Here are some articles that provide information on how to start a clothing store:

How to Start a Clothing Store
Starting a Specialized Clothing Retailing Business
Starting a Retail Clothing Store

One of the first steps is to prepare a business plan. Especially if you are planning on applying for loans, the process of business planning can help you think through your business. It can help you decide on the type of store, determine the costs involved, how to get suppliers to sell to you, how to market the store, expected profitability, etc.

Here are sample business plans for a clothing store that you can check out:

Retail Clothing
Men’s Clothing Retailer
Special Needs Clothing Store

For detailed information, I suggest you check out the following books:

Start Your Own Clothing Store (Entrepreneur Magazine’s Start Up) (Paperback) by Entrepreneur Press
Retail Business Kit for Dummies by Rick Segel
Specialty Shop Retailing: How to Run Your Own Store Revised by Carol L. Schroeder

You may also want to check out the resources of the following associations:

Professional Apparel Association
American Apparel Producer’s Network
Worldwide Responsible Apparel Manufacture
American Apparel and Footwear Association
National Association of Fashion and Accessory Designers
Fashion Group International
Apparel News

As for grants, unfortunately, if you are in the US, the government hardly gives any grants for starting a for-profit business. Unlike the myths that some perpetuate, federal government and even private foundations hardly give grant money for a for-profit business.

Nonetheless, you can go to the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) and Grants.gov – these are two sites created by the federal government to provide transparency and information on grants. Browse through the listings and see if you can find any grant that would support a for-profit venture.

Even if you buy books on “how to get grants” or list that supposedly has information on grants — all of them are mere rehash of what CFDA has, albeit packaged differently. But still the info is the same – hardly any grants for starting a for profit business.

Even SBA does NOT give out grants. From the SBA website

“The U.S. Small Business Administration does not offer grants to start or expand small businesses, although it does offer a wide variety of loan programs. (See for more information) While SBA does offer some grant programs, these are generally designed to expand and enhance organizations that provide small business management, technical, or financial assistance. These grants generally support non-profit organizations, intermediary lending institutions, and state and local governments.”

Here is a listing of federal grants for small businesses. See if there is any available for individuals for starting a business — THERE’S NONE.

Most of the federal grants are given to specific target groups with specific requirements (e.g. minority business owners involved in transportation related contracts emanating from DOT – Grant#20.905 Disadvantaged Business Enterprises Short Term Lending Program

Grants are also often given to non profit groups or organizations involved in training or other similar activities (grant 59.043 Women’s Business Ownership Assistance that are given to those who will create women’s business center that will train women entrepreneurs