Opening A $102K/Month Boutique Business (See What It Takes)

For fashionable entrepreneurs, opening a clothing boutique is a great way to turn your passion into a career. That’s what Lee Smith did when he opened Urbanity.

Lee was a fresh college graduate when he started Urbanity in 2009. He saw an underserved market in the Seattle retail sector for one-stop style and aimed to fill that niche. In the years since, he’s expanded to two locations and built a reputation as a top Seattle source for exclusive products from top fashion brands.

In this video, we’ll get the inside scoop from Lee on how to start a clothing boutique. We’ll find out how much it cost to get started, how to market your boutique to build a client list, and how Urbanity stays on top of fashion trends and gets exclusive access to unique brand-name inventory for their customers.

Along with their brick-and-mortar locations, Urbanity has an eCommerce portal on their website. We’ll ask Lee his tips for starting an online boutique and setting up the eCommerce side of a fashion retail space. He’ll also share his revenue figures and what percentage of his sales come through his online store, along with strategies for increasing traffic and growing sales both in-person and online.

If you want to get into fashion retail, the advice in this video can help you go from the idea stage to “I’m opening my boutique today!” You can learn more about Urbanity or check out their inventory at their website.

Resources:

Timestamps:
0:00 Intro
1:58 Meeting Lee
3:46 Initial Budget
5:16 How Long It Took To Break Even
6:25 Tips For Getting Financing
7:27 Monthly Revenue
9:12 Advice for Finding Clothing Boutique Brands
10:21 Profit Margins
12:02 eCommerce Site Revenue
13:46 Inventory That Doesn’t Sell
15:10 Social Media
16:45 Being An Exclusive Boutique Store
18:19 Choosing a Location
19:13 Inventory Management
20:38 Staying Ahead of Trends and Competitors
21:40 Cost to Run a Boutique Store
22:26 How Lee First Got Customers
24:43 Advantages of Having a Brick and Mortar Store
25:18 Initial Store Buildout
27:27 Biggest Challenges Lee Faces
28:22 Contracts and Collaborations
29:23 When A Celebrity Wore His Brand
30:40 Hiring Employees
31:23 1 Thing He Hates as a Business Owner
32:24 Tools To Find Brands and Trends
33:14 Skills That Contribute To Success
35:47 Advice for Entrepreneurs

#boutique #clothingboutique #openingaboutique

[clau-det]

I love that he asked the IMPORTANT QUESTIONS. Never seen a channel go this in depth before. Great content

[ashevillecomics]

Great stuff man. I'm on store number 4. I blew a fortune on the first store, learned so much from that experience. That build out, for less than 1000 sq ft, cost over 100k. The second store cost 25k for a store twice the size. We custom build all out shelving, but it's raw plywood mostly so much cheaper than finished wood.

[kirstyrichardson]

I was so apprehensive when I seen this video pop up on my feed, I thought it was going to be eye rolling egotistical. Was not expecting how realistic, humble and passionate this guy turned out to be. Currently staring my own business, found this really inspirational and helpful. Thank you!

[SANNAsewglam]

I have been in business for 22 years. Custom clothing. Always enjoyed it but now I plan to join my sister to create a boutique! This has been the Best and Detailed info since business school. Now I am really excited to start this new venture with My Sister! Cheers!

[saintamongstthecowboys]

If anybody sees this. I am extremely thankful for the information provided in this video. I plan on taking my brand to a similar vision as this one. So thank you Lee

[mannie]

Amazing Youtube channel. I love it when you guys divide sections of the video so I can skip to different parts of the video. Thanks!

[cirodimarzio]

This channel is really beneficial. Learnt a lot from watching these vids...Keep doing your thing

[roberts.]

This is the type of content I want, in depth 🔥

[j.r.]

Thank you SO much for this content and kudos to the business owners who are humble enough to share knowledge. I’ve tried asking these kinds of questions to business owners out of interest and curiosity and so many get paranoid that you will steal their ideas or become their competitors. I was genuinely interested in their stories and the process… not necessarily their industry. This channel is awesome and so inspiring. I always enjoyed Shark Tank but had so many questions about how you get to that point where you’re ready for an investor and this channel answers so many questions. Please keep up the good work. I looked for the podcast because I’d love to follow but did not find it :(

I looked for the podcast on pandora and nothing.

[bhjoshscentz]

This video is the answer to my prayers. 🙏🏾❤

[robfogleman]

Thanks for the video, dropping real world gems for small business retail start ups!

[DaveyGoCrazy]

250k loan just from a business plan ?!

[MILABRRA]

HE SEEMS A GENUINE GUY MORE POWER TO HIM

[officialmichaelhudson]

Amazing video! I’ve Known Lee for years and he’s the real deal! 🔥

[RochaFella]

Finally a video that covers the important aspects and actually gives you great information! Thank you! I just want to know how do you decide what sizes to get if you only offer 1-4 of an item?

[sheaverbois]

First and foremost, this video gave me awesome insight. Im trying to bring a similar style shop to my hometown and it would be a first so that's big, but my question for Lee is, when you are moving towards a startup or starting a small business, would you recommend looking for investors, silent partners, or a small business loan? Reason I'm asking is because I have very little capital, so I'm worried I will have a hard time getting the loan. Ive ran my own Salon and was a hairdresser for 11 years so I feel like I've got some knowledge of how to make the experience people get top notch. I've just never been great with numbers, so its intimidating asking investors or a financing company not knowing the procedures to say the least. Sorry for the small novel, Im just thankful I stumbled on this video. It was the spark I needed to get this thing going.

[beckaful]

I'm opening A blue jean clothing boutique store 🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉

[Bythebartalk]

How did he get a quarter mil at 23 with a business plan, what collateral did he use? Who helped him

[finnyluccimusic]

I have watched this many times over. It's a very insightful interview. But just quickly let's do some numbers. All following figures are estimates based on what he says in the video. He says it costs around $240, 000/year for rent, $600, 000/year for inventory, and let's say $100, 000 in wages. The store makes $1, 200, 000/year in sales. That means $1, 200, 000 - $940, 000 = $260, 000 excluding other expenses/costs. So let's assume he does around $230, 000 in profit per year. Minus tax expenses @ USA's rate of 21% and he is left with $181, 700. For a company that turns over $1, 200, 000, that seems like a very small amount. Am I wrong in thinking this or am I doing these calculations incorrectly?

[MilaRoseCo]

Who else watches from beginning to end? 🙋🏻‍♀️