Building a Lingerie Brand: 14-Step Business Blueprint

Selling underwear is easy. However, creating a lingerie brand that people love and trust requires vision and careful planning. The global lingerie market is booming, expected to grow from $100 billion in 2025 to $147 billion by 2030. This growth is because customers now care more about comfort, inclusivity, sustainability, and expressing themselves, not just how lingerie looks.

This report provides a comprehensive 14-step roadmap to guide aspiring founders from a nascent idea to a thriving, competitive lingerie brand. We will dissect each stage, from foundational strategy to operational excellence, equipping you with the data-driven insights and actionable steps needed to succeed.

Stage 1 - Foundation & Ideation: Build Your Brand

Step 1: Find Your Unique Focus

In a crowded market, trying to sell to everyone means no one will notice you. By focusing on a specific niche, your new brand can utilize resources, create a clear message, and build a loyal customer base. Today's customers want more than just clothes; they want products that match their lifestyle and values, which creates many promising niches in value, not just in products.

Top Growth Niches:

• Sustainable Lingerie: This niche is growing fast. Consumer interest in sustainable lingerie has increased by 65% since 2022, and 78% of shoppers are willing to pay more for eco-friendly options (e.g., organic cotton, TENCEL, recycled fibers).

• Plus-Size & Inclusive Lingerie: This is now a major market. The global plus-size clothing market is expected to reach USD 412.39 billion by 2030. 69% of Gen Z prefer brands supporting body inclusivity.

• High-Performance & Athleisure Underwear: The global athleisure market is projected to hit USD 662.56 billion by 2030, offering technical features like moisture-wicking and temperature control for comfort during activity and daily wear.

• Luxury Lingerie: This segment, predicted to hit $22.19 billion by 2031, focuses on premium materials like silk and fine lace with detailed craftsmanship.

Step 2: Profile Your Target Customer

Defining your ideal customer enhances your brand's connection, influencing everything from product design to marketing messages.

Building Your Buyer Persona

To create a strong customer profile, base it on research, not guesses. For a new brand, this means studying your niche, looking at competitors, and talking to potential customers through surveys and social media. Key parts of a good persona include:

• Demographics: Basic details like age, gender, location, and income. For example, urban millennials who are digitally savvy and have more money to spend.

• Psychographics: This is where you uncover the "why" behind their choices. What are their values, goals, and personality? Do they care about sustainability, or are they more interested in style? Do they see lingerie as practical or empowering?

• Behaviors: How and where do they shop? Are they influenced by social media (KOCs and KOLs)? Do they prefer online shopping and multi-channel experiences?

Understanding the Modern Lingerie Consumer's Priorities

1. Comfort and Fit are Non-Negotiable: This is essential. Numerous studies confirm that 85% of women and 62% of all shoppers say comfort is their top concern.

2. Function, then Fun: Most buy for practical reasons (76%), but style, color, and unique designs are becoming very important, especially for younger buyers.

3. Values Drive Loyalty: Consumers care what a brand stands for. 57% prefer brands promoting equality and inclusivity, and many will pay more for sustainable products.

Step 3: Define Your Brand Identity

Your brand's identity links your niche, customer, and product using consistent visuals and words to show your unique value and build trust. Your chosen niche and target customer directly shape your brand identity. 

Key Parts of Brand Identity:

• Brand Name, Logo, and Slogan: These are the most recognizable parts of your brand. They should be memorable, easy to say, and show your niche and customer. A simple logo is often best.

• Brand Story: The Heart and Soul: This explains why your brand exists and connects with customers emotionally. It's the core of your brand.

• Core Values: Your Brand's Compass: These are the fundamental principles that will drive your business decisions. They must be real and shown consistently. For a sustainable brand, values include transparency and eco-friendliness. For an inclusive brand, values include diversity and empowerment. These values are promises to your customers.

Step 4: Preliminary Business & Financial Planning

To build a strong business, you need a clear financial plan. Before designing anything, know your starting costs and how you'll manage your money.

Startup Costs:

• Product Development: This includes costs for design services (if outsourced), the creation of tech packs, and the sampling process.

• Production: This includes sourcing raw materials and the cost of manufacturing, which will be heavily influenced by your partner's Minimum Order Quantity (MOQ).

• Marketing & Branding: Website development, professional product photography, content creation, and initial marketing to drive traffic and awareness.

• Operations: This includes recurring costs such as e-commerce fees, custom packaging, storage, and shipping.

Funding Strategies:

• Bootstrapping: Using your own money. You have full control, but growth might be slow.

• Small Business Loans: Getting money from banks. You'll need a strong business plan.

• Venture Capital/Angel Investors: For high-growth brands, outside investors can provide funds for faster, larger launches. This requires a compelling pitch and a clear path to profit.

Stage 2 - Product Development: From Concept to Tangible Reality

Step 5: Product Design

Product design turns your brand's ideas into a detailed plan for manufacturing, ensuring quality. The process includes:

The Creative Workflow: From Mood to Blueprint

1. Mood Board: A visual guide for your collection's look, feel, and colors.

2. Sketches and Renderings: Initial drawings showing garment details from different angles.

3. The Tech Pack: A crucial, detailed instruction manual for the factory. It includes:

• Technical drawings with construction notes.

• A list of all materials (Bill of Materials).

• Precise measurements and sizing rules.

• Color specifications.

• Instructions for how the garment is made.

• Placement of labels and packaging.

A good tech pack prevents mistakes and delays and is essential for apparel manufacturing.

3D Digital Revolution in Lingerie Design

Making physical samples used to be slow, costly, and wasteful, often needing many tries to get a design right. Now, 3D design software is changing this. Designers can create virtual versions of garments, offering big benefits:

• Faster Development: Designs can be changed and approved in hours or days instead of weeks or months.

• Better Fit: Digital simulations help fix fit issues early, leading to more accurate first samples.

• Less Waste: Virtual sampling drastically cuts down on physical prototypes, saving money and greatly reducing carbon emissions, water use, chemicals, and textile waste.

Step 6: Choosing Materials

The fabric you choose shows what your brand stands for. It could be comfort, quality, performance, or sustainability. For example, a luxury brand might use silk, while a sustainable one might choose organic cotton or TENCEL Modal. This choice is key to both your product and your brand's story.

Innovative Materials:

• TENCEL Lyocell: This sustainable fiber is made in a closed-loop process, recovering over 99.8% of its solvent. This greatly reduces waste, water, and energy, making it a top eco-friendly choice.

• ECONYL Recycled Nylon: A breakthrough in circular fashion, this nylon is made from 100% recycled waste like fishing nets. It saves oil and cuts CO2 emissions compared to new nylon, offering the same quality and performance for sustainable swimwear and activewear.

Step 7: Finding a Manufacturing Partner (OEM/ODM) 

For a new lingerie brand, picking a manufacturer is key. Startups often only look at unit cost, but a cheap manufacturer with high minimum orders, bad communication, or poor skills can cause delays, mistakes, wasted samples, and bad quality. This hurts profits and can ruin your brand's reputation early on.

A good manufacturing partner is like a part of your team. They help perfect your designs for production, find new materials, offer flexibility for online sales, and ensure quality. The right partner reduces your biggest risk (inventory) and helps you succeed. Choosing the cheapest manufacturer can often be the most expensive mistake.

OEM vs. ODM: Choosing Your Production Model

• OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer): You give the factory your full design and instructions, and they make the product exactly as you specify. This gives you complete creative control and is best if you have a unique design idea and in-house design skills.

• ODM (Original Design Manufacturer): The factory provides ready-made designs that you can customize (e.g., change colors, fabrics, or add your branding). This is faster and cheaper, and great for startups without big design teams.

Factory Partner Checklist:

Step 8: The Sampling Process: Your Blueprint for Perfection

Sampling is crucial before mass production. It is when you physically test and approve every detail of a garment. Skipping this step saves no money and usually causes costly errors, delays, and lower quality products.

Key Sample Types:

1. Proto Sample: The initial physical version of your design, used to check the style and construction. It is often made with available materials, and the brand’s feedback leads to design adjustments.

2. Fit Sample: Focuses on perfecting the garment's fit, sizing, and comfort on a model. It is made with materials similar to the final product to ensure proper drape and stretch. Adjustments are made until the fit is ideal.

3. Pre-Production (PP) Sample: The final sample that serves as the benchmark for mass production. It must use all correct final materials and packaging, and formal approval is required before production begins.

Other samples may include Salesman Samples (for buyers), Photo Shoot Samples (for marketing), and TOP Samples (first items from production for consistency checks).

Stage 3 - Marketing & Product Launch

Step 9: Building Your Sales Channels

For today's lingerie brands, deciding where to sell is as important as what to sell. The Direct-to-Consumer (D2C) model lets brands control customer relationships, but it also means choosing the right selling platforms.

The D2C Dilemma: Your Store vs. Marketplaces

• Dedicated Website (Owned Land): Using platforms like Shopify or WooCommerce gives you complete control over your brand, customer data, and profits. Shopify is great for startups because it is easy to use and can grow with you. 

• E-commerce Marketplaces (Rented Land): Marketplaces like Shopee and TikTok Shop are big in Southeast Asia. They offer instant access to many shoppers, which can help you get early sales, build awareness, and test the market with less marketing cost.

Successful brands often use both their websites and marketplaces. They use big platforms like Shopee and TikTok to attract new customers and make initial sales, then direct those customers to their own Shopify store.

Step 10: Investing in Visuals & Content

For lingerie e-commerce, quality photos are your store, and content is your brand's voice. Since lingerie is so personal, high-quality visuals are a must. They're how customers experience your product before buying.

Product Photography: Your Online Shop Window

Your photos need to answer customer questions with various styles:

• Flatlays: Show details, fabric, and overall design by laying the item flat.

• On-model shots: Demonstrating how lingerie fits and looks on a body. Inclusive brands should use diverse models.

• Close-Ups (Detail Shots): Highlight quality features like lace, embroidery, and hardware.

Keep your photo style consistent with lighting, backgrounds, and colors to build a professional and trusted brand image.

Content Strategy: Selling the Story, Not Just the Product

Your content brings your brand's purpose to life and connects with your audience beyond just selling.

• If your brand is sustainable, your content should teach customers about your materials. Use blog posts or videos to explain the benefits of eco-friendly fabrics, giving general tips, etc. Be open about your supply chain and certifications.

• If your brand is inclusive, your content must celebrate diversity. Show different models in your ads and encourage customers to share photos of themselves wearing your products.

Step 11: Create a Launch Plan

A good launch plan helps your brand make a big splash, get started, and keep growing. It has three main parts:

Phase 1: Pre-Launch (Build Buzz & Audience)

Before you even have a product to sell, aim to build excitement and gather an audience.

• Landing Page: Make a simple "coming soon" page that shares your brand's main message and what makes it special.

• Email Sign-Up: The main goal is to get people to sign up for your email list. Offer a launch-day discount or early access. This email list will be crucial on launch day.

• Social Media: Start posting! Share behind-the-scenes content, your brand story and values, and sneak peeks of products.

Phase 2: Launch Day (Maximizing Impact)

This phase is about getting traffic and turning your initial audience into customers.

• Email Blast: Announce your launch to your email list with a special offer.

• Paid Ads: Run targeted ads on platforms like Instagram and Facebook to reach more people who fit your customer profile.

• Influencer Collaboration: Work with influencers to promote your brand and products on launch day.

Phase 3: Post-Launch (Keep the Momentum)

After launch, keep the conversation going and build on the initial excitement.

• Encourage Reviews: Ask early customers to leave reviews on your website.

• Showcase User-Generated Content (UGC): Encourage customers to share photos of themselves with your products, and feature these on your social media and product pages.

• Retargeting Ads: Run ads to remind website visitors who didn't buy about the products they looked at.

KOC vs. KOL Marketing: A Smart Approach

• KOLs (Key Opinion Leaders): These are big-name celebrities or experts with large audiences. Use them for pre-launch and launch to create buzz and credibility. One post from a KOL can instantly make your brand known.

• KOCs (Key Opinion Consumers): These are everyday people or smaller influencers with highly engaged, niche followers. They are seen as trustworthy peers. Use them after launch to build social proof and drive sales. Giving KOCs products for honest reviews (like unboxing videos or detailed posts) can convince potential customers looking for real feedback.

The best launch strategy uses both KOLs for a big splash and KOCs to build authentic trust and prove product quality.

Stage 4 - Operations & Growth

Step 12: Managing Inventory & Logistics

Handling inventory is both beneficial and risky for online brands. Good inventory management is key for startups, as mistakes can be expensive.

Why Predicting Demand Matters

Accurate demand forecasting is vital. It means using data to guess which products will sell, in what sizes and colors, and how quickly. For new brands, this starts with early sales data, market trends, and your marketing plans. Good forecasting helps avoid two big money problems:

• Overstocking: Making too much of a product that doesn't sell, tying up cash, and cutting profits.

• Stockouts: Running out of popular items, leading to lost sales and unhappy customers.

Step 13: Customer Care & Community Building

For direct-to-consumer (D2C) brands, the first sale starts a relationship, aiming to turn buyers into loyal fans and maximize their lifetime value. A strong customer community is a D2C brand's best asset. Unlike price-focused competitors, a brand community builds deep loyalty and connection. 

This community provides feedback for new products, creates authentic marketing content (UGC). Building this community is not just a marketing cost; it is an investment in keeping customers, improving products, and achieving long-term growth.

Building a Brand Community:

• Encourage User-Generated Content (UGC): Get customers to share photos and reviews of your products. Showcasing this content on your website, social media, and emails builds trust.

• Create a Community Hub: Set up a place like a Facebook group, Discord server, or website forum for loyal customers to connect and get exclusive content or feedback.

• Implement a Loyalty Program: Reward repeat customers with points, early access to new collections, or discounts. This makes them feel valued and encourages them to keep buying.

Step 14: Analyze Data for Future Collections

The last step is to learn from your first collection. By checking your data, you can design new products based on facts, not just guesses. This is how successful brands grow.

Key Data for Analysis:

• Sales Data: See which styles, sizes, and colors sold best (or worst) to decide what to keep or change.

• Customer Feedback and Reviews: What did customers love? What were their complaints? Look for patterns in comments related to fit, fabric quality, comfort, or color accuracy.

• Website Analytics: Are there products that receive high page views but have low conversion rates? This could signal an issue with pricing, product photography, or the product description.

• Return Data: Track returns and their reasons (e.g., sizing, fabric not meeting expectations) to know what to fix.

Combining this data helps make each new collection smarter, more targeted, and better suited to customer desires, leading to steady growth.

K&G Garment: Your Partner in Lingerie Manufacturing

Starting a new lingerie brand is tricky, especially with product development and manufacturing risks. A good partner is crucial. K&G Garment is not just a quality manufacturer; we are supportive and invested in your brand's success.

Our value proposition is built on a foundation of expertise, technology, and trust:

• Expert Advice: We help you refine your designs and tech packs, advising on materials and techniques to improve quality and cut costs.

• Advanced Technology: Our facilities use cutting-edge tech like seamless knitting, creating comfortable, perfectly fitting, and modern garments that give you an edge.

• Growth Partnership: We support startups with flexible solutions for MOQs and supply chains, acting as a reliable partner to help you grow your brand.

Conclusion

Building a lingerie brand is a long, complex process with four stages: Foundation, Product Development, Launch, and Growth. Success comes from careful, data-driven, customer-focused efforts, not luck. 

It is a tough but achievable path for founders with a strong idea, a clear plan, and the right partners. Your manufacturer is key, especially for production, which is the most challenging and costly step. K&G Garment can handle this for you.

Contact our team today for a consultation, and let's start building your brand together!

• E-mail: manufacture@kgvietnam.com

• Telephone/WhatsApp: (+84) 888969887