Sunday's MTV Video Music Awards reaffirmed to Keith Ruby that he had a hit on his hands.

A clothing hit.

This wasn't anything that any starlet was donning on the red carpet; it was the distressed jeans worn by Britney Spears in her “Piece of Me” video, which won three awards, including Video of the Year.

The jeans were Destroyed Brand, the clothing line co-founded by Ruby in 2005 that consists of specialty denim, hoodies, and T-shirts. It's been seen on celebrities like Pamela Anderson and the Pussycat Dolls, and racks up sales of $14,000 a month.

Not one item of clothing has ever been seen the shelves of a proper retail store. All of it has been sold online.

Ruby's ready to change that and expand his brand beyond the Internet. Armed with a 72-page business plan, a small staff and a desire for global expansion, he's looking for investors.

"In the past four months I've spent about $150,000 in development and producing the original premium denim we're selling now," said Ruby. "We've hired some really cool designers, and branding and strong marketing will be hallmarks of our company's success equation ahead. But in order to get to that point, it's going to take a one to two million-dollar deal.

Up-and-comers in the apparel industry with big visions and limited bank accounts are largely raising money through venture capital and private-equity firms.

Fashion investments have some appeal for investors. Despite some weak retail numbers as of late, experts say that investments in the industry can be quite profitable.

"It can be a very low-capital-intensive business," said Frederick Schmitt, a principal with private equity firm Sage LLC, which has advised numerous fashion deals, including Juicy Couture's sale to Liz Claiborne (LIZ) and Castanea Partners' investment in Betsey Johnson.

"All you really need to be able to do is be able to pay yourself and your employees, and you have to be able to buy all the materials to make the product. Fashion brands can be tremendously successful, particularly if you're just talking about brands that don't have a retail element. There's tremendous cash flow and they generate a lot of profits."

Of course, the key there is getting successful. According to Steven Linder, associate professor of design and management at Parsons The New School for Design, 50% of fashion startups fail within the first two years--though he points out, "that's not much higher than any other small-business enterprise. It's a much lower rate than investing in restaurants."

Schmitt says the risk-versus-reward tradeoff is part of the attraction to investing in fashion--and makes the breadth of the product a necessity for securing capital.

"Yes, it can be volatile," he said. "I mean, it’s fashion. I think what most investors try to assess is, 'is this a true brand? Or is this just someone who's had a couple of good seasons?' "

In other words, young designers seeking cash infusions need to show they're not one-trick ponies--that their sales won't just come from a couple of shirts or a good-looking pair of pants.  It's also important, said Linder, that they demonstrate the ability to pull off several solid collections.

"Sometimes designers expend their creativity for the first collection," he said. "If you're a one-hit wonder, you won't make it. You have to temper creativity with what the consumer wants, what's commercially viable."

The best way for young designers to prove that what they make will sell is by doing some actual selling and attracting retail buyers. Linder estimates it takes about $12,000 to produce a line of 30 sample garments to show to buyers. If a buyer chooses to place an order, this is confirmation that the line is valid. It also means they'll have access to $250,000 to produce the items for the buyers.

Typically at this stage, a designer will seek out venture capitalists and potential investors through networking, try to raise money from a bank or take out a loan from the Small Business Association, or hook up with an established manufacturer who--in exchange for providing a show room, sales rep, garment center, and providing a designer with money or a credit line--will claim a large ownership stake in the brand, expecting to be paid back in three to five years.

Working for an established designer can help make this process easier.

If a designer has been working for a big name “like a Marc Jacobs or a Tom Ford," Schmitt said, "it's probably not going to be difficult to attract capital and investors."

For those like Keith Ruby, the goal is to keep networking.  "I've been connected through lawyers and friends who've connected me with people," he said. "You've got to be nonstop tenacious and you've got to try and keep your morale up."

He continued: "You've gotta be fearless and have determination and visualize that success and put the right people in place.”