Join me for this special episode 50 as I chat with three of my fellow patternmaker and product developer friends about how you can develop fashion that fits your customer, lifestyle, and values. We share our best industry tips and expert advice on making clothes that really fit – and building best practices for your brand and business whether you are just starting out or are leveling up an established brand.
Ellie Wilcox – Digitech Design
Ellie Wilcox helps fashion entrepreneurs bridge the gap between design and technology by way of 3D prototyping.
Xochil Herrera Scheer – The Chicago Patternmaker
Xochil Herrera Scheer is “The Chicago Pattern Maker”; she provides pattern making and product development design services to businesses throughout the US. Xochil and her team bring strong expertise and genuine care to collaborate with brands, guiding them through the pre-production prototyping process, with the goal of creating beautiful and functional products that are ready to take to market.
Named a “Rising Star” by SPESA in 2021, Xochil has a keen understanding of the production process through her network of factories and suppliers, and by staying closely involved with clients throughout their development. She is very passionate about Made in USA products, ethical sourcing and manufacturing, and is an active member of SEAMS Association, FGI Chicago, and the Apparel Industry Board of Illinois. Xochil enjoys promoting our great industry through learning experiences, collaborative events and professional development. She is also an adjunct faculty teacher in Fashion Studies at Columbia College Chicago.
Connie Bourgeois – Conjetta Designs
Connie Bourgeois is the CEO and Creative Director of Conjetta Designs – a full service fashion design and production company. Connie is highly intuitive and draws inspiration from the world around her. From a young age, she knew she wanted a career in fashion, a dream that became a reality in 2010. Since then, she has tried to get involved in a variety of projects, all of which have somehow become part of her ongoing creative journey.
Connie started Conjetta Designs with her business partner, Dayne Lewis, in 2020. The goal, bringing others fashion design dreams to life, in turn building up St.Louis’ fashion industry to what it once was. In 2 short years the team and company has grown immensely.
Connie is also the Creative Director? and Co-Founder of Gyal Bashy, a Caribbean inspired, sustainably sourced, inclusive brand.
Alison Hoenes – Alison Hoenes Design & How Fitting podcast
Alison Hoenes is a freelance patternmaker who helps women’s slow fashion brands overcome technical unknowns and get designs to production with confidence. She writes a newsletter for fashion entrepreneurs on developing fashion that fits your lifestyle, body, and values, serves as the Regional Director for Fashion Group International of Saint Louis, and is the host of the How Fitting podcast.
She truly enjoys all the technical details that go into making flat yards of fabric fit a three-dimensional body. Alison has so much fun working with brands to make clothes that fit – developing clothing that makes your customers feel confident and developing confidence in you along the way.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
- The importance of fit and how to make sure you end up with a well-fitting design
- The questions Connie, Xochil, Ellie, and I ask designers at the beginning of the development process so we are clear what good fit looks like
- How to develop good fit from your first collection and beyond
- Why boundaries and good communication create work-life balance that allows you to focus on the things that you value the most
- Ways to set expectations at the beginning of a project so that everyone feels heard and respected throughout the whole development process
- The benefits of finding a patternmaker/development partner who aligns with your brand values
- How to attract people who share the same values
- How brand values influence design and development
- Why knowing your customer is key to a successful product and business
- Our top tips for brands just starting product development for their design
People and resources mentioned in this episode:
- Digitech Design website
- Digitech Design email
- Ellie’s Instagram
- Ellie’s LinkedIn
- The Chicago Patternmaker website
- The Chicago Patternmaker email
- Xochil’s Instagram
- Xochil’s LinkedIn
- Conjetta Designs website
- Connie’s email
- Conjetta Designs Instagram
- Conjetta Designs LinkedIn
- Gyal Bashy website
- Calendly scheduling app
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