Jeans by Genes

A Concept Created by: Alexandra Lee, Teddi Schiller, Sophie Schnell, Maddie Price,

Marissa Gibb, & Peyton Marquez

Statement of need

Jean by Genes is striving to bridge the gap between customers and finding the "perfect"

pair of jeans. With our unique and individually customized approach, we want our customers to

never feel the need to purchase another pair of jeans again. Jeans are so personal and we

believe that you shouldn't have to buy jeans that do not perfectly fit and leave you feeling less

confident. When you walk into our store by appointment or walk in you will be greeted by an

employee. You will meet with a tailor who will take your measurements and help you

personalize your jeans. You can choose your custom wash, design details, rips, and style. From

there we will begin working on your custom jeans and they will be ready for pick up within two

to three weeks. When you come to pick up you can try them on and make sure they are perfect.

The first objective we established for the market analysis was the target market. We

decided to target individuals between the ages of 15-30 who can never find the perfect pair of

jeans. Jeans can be super difficult in terms of sizing and fit; we wanted to create a brand that

can help those who struggle with finding jeans that fit the glutes, thighs, and waist. This market

is viable due to the popularity of denim among the demographic as many see jeans as a staple

garment. Jeans by Genes was created to tailor previously purchased jeans to fit the customer in

a way that makes them feel confident. We believe this will allow us to penetrate the market and

build a loyal customer base that will expand in the future as more and more people utilize our

services. Our overarching mission is to create a personalized experience to ensure that the

perfect pair of jeans are accessible to all.

S.W.O.T.

Along with analyzing the target market and company purpose, we decided to create a

mini S.W.O.T analysis to establish Jeans by Genes’ strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and

threats. Starting off with our strengths, there are not a lot of companies with our same purpose

of customizing jeans to specific measurements. Another strength is Jeans by Genes will have

higher rates of customer satisfaction since our service is specifically designed to ensure our

consumers needs’ are being satisfied. However, some of our weaknesses could be that the

process of customization is extremely time consuming and difficult to complete a lot of orders

at one time. Some viable opportunities that Jeans by Genes could take advantage of is working

with social media influencers to get our brand name out to the public. Instagram and Tik Tok

would also be an amazing advertising opportunity for Jeans by Genes. Lastly, some potential

threats include Pacsun, American Eagle, and Urban Outfitters. These companies are all

established brands that sell jeans and could become a competitor for Jeans by Genes.

Interview with Competitor

Finding a direct competitor was difficult due to the unique services and products our

company offers. Instead we chose to interview Sweet Dahlia Vintage, a Cincinnati based

vintage company specializing in women’s fashion from the 1930s-1980s, a parallel competitor

who appeals to our sustainably focused demographic.

After asking multiple questions, the competitor revealed that they share the same

demographic of 16-30 year olds and spoke about some of the difficulties of selling denim.

Through conversation the competitor mentioned that ensuring your company has style options

that align with current trends is extremely important to create interest in your product. She also
mentioned that using 100% cotton will ensure a sustainable product that provides the right fit

that will survive the wear and tear over the years. Lastly, she emphasized the importance of

social media and how it can be used as a marketing tool to create traffic into our store. Because

of this insight we decided to continuously add customization options based on current trends to

make the consumer's perfect pair of jeans come to life. We also want to utilize social media

accounts to develop our brand and create relationships with our customers.

Survey Findings

To gain further insight on the possible success of Jeans by Genes, we chose a focus group

to ask various questions to and compile their answers for data purposes. Our target market is,

but not limited to, women in the young adult age group. We sent out a survey to these college

aged women and received 31 responses. The survey began by asking where people are

currently shopping for jeans. We received an array of responses ranging from department stores

such as Kohl’s and JCPenney, specialty stores such as Pacsun and American Eagle, and online

retailers like Shein and ASOS. From this question, we were able to get a good idea of who our

competitors would be. Next, we asked if these women struggled with finding a perfect sized pair

of jeans and 93.5% said yes which shows the demand in the market for custom fit jeans. Adding

on to that, 93.5% said that they would be interested in the concept of our company.

When women are shopping for jeans, they run into a wide array of problems. The most

common problem occurs with the pair of jeans being too tight or too loose in the waist with 28

of 31 people experiencing this. Following that, 20 people are also having significant problems

with the length of their jeans being too short or long. Moving down the list, smaller numbers of

people report problems of jeans being too tight or loose over their backside and them being too
tight or loose in the thigh area. FInally, people also reported problems of the jeans themselves

being the wrong style and design/color which can also be tackled with a custom pair. When

looking at these problems, buying a custom pair unique to you could conquer a lot, if not all, of

these issues.

Moving on, we also asked about the cost for custom jeans versus the average pair from

one of our competitors. The majority or 41.9% of people expected to pay in the $50-$75 range

for custom jeans with the $75-$100 range following after at 32.3%. This is certainly a jump from

the $25-$50 range in which 45.2% said they are currently paying for jeans right now, however,

38.7% are already paying $50-$75. Getting an idea of consumers' thoughts on pricing and what

they would expect to pay gives us an idea of how to form our business plan and goods and

services to best accommodate a price point for everyone.

Finally, we asked how often do people wear jeans right now. Over 50% said they wear

them multiple times a week which shows a clear use of the product and demand for more. Also,

our last question was asking how many pairs of jeans people are currently owning- the majority

was 5-7 pairs at 71% of people. Jeans are very wasteful and owning 5-7 pairs is not sustainable

as well. If people invested in a few good pairs of jeans that fit them perfectly, this could be a

very sustainable option for them.

Proposed Start-Up Cost, Overhead Cost, & Proposed Profit Analysis

To create this company, we would need between $15,000 and $25,000. These costs

include machinery, manufacturing, and marketing costs. This startup cost is not an exact

amount because it would depend strongly on the type of sewing machines and type of jeans we

use. This accounts for at least $10,000 or at most $20,000 of the startup cost.
 Looking at the average price of spaces open to lease a space in Cincinnati, rent would be

$30,000 a year. Business Insurance, a necessity for all business owners, would cost $636 per

year. The price of utilities for a small business averages $600 a month, totaling 7,200. All of

these costs make up the overhead cost of about $37,836 per year.

When originally creating this idea, we decided to price our jeans at an average price of

$75 because of our survey results. We had also decided that it would cost just $25 to get

alterations for jeans that you bring in. After presenting to the class and gaining some feedback

and insight we then decided to charge an average of $35 to get your jeans altered by us. The

$75 average for the price of our jeans will remain the same because depending on the amount

of customizations the jeans have on them, the price will rise and fall. Based on these details and

the average number of sales that small businesses have in a year, we expect $80,000 in sales

during the first year. This leaves us with a proposed profit of $42,000.

Viability of Concept

With 93.5% of our survey participants claiming they have trouble finding their “ideal fit”

when it comes to shopping for jeans, Jeans by Genes believes in its viability as a company to do

good for the greater population. On average, jeans are worn a total of only seven times before

making it to the landfill, where they take up about 5% of all landfill space. One pair of jeans is

said to have a lifespan of about two to three years maximum. Our goal at J by G is to expand this

window to last a lifetime and be the only pair of jeans you will ever need. With this

sustainability factor implaced, our company recognizes the corporate social responsibility to

limit the environmental impact of our brand. Because we make each pair of jeans after the

client designs them, we decrease the amount of landfill space used up by denim annually. We
also decrease the pollution created from using polyesters and nylon because we make our jeans

with 100% cotton. The small effect a few pairs of jeans can have on our society can make a huge

impact in the fashion industry, spreading our message of sustainability to other areas of the

market.

As a group, we were initially interested in creating Jeans by Genes for the sustainability

and individuality factors of the company. This company is unique as its focuses solely on altering

and designing denim jeans to make our customers feel confident in what they wear, allowing it

to grow into a leader in the denim market. We hope that with our company, Jeans by Genes,

customers will be given the opportunity to step into the world of sustainability and fashion

through a trendy, affordable outlet.

Team Member Participation:

Alexandra Lee: I was in charge of figuring out the pricing structure and costs for our company. I

did this by researching the average costs that small businesses have and looking for available

places to lease in order to make the data the most accurate. I also helped analyze the results

about costs from the survey that was sent out to find the prices we want.

Teddi Schiller: For this project, I created the survey and sent it out for our group to collect data. I

wrote the part on it and did the slides for it. I also came up with the name of the brand that our

group used. I think my work was beneficial to the group as well as everyone else's. This was

definitely a team effort and we all helped each other complete the work.
Marissa Gibb: I found a competitor and conducted an interview to ask questions regarding the

sale of denim and how that differs from other products as well as how sustainable stores

operate. I then created slides and presented the competitor portion of the presentation and

wrote the paper section. I think that my work was for the benefit of the whole team because I

was able to use what I learned form the competitor to tweak the structure for our company.

This project was a group effort and everyone contributed seamlessly to make an effective

presentation.

Peyton Marquez: I conducted the market analysis for the project. I established what the target

market of our company would be as well as our company’s purpose. I then decided to create a

mini SWOT analysis where I decided what the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats

would be as we enter the market. I created the slides to explain this and described each aspect

in the paper. I think we all worked really well as a team and everyone’s part was equally as

important in this project!

Sophie Schnell: I was in charge of determining the viability of our company and ultimately diving

deeper into the reason we chose this company in the first place. This gave our team a consistent

reminder of our company's purpose and the goals we wished to pursue in the fashion industry.

Overall, our team worked very well together and came up with a great idea!

Madeline Price: I did the statement of need for the paper and along with that I explained what

our company does and how it works. I explained the process and what our company is exactly.
This helped our team and audience understand how our company works and what it is like to

order jeans from us. Overall, our team worked really well together and communicated well.