Working with a factory is a big step towards getting your designs made. I find that designers fall into one of two camps when it comes to this stage. They either are intimidated and are scared to move forward on their own or they underestimate what goes into onboarding a new design successfully.
In episode 86, Kirby Best, the CEO & President of the innovative on-demand factory Bespoke Manufacturing Company, talks about what on-demand production is and what it means for the future of fashion. Learn the pros and cons of an on-demand model and how to know if it is a good fit for your fashion business. […]
There are multiple ways you can develop custom apparel products for your brand – working directly with a patternmaker or working with a factory on development. Each has its advantages and drawbacks and which is right for you depends on how you like to work and what factors are the most important to you.
You don’t want any unwanted surprises in production and your customer doesn’t want any unwanted surprises the first time they pull the garment out of the clean laundry basket. To know what shrinkage to expect and how to manage it in production and beyond, testing your fabrics for the different types of shrinkage is essential.
High shipping costs, longer freight times, and rising tariffs have made moving production to the USA a competitive option for some brands. With any big logistics shift, the switch can bring some new challenges. If you are considering moving your production to the States, here are four things to prepare for to make the transition.
Different production models can yield very different businesses, garments, customer experiences, and ethical and environmental impacts. Let’s look at a range of fashion production models and their pros and cons.
Finding the right factory for your brand is often not a quick and easy process, so it helps if you are prepared. While each factory has their specialties and ways of working, there are certain things that all cut & sew factories will need from you in order to make your design successfully.
Have you ever heard the term “production pattern” and wondered what that really meant? There are actually clear differences between just any regular pattern and one that is production-ready. Plus, there and reasons why you don’t want to (and sometimes can’t) go into production with just any pattern.
You want to keep a high level of quality for your brand and want to feel in control of doing so. There are things you can do as the brand owner to stay in control of product quality even if you aren’t technical, can’t open your production files, or don’t know how to sew.
In general, I think that when people think of quality production, they think of quality sewing. While this is certainly true, it is what’s upstream of the sewing – like the pattern – that has the most control over the quality of the finished garment.
