If you want to design something to sell to retailers, this post is for you. I’m going to share tips on creating a look book that can be sent to retailers to show them your product range.
Your look book needs to be memorable. You can only imagine the number of other designers you’re competing with to get a retailers attention so you must design a look book which stands out and has a’ wow’ factor.
It’s easy for me to create collateral because of my background in graphic design, but even if this is not you, don’t stress – it’s not the end of the world. You can find awesome graphic designers on Gumtree, Odesk (now called Upwork) or Freelancer .
4 steps to create a professional look book:
Step 1 – From the start always ensure you have a clear image of the brand you want to portray; paying attention to the logo, font styles, brand colours, keywords and phrases you will use.
You want to ensure you maintain the same look and feel across everything you create for your brand. The key is to keep things consistent both online and offline – no exceptions.
Step 2 – Make sure your wholesale price and recommended retail price (RRP) are included on every piece of item listed in your look book and your titles, model numbers and descriptions are easy to read. You need to make it as easy as possible for the retailer to scan through your look book and select what they want to buy.
Step 3 – I believe ‘less is more’ – don’t be afraid to leave white space in your look book, it won’t leave it looking empty. In fact, leaving or having white space gives the sense of luxury and essentially a higher price.
Step 4 – If you are going to email your look book, make sure to keep the file size as small as possible. I try to keep my look book file size under 2mb when sending it via email (and even this is pretty large!). Another tip is to ensure your look book is also made available on your website – if you have one. This way you can send a link that allows the retailer to instantly browse through your look book online.
Here are some pages to include in your look book:
– A Cover page that includes your contact details and logo.
– An ‘About’ page. Keep this short – anything more than two paragraphs is too long. Include things like what inspires you and why your designs are so different.
– Clear titles, codes, prices (both wholesale and RRP) as well as clear product descriptions.
– Photos of the actual product and photos of a model wearing the products.
– An End page that includes your contact details and logo (actually it’s a good idea if you can include your logo and contact details on every page!).
If you have a look book that needs reviewing, feel free to get in touch with me. I would love to look at it and give you my feedback.
