I touched on the importance of fabric knowledge when it comes to starting your own fashion brand here. Today, I'm going to go discuss three things you need to know about your fabric before you go into production. Bonus is - they don't require a textile degree!
If you've signed up and completed my course "Roadmap to producing your fashion sample" you'll be aware of all the steps you need to take prior to going into production, but when it comes to your fabric you need to know these three things:
What happens to the fabric when it's washed or dyed?
Test your fabric. Usually the mill or factory will do this for you, but if you're working with smaller suppliers you might need to specifically request it. Whether you request it or not, make sure you know the results from the tests. These should be collected and added to each product file so you know how the fabric will react to any of your design requirements.
What are the lead times?
I've spoken about this a lot in my articles and also in my course , but knowing your lead times of your fabric is so important to your production time line. Not to state the obvious but production can't start without the fabric. So, before placing an order you need to know exactly when it's due to arrive and plan accordingly. Make sure you know how long it takes to weave and then to ship!
Repeat orders
Discuss stock availability and continuity in advance, especially if you order only a small quantity for sampling. Imagine if the mill discontinued that fabric after you have taken orders from your samples made in that specific fabric! #Nightmare! Make sure it will be available before you go ahead and sell from sample.
There some other fabric knowledge you need to know that I haven't covered in this post, so feel free to reach out to me and ask any specific questions you might have regaining your brand and production here.