell new or used clothing, shoes, accessories, and other fashion items. Poshmark is known for its social commerce model, where users can create their virtual closets, follow other users, and engage in social interactions within the platform. It’s…

The small business landscape is changing faster than ever before. 2024 promises to be marked by shifts in financial strategies, technological adoption, and a heightened awareness of societal needs. Check out five new business trends to anticipate so you can stay ahead in the competitive market—from innovative financing solutions to the growing importance of social…

PayPal has nearly 400 million consumer accounts and 35 million merchant accounts, making it the largest online payment processor in the world. On January 25th, PayPal announced six new features during a highly advertised “PayPal First Look” video event. The premise was that PayPal would “revolutionize commerce.” These new features primarily involve artificial intelligence (AI),…

The small business retail environment is competitive, especially as local retailers fight for shoppers’ attention in a sea of big box retail stores. One way to stay competitive is to integrate technology into your business—and to keep an eye on technology trends in retail so you can stay ahead of the game. As we step…

Among the many legal and regulation considerations when starting a retail store is compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which safeguards accessibility. For brick-and-mortar operations, this involves making achievable accommodations in your store’s exterior, interior, and employer requirements. Ecommerce businesses should also take care to stay ADA-compliant—in fact, ecommerce made up 79% of…

Sortly offers user-friendly software for managing and tracking your inventory across multiple locations and a highly rated app for mobile scanning and reporting. It also has a completely free plan and three other affordable options to support your business as it grows. In my review of the best free inventory management software, Sortly landed on…

Selling on Amazon is a great way to tap into an existing audience—as the world’s largest online marketplace, it has over 310 million active users worldwide. However, to be competitive, businesses selling on Amazon need to go beyond simply finding a product and publishing it for sale. To really move the needle, you need great…