#7 Trunk Shows

Trunk shows are beneficial to a designer in more ways than one. It's a chance to connect with customers, represent the collection in an intimate setting, cement relationships and create new ones. A designer can make styling suggestions and show customers how to best wear their designs, hopefully making many immediate sales. Additionally, they can get feedback from customers about styles, colors etc. It's always important to ensure your line stays on track with what your target customers want.

While trunk shows works, designers must continue to evolve and create innovative ways of connecting with customers and make sales. Donna Karan has taken her trunk show to the web taking social networking to another level. Shown in February on their Donna Karan Facebook Page, viewers were able to view the newest collections and pre-order through Neiman Marcus.

For her Spring 2012 collection, Donna Karan sat with Ken Downing (Creative director for Neiman Marcus) to showcase the collection and discuss her personal favorites as a preview for the Spring runway show.

With social networking so prevalent, designers can't afford to remain comfortable with just the usual ways of selling and keeping up with customers. Innovation is key and customers want a lot of personal attention. Trunk shows are a great way to do so but it's important to keep the format fresh and new.