Jennifer Cummer is a strong believer in strategic alliances. She opened Lüt Boutique a year ago, and during that time she has worked with artists, clothing designers and a business club for mutual promotion.

Located in Vancouver, BC, Lüt (rhymes with “Loot”) is located in the counter-culture fashion district of Main Street. The store has a wide-open, comfortable design with colourful paintings on the walls. A small seating area with stuffed comfy chairs in the back add to the welcoming feeling. Here you can buy designer t-shirts and jeans, office-acceptable wear and accessories by upcoming designers from Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal.

Jennifer’s journey into business started when she graduated from design school and started working in the industry, first as an intern and then assistant designer, for various companies.  She quickly realized that clothing design and retail go well together.

“It’s a nice marriage because you get to meet all different shapes and sizes of people, and you get to experience fit,” she says. “I really enjoy helping people find the perfect outfit, whether it’s my designs or not.”

Once she discovered a passion for working in retail, Jennifer knew she would someday own her own shop and design studio. But first, she wanted to learn how to run a business. She applied to the New Ventures business program, learned how to write a business plan, and applied for a Canadian Youth Business Loan (available to Canadian entrepreneurs 18-34).

When it comes to getting financing, Jennifer says, “Your business plan is worth its weight in gold.”

Her boyfriend is her silent partner and works full-time at another job. Jennifer notes it really helps to have someone earning money outside the business during the start-up phase.

Overcoming Challenges

Jennifer faced several challenges in opening her store. While putting together her business, the economy took a nose dive right into a recession. Businesses were hit hard  by it and several closed down. Jennifer put her plans on hold and went back to working for someone else.

After several months, the recession hadn’t improved, so they made the risky decision to open anyway. This forced them to be careful with their money, and throughout the year they cut labels that weren’t selling and worked on tweaking their business to ensure viability.

Another challenge was that they had to order inventory a season before they needed it in order to guarantee delivery. This meant ordering everything before they had secured a retail space or a client base.

As part of their business tweaking, they decided to open the business in stages. Now that the retail part of their plan is running smoothly, they’re getting ready for stage two: opening Jennifer's in-store design studio. They plan to have a small collection of about six pieces on the racks during the spring/summer season.

Research your location

Even before they went looking for a space, Jennifer and her partner figured out what size they needed and how much they could spend. Right away this eliminated more expensive areas of town, like Robson Street.

They also did a lot of research. If they found a place they liked, they checked online to see if it had ever housed a clothing boutique. This saved them from making bad decisions. For example, they discovered, by chatting with a former lease owner, that one place they were considering had low foot traffic and terrible parking.

They also spent days in the areas they were interested in, watching people walk by the proposed location. How many people were there? Do they fit the target market? Were they stopping to shop?

After five months of searching, they decided on the Main Street location. Much to their surprise, when they opened, the first 15 people through the door were local business owners welcoming them to the area.

"It's a little secret, a treasure, that we didn't know going into this neighbourhood,” says Jennifer. “It's something that, as a first-time business owner, I feel blessed to have these people watch my back." Even a year into it, she says, there's still a lot of checking up on them to make sure they're ok, and she appreciates the camaraderie.

Advertising

"We dabbled in traditional advertising," Jennifer says, "but the return on it wasn't great."

They realized their target audience doesn't pay attention traditional advertising, so they switched to social advertising, like having events in the store and joining a business organization for networking and possible strategic alliances.

They also booked an ad in the “Urban Shopping Guide.” It’s a company that puts out pamphlets showcasing local, store-front businesses including retail, restaurants and art studios. With a focus on local shopping, there’s a different guide for each neighbourhood. Jennifer sees people coming through her door with the pamphlet in hand.

Strategic Alliances

Jennifer views designer clothing as being a type of art, so it made sense to include an art gallery as part of her retail space. She showcases artists on her walls, and artisan jewellery, designer clocks, and cards throughout her store. It’s a win-win situation for everyone, and it’s so popular that her walls are booked six months in advance.

In addition to selling work by local artisans, Lüt has hosted a variety of other events in their store, including trunk shows, a fashion show, and Crave Vancouver’s fall networking event for young business women.

"We have this big beautiful space and the more interesting ways we can use it, the better, " says Jennifer.

Five Tips:

1. Before you own the business, work in the business.

2. Ask questions. Contact a business owner who is already doing what you want to do and ask them out to coffee.

3. Do your homework.

4. Love what you do. Running a company is not 9-to-5; if you don't love what you do, it's not worth it.

5. Delegate. You can't do everything. Let go of the control factor.