If you want to scale your freelance fashion design business, there are three strategies you need to know.
Everyone’s path can look different but Connie Bourgeois turned her side-gig freelance biz into a million-dollar agency in four short years. With the right strategies and hard work, you can grow your fashion design business, too. And if it all seems too good to be true, don’t worry, because we are also diving into some of the cold hard truths that are the realities of growing a business.
Whether you’re just starting out or looking to scale, this episode is packed with client-finding strategies you can put to use today! Hit play and kick-start your freelance growth.
Episode Highlights
From Freelancer to Million-Dollar Agency Owner
- Connie Bourgeois shares her evolution from solo freelancer to running a $1M agency with six full-time team members—proving what’s possible with strategy, persistence, and relationship-building.
Pitching Herself into Visibility
- Connie talks about how she’s grown her business by saying yes to events, pitching herself for speaking gigs, and putting herself in front of the right audiences.
Power of US-Based Factory Partnerships
- A key part of Connie’s success? Building strong, mutually beneficial relationships with US factories—and using those connections to attract quality clients.
How She Finds Clients
- From cold pitching and podcast features to factory referrals, Connie shares the exact ways she brings in new business (and how you can apply the same strategies).
Behind the Scenes of Client & Factory Management
- Connie gives a real look at the complexity of managing factory orders, client expectations, pricing structures, and the many moving parts that come with growing a production-focused agency.
Building Her Team & Office
- Starting with just an assistant, Connie shares how she scaled her team, found the right hires, and eventually moved into a full office space.
Work-Life Balance as a Mom & Leader
- With a child at home and a full agency to run, Connie talks about setting up her schedule—and her team’s—for flexibility and balance.
Content That Educates & Attracts
- Connie is now focused on creating content that serves her audience, like blog posts and educational pieces that demystify fashion production.
Facing Real Pricing Challenges
- She gets candid about freight cost fluctuations, managing estimates for clients, and how her team handles the numbers behind the scenes.
Being Transparent About the Hard Stuff
- Connie doesn’t sugarcoat it—she shares openly about the challenges of freelancing and business ownership, and why honesty matters when building trust with clients.
Designer Burnout & Product Fatigue
- Connie and Heidi chat about whether designers get tired of their own collections by launch time—and the idea of running a poll to find out.
Connect with Connie
- Connie wraps up with her contact info for those wanting to reach out via LinkedIn, Instagram, or email—and Heidi ends the conversation with gratitude for her insights.
Key Questions and Responses?
1. How did you transition from freelancing to owning a $1,000,000 agency?
- Connie Bourgeois explained that her journey from freelancer to agency owner involved strategic networking, pitches for public speaking, leveraging relationships with U.S.-based factories, and nurturing client relationships over time. Starting with just herself, she grew her team by initially hiring an assistant designer and gradually adding more members as the business expanded.
 2. What strategies did you use to find clients?
- Connie utilized a variety of approaches, including cold pitching, participating in industry events, being a guest on podcasts, leveraging factory connections, and maintaining a robust online presence. She emphasized the value of relationships and leading with value to build trust and attract serious leads.
3. Can you discuss the importance of networking and industry events for client acquisition?
- Networking and industry events were crucial for Connie. She highlighted that these events provided opportunities for freelancers to connect with potential clients and industry professionals. Open-mindedness towards unexpected opportunities and proactive pitching for speaking engagements were key in driving traffic and interest to her website.
4. How do you manage the complexities and risks involved with your business structure?
- Connie discussed several measures to manage risks, including maintaining proprietary relationships with factories, offering clients a variety of pricing structures, and separating the cost of freight to avoid financial pitfalls. She also mentioned increasing her insurance coverage and ensuring that clients are billed accurately to mitigate potential losses.
5. What challenges did you face in estimating costs and managing pricing for US-made products?
- Estimating costs accurately was tricky due to variable freight prices. Connie elaborated on how she had to adjust her pricing strategy to accommodate these fluctuations. She initially offered Delivered Duties Paid (DDP) pricing but stopped due to the instability of freight costs. She also discussed the challenge of making US-made products competitively priced for customers.
6. What steps did you take to grow your team, and what responsibilities come with having full-time employees?
- Connie shared the gradual process of building her team, starting from her home to eventually moving into an office. She emphasized the importance of work-life balance, taking care of employee well-being, and fostering a sense of ownership and accountability. Her team grew to six full-time members, including a director of product development and design.
7. How do you maintain transparency and realism in portraying the challenges of running a business in the fashion industry?
- Connie stressed the importance of transparency about the hurdles in the fashion industry, such as aligning pricing and managing production timelines. She believed in celebrating wins while being realistic about the difficulties, ensuring clear communication with both clients and her team to maintain trust and a sustainable business practice.
About Connie:
Connie Bourgeois founded Conjetta Designs with the purpose of supporting designers and entrepreneurs by making their apparel dreams a reality! By sharing her extensive knowledge of design, development, sourcing, logistics, merchandising, and brand building, with both her team and her clients, Connie fosters an environment of collaboration, innovation and growth, allowing her clients to focus on growing their business instead.
Connect with Connie:
Visit her website: www.conjettadesigns.com
Email at: connie@conjettadesigns.com
Follow on Instagram
Connect on Linkedin