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Library Research Guides

FASHN 398 - Professor Umhauer (Spring 2025): Industry Analysis

Industry Analysis

  • Identify the industry in which your business will operate by the NAICS industry code(s) that best fits your business.  If you can, define the industry as close to 6 digits as possible.
  • What does your industry look like? Identify at least 5 key industry statistics that give you a snapshot analysis of the state of your industry and any trends taking place. 
  • Identify and describe at least two trade publications that relate to the industry in which your business will operate.
  • Summarize current and anticipated characteristics and economic trends in the industry. Cite from at least one of the trade publications identified above.
  • Identify at least two external factors that influence the demand for your products and/or services.

1 - NAICS Code Lookup

Here are two quick and helpful guides to help you get familiar with NAICS codes:

Find Your NAICS Code

The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) is used to classify businesses according to the type of work they do.  Knowing the NAICS code for your industry is helpful when searching for specific business and marketing information.

NAICS Code Lookup

You can find your NAICS code by clicking on the Reference Files tab and then "2017 NAICS".

Most of your business proposals will be in the "44-45 Retail" section.

Another way to find your NAICS code, is to do a keyword search in the "2017 NAICS Search" box near the top left.

Here are some examples: 

  1. “Clothing”
    1. 448120: Clothing and Clothing Accessories Stores 
    2. 453310: Clothing stores, used
    3. 448140: Family clothing stores 
  2. “Costume”
    1. 448150: Costume jewelry stores
    2. 448190: Costume stores (including theatrical) 

2 - Industry Statistics

Accessing Trade Publications Through the Library

One of the easiest ARC Library databases to find trade publications in is Academic Search Complete. Below are tips to help you search.

Filters

To limit your results to trade publications, use the filters below:

  • Under "Limit To" click on Full Text
  • Under "Source Types" click on Trade Publications

Keyword Searches

When your start searching, a good rule of thumb is to keep your searches between 2-5 keywords.

Example Searches (you can copy and paste these into the search box):

  • cloth* industry
  • clothing (retail or industry)
  • clothing retail California
  • fashion design*
  • textile industry

Searching with a NAICS Code

You also can run searches using a NAICS code! To do this you need to type "IC" in capitol letters before your NAICS code.

Example Searches:

  • IC 448120
  • IC 315420