Mike and Amy Cerny, co-founders of Fit Couture, are very focused on efficiency. As two of the five employees at their Houston-based firm, they have to make every minute of their days count — toward more sales and a healthy bottom line.
The husband-and-wife team, which launched their apparel company in 2003, comes to the fashion industry from the software business, where they developed an affinity for automation and a keen awareness of the benefits of saving time through technology.
When a round of downsizing in the IT sector put both the Cernys in search of work, they eventually gravitated to apparel, following a hunch that Amy's success in selling some original athletic wear styles to a few friends could flourish into something bigger.
To keep overhead and risk low, they pursued a pure-play e-tail sales model, setting up a web site and leveraging the Internet as their primary mode of marketing and distribution. Launching with a $3,000 start-up investment, Fit Couture has grown into a vibrant online store that has about 10,000 unique customers, including primarily individual consumers plus a small percentage of wholesale customers that are single-store apparel specialty retailers, spas and gyms.
The company offers a range of tops, pants, shorts and jackets suited for running, yoga, aerobics and many other athletic activities.
...Follow the link to read the complete story at Apparel Magazine's website
back
