Build It: How to Turn Fashion Startup Failures into Long-Term Success
Welcome back, fashion tech enthusiasts!
In this edition, we explore a side of fashion that’s often left unspoken—failure. From bankruptcies to brand pivots, the fashion industry has seen even its brightest names stumble. Beatrice Newman shares her personal failures whilst building her brand, Korlekie, from facing setbacks, and turning those challenges into catalysts for growth. It’s a narrative of resilience, reinvention, and the business acumen needed to survive in one of the world’s most competitive markets. This article accompanies the Build It series on our podcast, Venturing Into Fashion Tech.
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Failure in fashion is rarely shared, and yet it’s a pivotal part of the journey, whether you're launching a brand, building a product, or scaling operations. In an industry that rewards glamour and style, acknowledging missteps can be difficult. But understanding what failure looks like and learning how to navigate it can fuel innovation, resilience, and long-term success.
Startups in Fashion — Why Failure Might Be the Best Teacher
The fashion startup world is famously unforgiving. According to the Startup Genome Project, up to 90% of new businesses fail, with 70% of those collapses occurring within the first 20 months. Across industries, only about 10% of startups survive in the long term.
In the fashion industry, the odds are even steeper. Data shows that only 10% of clothing startups endure over the long haul. About 30% collapse within two years, 50% don’t make it past five, and 70% vanish before their tenth anniversary. For any designer dreaming of building a label, these numbers can be daunting.
The reasons behind fashion brand failure are numerous. Fashion is a capital-intensive business, with cash flow issues alone accounting for 82% of failure. Misreading customer needs or failing to pivot quickly enough adds another 14% to the casualty list. And because most founders wear multiple hats, from design to marketing to finance, operational overload is a common occurrence. Not surprisingly, only 9% of businesses ever surpass $1 million in revenue.
Beatrice Newman: Learning to Fail Forward
For Beatrice Newman, the statistics are more than abstract numbers; they’re lived experiences. When she launched her fashion brand over a decade ago, fresh out of university, she imagined she’d be the next big thing.
“That feels now like my first failure,” she reflects. “Although from a business perspective, it wasn’t really my first. You need to consider every single piece you’ll need to become successful.”
Five or six years in, the cracks became harder to ignore. “I realized that a lot of the money I was putting into the business wasn’t generating cash flow back. I was just churning out collections and expecting something to happen — without data, metrics, or any real understanding of business 101.”
Her second major turning point came when she recognized she didn’t fully understand her brand identity.
“I knew what I wanted to do, but how it was being activated in the social and marketing space wasn’t implemented successfully. I leaned heavily on stylists’ interpretations through magazine spreads and covers. The result? People couldn’t tell if I was a stylist, a photographer, or just a general creative, and that was detrimental.”
These setbacks reframed her perspective. “Failure feels so definitive, but it’s never really the end. Get up, dust yourself off, and ask: how do we make it work next time? I don’t think we celebrate failure enough for what it teaches us.”
Rethinking the Path to Fashion Startup Success
Beatrice now advises emerging fashion entrepreneurs to think beyond traditional “success” markers like celebrity placements or glossy magazine features.
“We’re taught to get as much press as possible, but that isn’t going to be a sure win,” she says. “The industry is very saturated. It’s about the customer, and your offering.”
Instead, she encourages founders to define their brand story and product offering with precision. This clarity can support more sustainable business models, such as direct-to-consumer strategies that preserve margins, build loyalty, and keep brands nimble in a volatile market.
The Reality for Today’s Independent Fashion Brands
Even established names have been forced to adapt or close altogether. In the past year, independent labels like Mara Hoffman, Calvin Luo, and The Vampire’s Wife have shut down or paused operations due to financial strain, wholesale volatility, and burnout. Hoffman herself has spoken openly about the difficulty of balancing ethical supply chains with profitability.
This kind of transparency is something Beatrice champions. Sharing struggles openly helps normalize the entrepreneurial journey, build resilience, and create a stronger, more connected fashion community.
Failure as a Springboard to Fashion Startup Longevity
In fashion, as in life, failure can be reframed as a springboard for growth. Every misstep provides valuable insights into cost structures, customer behavior, funding timelines, and brand positioning.
The founders who survive aren’t the ones who never stumble; they’re the ones who adapt, evolve, and persist.
For Beatrice, this adaptability has been enriched by her long career in academia. As a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA), she now mentors new designers through the Beyond Form Education programme, giving them the tools to combine creativity with business acumen and the resilience to beat the odds.
“Being a fashion entrepreneur and an academic aren’t opposing paths,” she says. “They’re deeply interconnected, each enriching the other.”
Want to Learn More and Connect?
Join us in shaping the future of fashion education. See how Beyond Form Education connects students, founders, and institutions worldwide. Connect with Beatrice on LinkedIn to learn more about her work.
