Mentoring for Clothing Brands & Fashion Startups
RANGE PLANNING · SOURCING · COSTING · MANUFACTURER NEGOTIATIONS
Starting a fashion brand can feel like stepping into the unknown. You’ve got the ideas and passion but it’s really hard to know what the right next move is.
That’s where I come in as your professional sounding board. Think of me as the expert in your corner, and the one who’s walked this path hundreds of times before who will guide you through the decisions, the wobbles, and the wins.
I don’t believe in one-size-fits-all mentoring so I’ll meet you exactly where you are and give you the right support you need.
Below you’ll find my main mentoring offers to get you started and if you're not sure what's best for you we can have a chat.
The Fashion Brands I Mentor
Building a clothing brand with purpose takes more than just a great idea and at times the fashion industry can feel impossible to break into for newcomers.
This is for you if:
✓ You’ve been dreaming of your own clothing brand but have no idea where to start
✓ You’ve endlessly Googled "how to start a fashion brand" and still feel stuck and overwhelmed
✓ You're scared of making expensive mistakes finding factories & manufacturers
✓ You want your first collection to look and feel professional
✓ You don’t want to be taken for a ride by manufacturers
✓ You're serious about launching a fashion line and doing it properly right from day one
✓ You want guidance from someone who actually knows the industry, and what you don't
Imagine having...
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A clear, step-by-step plan to take your brand from concept to launch.
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Expert guidance on ethical production, sourcing sustainable materials, and working with manufacturers who welcome fashion startups.
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A trusted mentor to help you navigate the industry and make informed decisions at every stage.
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A professional designer who really gets your vision and turns it into beautiful designs and professional tech packs for your clothing brand.
And for the past decade, I’ve helped hundreds of aspiring, purpose-driven founders (just like you) bring their ideas to life.
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With 20+ years of experience, I know exactly how to design, manufacture, and launch a clothing brand that aligns with your values - without the overwhelm.
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I'm here to share my knowledge and expertise as a fashion designer, fashion mentor and fashion brand consultant.
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I'm waiting to work with you on your first or next collection, and show you that starting a clothing brand is simpler than you think - when you have the right expert in your corner.
Hi, I'm Michelle Ramsay, The Fashion Expert®
Clothing Brand Mentoring FAQs
What is a fashion startup mentor and do I need one? A fashion startup mentor is someone with real, hands-on industry experience who guides you through the process of building and launching a clothing brand - helping you make smarter decisions, avoid expensive mistakes, and move forward with clarity and confidence. Whether you need one depends on where you are and how you want to approach the journey. Plenty of founders try to figure it all out alone - and some get there. But most waste significant time and money making avoidable mistakes along the way like wrong manufacturers, poor sampling decisions, product development that doesn't work commercially, launches that don't land. What a good mentor gives you isn't just knowledge. It's the experience of having done it hundreds of times before, and being able to apply that directly to your specific situation. That's something no course, YouTube video, or Google search can replicate.
What exactly is fashion mentoring? Fashion mentoring is where you get direct, personalised guidance from someone with real fashion industry experience, applied specifically to your brand, your situation, and the stage you're at. It's not a course you work through alone. It's not generic business coaching. And it's not a one-size-fits-all programme where everyone gets the same advice regardless of where they are or what they're building. It's a one to one conversation - strategic, practical, and tailored entirely to you. We look at what you're working on, what decisions you're facing, what's holding you back, and what the smartest next move is. And because I've spent over 20 years working in the fashion industry and the past decade helping hundreds of founders build their brands, the guidance I give you comes from real experience of what actually works, not theory. For first-time founders, mentoring often means having someone to guide you through the entire journey from idea to launch, helping you avoid the expensive mistakes that derail so many new brands before they even get started. For founders who are already in development or production, it's more like having an expert in your corner you can call on when you need strategic input, a second opinion, or help navigating a specific challenge. Either way, the goal is always the same - to help you move forward with more clarity, more confidence, and fewer costly detours.
How much does fashion mentoring cost? I offer mentoring at different levels depending on what you need and where you are in your journey. A Deep Dive Session is a 2-hour strategic session priced at £300. This is ideal if you're at the beginning of your journey and need clarity, direction, and a solid plan before you start spending money. Power Hours are 1-hour focused sessions priced at £150 each. These are designed to help you work through one to three specific challenges, questions, or decisions at a time - perfect for founders who need targeted support at a particular stage. If you're looking for a longer-term programme with structured mentorship, 1:1 sessions and full learning resources from idea to launch, the Fashion Startup Academy is my flagship offer. Book a complimentary discovery call and I'll help you work out which option is the right fit for you.
Do I need experience in the fashion industry to work with you? Absolutely not, and most of my clients come to me with no industry experience whatsoever. That's exactly why I'm here. What you do need is a genuine idea, a willingness to learn, and the commitment to see it through. I'll bring everything else - the industry knowledge, the processes, the contacts, and the guidance to help you navigate it all without the costly trial and error that trips up so many first-time founders. If you've been sitting on a fashion idea and wondering whether you're "ready" - you are. You just need the right person in your corner.
What's the difference between a Deep Dive and a Power Hour? They serve different purposes and suit different stages of your journey. The Deep Dive is a 2-hour strategic session designed for founders who are at the beginning and need to look at the bigger picture - your idea, your brand direction, your business model, your realistic next steps, and where to focus your energy and money first. It's exploratory, strategic, and designed to create clarity before you dive into the detail. A Power Hour is a 1-hour focused session for founders who already have some momentum and need targeted support on one to three specific things - whether that's reviewing designs, preparing for a factory conversation, working through pricing, troubleshooting a production problem, or getting feedback on a specific decision. It's practical, fast-paced, and always ends with clear next steps. If you're not sure which one you need, book a free discovery call and we'll work it out together.
What can we cover in a mentoring session? Mentoring sessions are completely tailored to you and what you need help with at that moment, so there's no pre-fixed agenda, but that doesn't mean there is no structure. Topics we regularly cover include range planning, collection costing, sourcing and vetting clothing manufacturers, manufacturer negotiations and minimum order quantities, brand concept and positioning, collection planning, design direction, tech packs and product development, sampling and production processes, factory communication, pricing and margins, launch planning, marketing strategy, website feedback, and general problem-solving and decision-making. You're encouraged to come with questions, roadblocks, issues, designs, moodboards, samples, supplier quotes, or anything else you want professional eyes on. The more specific you are about what you need help with, the more you'll get out of the session.
How do the sessions work practically? All sessions are conducted live on Zoom on a 1:1 basis - just you and me. Sessions are recorded, and afterwards you'll receive the recording, a transcript, meeting notes, and a next-step action plan so you're never left wondering what to do next or trying to remember everything we covered. Sessions are booked via Calendly at a time that works for you, and rescheduling is always possible with 24 hours' notice.
Can you help me if I've already started my brand? Absolutely - and a significant number of my clients come to me mid-journey rather than at the very beginning. Maybe you've hit a wall with manufacturers. Maybe sampling isn't going as expected. Maybe you've launched but aren't getting the traction you hoped for. Maybe you just need a strategic conversation with someone who understands the industry to sense-check where you are and what to do next. Wherever you are, I'll meet you there. Power Hours are particularly popular with founders who are already in development or production and need focused, expert support at specific stages.
Do I need to have a business idea before booking? You don't need a fully formed idea - but it helps to have something to work with, even if it's very rough. A general direction, a type of product you're drawn to, a gap you've spotted in the market, or simply a feeling that you want to build something in fashion that's enough to start with. The Deep Dive Session in particular is designed for exactly this stage. We look at what you have, explore the possibilities, and help you turn a vague idea into a clear direction with realistic next steps. You'll leave knowing exactly what to do and in what order.
Do you work with founders outside the UK? Yes, all mentoring sessions are conducted remotely via Zoom, so it doesn't matter where you're based. I work with fashion founders across the UK, Europe, the US, Australia, and beyond. The fashion industry knowledge and processes I share are relevant regardless of where you're building your brand or where your manufacturer is based, so location is never a barrier to working together.
What does a fashion startup consultant do and is that different from a fashion mentor? A fashion startup consultant, sometimes also called a fashion brand consultant or clothing brand consultant, provides expert guidance to founders at different stages of building a clothing brand. Personally I think of mentoring being more applicable to the pre-launch stage and consultancy more applicable to the post-launch phase. In practice I do both: I give direct advice and recommendations when you need them, and I teach you the skills to make informed decisions independently. The goal is always to leave you more confident and less reliant on outside guidance over time, not more. If you've been looking for a fashion startup consultant or fashion brand consultant in the UK, that's exactly what I do.
Can you help with costing, sourcing and manufacturer negotiations for my clothing brand? Yes - these three things sit at the heart of most mentoring conversations with founders who are ready to start working with factories. Costing means understanding your pricing and margins before you commit to production and knowing what your garment will realistically cost to make and whether your retail price makes sense. Sourcing means finding the right clothing manufacturers and suppliers for your specific product and budget, including how to find manufacturers with low minimum orders. Manufacturer negotiations means knowing how to approach factories, what to ask, how to negotiate on price and minimum order quantities, and how to spot the red flags that can cost you dearly if you miss them. These are skills I've built over 20+ years working in fashion production, and I pass them directly to the founders I work with.
What's the difference between 1:1 mentoring and the Fashion Startup Academy? Both involve working directly with me, but they're designed for different needs and commitments. 1:1 mentoring through a Deep Dive or a Power Hour is flexible and focused. You book support when you need it, for as long as you need it, and the sessions are entirely tailored to where you are and what you need help with right now. There's no set timeline, it fits around you. The Fashion Startup Academy is my flagship six-month mentoring and learning programme, designed for founders who want to build their brand properly from the ground up with structured support, accountability, and a full learning curriculum alongside ongoing 1:1 sessions. It follows my LAUNCH Method™ - a six-milestone framework that takes you from idea to launched brand in a way that reflects how fashion businesses are actually built. If you're not sure which is the right fit, book a complimentary discovery call and we'll work it out together.
How do I know which mentoring option is right for me? That's exactly what the free discovery call is for. It's a short, no-pressure conversation where we look at where you are, what you're trying to achieve, and what kind of support would genuinely move you forward. I'll give you my honest recommendation based on what I hear, and you can decide from there with no obligation to book anything. Most people leave the call with much more clarity than they came in with even if they don't go on to work with me straight away. Book yours directly from the Mentoring page.
Can you help me with range planning for my clothing brand? Yes - range planning is one of the most valuable things we work through in mentoring sessions, and one of the areas where founders most often need help. Range planning means deciding what to make, how many styles, how they work together as a collection, what price points you're targeting, and how to build a range that makes commercial sense - not just one that looks great on a mood board. I help founders go from a scattered list of ideas to a focused, structured collection plan that's realistic to produce and cohesive enough to produce and sell.
