text: Looking to maximize sales for your apparel business? These 10 tips will help optimize your apparel business so you can meet customer demand, cut costs, and drive sales with Shopify's order management solutions.
  1. Expand your customer base
  Given that apparel is one of the most competitive industries in ecommerce, selling on top marketplaces such as Amazon, Walmart, eBay, and Etsy can be a game-changer for your brand. Easily list your products and centralize order management across all channels using Shopify Marketplace Connect. Automatically populate apparel fields to easily list your products on Amazon.
  2. Forecast inventory demand
  Once your sales channel strategy is in place, use Shopify’s inventory reports to analyze historical data and forecast demand during promotional periods. Identify bestselling products, and maintain optimal stock levels to avoid overstocking or missing out on sales opportunities.
  3. Replenish inventory in advance
  Engage with suppliers proactively to secure inventory in advance, allocate stock according to demand forecasts, and streamline replenishment across channels using purchase orders within Shopify.
  4. Avoid stock-outs
  Popular apparel items drive sales but also lead to frequent stock-outs, posing challenges for brands and disappointing customers who may turn to competitors. To counter this, maintain safety stock levels to handle sudden spikes in demand during promotional periods or unforseeable supply chain disruptions.
  5. Offer fast and affordable shipping
  Now that you have your inventory plan in place, reduce costs by optimizing your shipping and fulfillment strategy. 90% of US consumers expect delivery in two- to three-days, while 30% now expect same-day delivery. Use Shopify Shipping to integrate with multiple carriers, giving your customers access to faster and more flexible shipping options at the lowest rates.
  6. Reduce shipping delays
  With such high expectations for fast shipping, fulfilling your orders efficiently is key. Customize your fulfillment allocation to suit your business needs using smart order routing. Automatically prioritize fulfillment locations, assign orders to the nearest facility, and minimize split shipments to decrease shipping delays and expenses.
  7. Improve inventory accuracy across markets
  If you sell across multiple markets, you can further expedite fulfillment, reduce overselling, and avoid manual order cancellations with Shopify’s fulfillable inventory feature. Sell globally with confidence, ensuring customers see and purchase only items ready for shipping to their location from your Shopify store.
  8. Automate for faster fulfillment
  Another way to eliminate manual tasks when processing orders is by leveraging automation. Shopify Flow, Shopify’s automation tool, helps you efficiently categorize orders by shipping method to speed up fulfillment during busy promotional periods. Use a pre-built template to automatically tag orders by shipping method, allowing you to easily prioritize fulfillment for customers opting for expedited versus standard shipping.
  9. Keep customers coming back
  When bought online, apparel experiences the highest return rates, potentially reaching up to 26%. Despite the challenges this brings, offering seamless returns can set you apart competitively. Implement Shopify’s self-serve return solution for customers to easily initiate and manage returns on your online store, enhancing brand credibility and driving repeat purchases.
  10. Scale your business efficiently
  If you’re experiencing substantial growth in order volume or anticipate significant spikes in sales, consider outsourcing fulfillment to a third-party logistics partner. Shopify makes it easy to outsource fulfillment with our trusted logistics partner, Flexport, through the Shopify Fulfillment Network app.
  Benefit from competitive storage rates, tap into an extensive network of distribution hubs, and provide customers with dependable 2 and 3-day delivery options.
  Feature image by Midjourney