Wolcott Ave. | Application Preview
Wolcott Ave. is applying for government grants to secure funding for operational and inventory expenses, including fees for Shopify, LLC renewal, packaging, shoe samples, and employee salaries.
The business envisions establishing a manufacturing company on the south side of Chicago within five years. This facility will cater to African American women in distressed communities and combine a storefront, manufacturing space, and apartments. The goal is to create a unique shopping experience while significantly reducing production costs, allowing collaboration with innovative black designers. Additionally, the apartments aim to provide housing stability for employees, enhancing productivity.
Wolcott Ave. seeks funding to disrupt the predominantly male-led fashion industry, where African Americans are the largest consumers yet face limited opportunities. The company aims to empower African American women through workforce development, teaching them skills in making shoes and clothes while covering the business side of fashion. By supporting aspiring designers, Wolcott Ave. differentiates itself from competitors that primarily focus on profit.
The main competitors include JusFab, Fashion Nova, and Shoe Dazzle, all led by male owners and known for their affordable offerings. In contrast to these companies, Wolcott Ave. emphasizes consumer loyalty and community engagement over gimmicks like subscription models or frequent sales. Through active consumer involvement in product development and a commitment to empowering young women in the fashion industry, Wolcott Ave. aims to build a strong brand identity that reflects its mission and values.
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General Information
Business Registration Number: 86-1682903
Location: chicago, IL, United States
Length of Operation: 1-5
Number of Employees: 1-10 Employees
Annual Gross Income: Less than $100k
Annual Gross Expense: Less than $100k
Open to Loans: YES
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Funding Usage
Funding would cover operational and inventory cost. We will pay Shopify’s monthly $35 e-commerce fee, $79 yearly LLC renewal, packaging cost (shoe boxes, labels, boxing tissue), shoe samples to test before ordering product, final inventory purchase, pay our employee.
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Business Plan
Within 5 years, we plan to open a manufacturing company on the south side of Chicago that employees African American women in distressed communities. The manufacturing company will house three components: storefront, manufacturing, and apartments. Having one physical store creates exclusivity for our target market creating in-person sale revenue. The manufacturing component will allow us to create our own products cutting external product cost significantly providing more room to collaborate with innovative black designers for exclusive collection lines. This will also cut the cost of our product for our clients leading to an increase in sales. Lastly, having an apartment complex on top of the manufacturing company will provide housing to employees that are facing housing hardships. Creating a space for employee to work and lay their head provides security to the employee and increases productivity for the company. The fashion industry is an white male dominated industry. Many of which have created tech companies to dominate the fashion industry. There are little beacons of hope for African Americans in the fashion industry, yet we are the biggest consumer by nearly 60%. Wolcott Ave.’s goal is to change the narrative and provide opportunities to those in distressed communities seeking to learn or breakout in the fashion industry. We seek to do this by hiring African American women and creating a WorkForce Development house located on the south side of Chicago that teaches women how to make their own shoes/clothes while teaching them the business side of fashion. Many companies in fashion only seek to gain to give back. With Wolcott Ave., investors and grantors is providing us the financial means to grow creating more opportunities for the company to assist the community’s aspiring designers. This is a value you cannot gain with other fashion companies.
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Self Identified Competition
Our top three competitors are JusFab, Fashion Nova, and Shoe Dazzle. Each company has reached our target market of women between the ages of 25-40. Each company is male owned. JusFab and Shoe Dazzle are owned by Adam Goldenberg’s tech company while Fashion Nova is owned my Richard Saghian. They all have strong marketing and have branded themselves as a household name. However, they are known for their affordable shoes/sales. JusFab and Shoe Dazzle are known for having shoes for $39.99 and no contract monthly subscription that consumers may opt out of by the 5th of each month. If a consumer does not opt out then they will be charged the $39.99. Catch is the $39.99 will be added as “store credit” to the consumer’s account for a future purchase. This is concept can be a hassle as consumers must remember to opt out each month to avoid a monthly charge. Life is unpredictable and unless one places a calendar reminder this simple task is often forgotten. This method has been proven ineffective based on the decreased traffic as the company ranks #633 in the global e-commerce rating. Fashion Nova is mostly known for clothes, however, they do have a huge shoe collection. Fashion Nova’s known for their sales. Each day the company has a 10%, 30%, 70%, or bogo sale. Many of their consumers rely solely on the sale. Their shoes are affordable but are often discounted. Wolcott Ave. is 100% black female owned providing a female’s perspective on the fashion industry. Unlike our competitors we do not seek to entice our consumers with gimmicks. Wolcott Ave. does not have daily sales to drive consumer traffic. We are building consumer loyalty to our company and mission not our sales. We also realized that consumers are human, asking them to sign up for a monthly subscription with opt out dates is a huge ask. For this reason alone we stray away. Each product is decided based on a focus group of women within our target market age group. They are shown styles and asked what they are interested in purchasing. Every aspect (logo style, site layout, and product ideas) of Wolcott Ave. had consumer input. Giving our customers a voice is key. We are also active in our community, helping young African American women learn about the fashion industry and participating in community volunteer opportunities.
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Contact Applicant
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