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The Business of ApparelAuthor: Rachel Erickson
Rachel Erickson brings her 20 years of expertise in the apparel manufacturing industry to this show to inspire you to build your best brand yet. Each week, you'll hear from Rachel along with other industry experts who are shedding light on what is needed to build your own apparel line from scratch or to take your existing apparel brand to the next level and create sustainable and unstoppable growth. Rachel's big emphasis on proper techniques, sustainable practices and business clarity will be sure to help you create loyal customers who happily purchase from you again and again. Make sure you follow this podcast so you don't miss a single episode if you're running your own apparel business or looking to start! Language: en Genres: Arts, Business, Careers, Fashion & Beauty Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it |
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How Much to Pay Your First Hire (Without Breaking Your Apparel Brand)
Episode 165
Thursday, 30 April, 2026
How Much to Pay Your First Hire (Without Breaking Your Apparel Brand) Hiring your first employee can feel impossible, but what if you're thinking about it the wrong way? In this episode, Rachel breaks down exactly how much you should pay your first hire in the apparel industry, when to hire (hint: sooner than you think), and how to structure your team without burning out or going broke. Coming from her own experience scaling Unmarked Street, Rachel shares real salary benchmarks, contractor vs. full-time strategies, and the exact framework she used to decide who to hire first. If you're stuck doing everything yourself and hitting a growth ceiling, this episode will show you how to build a team that actually frees you up to scale. Sign up for the Secrets Behind Billion Dollar Apparel Brands Masterclass here: https://www.thebusinessofapparel.com/secrets Join The Board here: https://www.thebusinessofapparel.com Key Moments: 00:00 Hire Before You Need To 02:12 Investing In Coaching 04:20 Budgeting For A Team 06:35 Entry Level Pay 07:35 Join The Board! 08:55 Senior Roles: Real Costs 10:50 Contractors vs. Full Time 13:16 Choosing Your First Hire 15:01 Sign Up For Our Workshop Watch more of The Business of Apparel Podcast episodes: Wholesale 101: https://youtu.be/lpezH1YwCyE Use AI in Your Apparel Brand: https://youtu.be/Dn9tjPNmfaw Grow A 7-Figure Apparel Business: https://youtu.be/rpQYDyo5Rao We can't wait to hear what you think of this episode! Purchase the Business of Apparel Online Course: https://www.thebusinessofapparel.com/course ABOUT RACHEL: Rachel Erickson—Fractional COO, Apparel Industry Consultant, and founder of Unmarked Street and The Business of Apparel. With 20+ years in technical design and product development leadership, I've sat at the executive table of a $25M apparel line and helped scale it to $60M in one year. After decades working inside major fashion companies, I learned the truth behind billion-dollar brands, and it's not about chasing trends or pumping out endless products. It's about building clean processes, tightly edited assortments, and obsessively focused customer targeting. I help founders and CEOs of performance apparel brands: ✅ Build lean, profitable product lines ✅ Streamline operations for growth ✅ Replace overwhelm with executive clarity ✅ Create garments that fit bodies in motion Whether you're just hitting $1M in revenue or trying to break through the $10M ceiling, my team joins you as an embedded operations and product partner—running fittings, line plans, tech packs, and vendor communications so you can get back to leading. To connect with Rachel, you can join her LinkedIn community here: LinkedIn. To visit her website, go to: www.unmarkedstreet.com.
