Bamboo Clothing Manufacturers: Beyond the “Bamboo” Label

In fact, bamboo clothing manufacturers can provide far more than a gentle-textured, environmentally-friendly looking material, which is why it deserves closer scrutiny before you place an order.

So for a clothing brand to settle on bamboo based material really isn‘t just about finding a supplier with ‘bamboo’ in their brochures. The fabric must also be suitable for the product, the customers you intend to market it to, and the price point you are working to.

Don’t Choose Bamboo Fabric Just Because It Sounds Sustainable

The word and name “Bamboo” sounds great in the clothing industry.

Once you get used to the feels of the felt, you‘ll note that it tends to evoke concepts such as soft/ comfortable/ eco friendly. However that is not enough to know whether the fleece is suitable for your lining.

A T-shirt, a hoodie, a loungewear set, or an activewear piece might demand very diverse fabric properties.

We need to consider the proper way to wear the garment before the fabric is selected.

Will it need stretch?

Does it need shape?

Is this too heavy or too light?

In what frequency will it be washed?

The answers are more important than the number printed on the fabric specification.

Ask What Kind of Bamboo Fabric You’re Actually Getting

Not all bamboo fabrics are the same.

It is likely you‘ll find bamboo viscose, bamboo rayon, bamboo blends and other bamboo fibers and fabrics. These can be made from different ratios of bamboo and other fibers, have different weight, fabric type and construction, and different finishing processes.

That is reason why buyers must ask the fabric composition of actual fabric not just use “bamboo fabric”.

If the material is central to your brand positioning, obtain the necessary specifications and information ahead of time.

The Softest Fabric Isn’t Always the Best Fabric

The most appealing feature of the fabrics made from the Bamboo fiber is softness. But that must not be the only feature which you are testing.

A cloth can feel wonderful at first touch and continue to be worthless after hundreds of usage.

Depending on the product, you may also need to consider:

• How you stretch and how you recover.
• Fabric weight
• Shape retention
• Durability
• Pilling
• Washing performance

In general clothing, the best fabric of daily wear is not the softest, but it is the one that makes the clothing the most comfortable, attractive, and useful.

Think About What Happens After Washing

This is the point at which a sample of fabric can reveal many things, much more than you might be told in a standard product description.

Before starting a batch production. Wash the sample and observe what happens.

Is it shrunk?

Does the color stay continuous?

Is the surface becoming rough?

Does it pill?

Yes. Will the shape of the garment stay the same?

This can, at a later time, turn into a customer complaint if these aspects were not noticed during the development process.

A sample that has appeared perfect when coming from the factory is just the start.

Your Manufacturer Should Understand the Whole Garment

Selection of a bamboo fabric is just one step in the development of bamboo clothing.

The manufacturer also has to transform that material into a properly fitting garment.

Everything in the pattern, fit, stitching, trims, labels, printing and finishing has an impact upon the finished article.

What looks great in a loose T-shirt would not necessarily move well in a snug-fitting dress.

Because in that case having a manufacturer who is able to talk about the fabric as part of the full product rather than just an list of ingredients can be very helpful.

Ask About Certifications Before Making Sustainability Claims

If sustainability is amongst the DNA of your brand you should not solely take the supplier‘s word.

Expressions like “eco-friendly,” “sustainable,” or “organic” have radically different implications for any given piece of material, says Van Boetzelaer.

Ask for details about the ingredients in the fabric and if any documentation or certification is available.

This provides you with a stronger basis for your own product descriptions and selling points.

Don’t Forget the Cost of Reordering

Your initial fabric order might not be the hardest to start with.

That‘s nothing if it doesn‘t sell.

Suppose you require a subsequent prototyping run several months down the line, can the same material still be obtained?

Color and weight, will they be the same?

Can the manufacturer re-manufacture this garment?

But once an item becomes a regular part of your collection, these questions become more relevant. I find that they are easily left behind when placing initial order.

Something just a little less expensive is by no means better if it cannot be obtained consistently again.

When Stock Fabric Stops Being Enough

For an up-and-coming brand experimenting with bamboo apparel, a ready-made fabric could be absolutely sufficient.

As the collection develops however, you may wish to hold a tighter reign on the material.

That might mean a particular weight of fabric, a blend, a color, a finish or hand feel.

Other than that, the project ceased being about identifying a readymade bamboo garment, which you would then be able to incorporate into your own collection.

This is where a manufacturer, who can do fabric sourcing and custom apparel development, can be probably become far more advantageous.

Developing Bamboo Apparel With JiuvelWear

When bamboo fabric is incorporated in your upcoming collection, JiuvelWear can help you in the design process by providing the fabric, sampling, OEM, ODM, private label/branding and bulk manufacturing.

What matters is not just getting a manufacturer that can say “yes” about bamboo.

The one you could use for this purpose to help you analyze the fabric, design the garment around the fabric, test the design, and produce the approved product when it comes time to restock.

In the context of a garments label the true value of bamboo fabric lies once it has gone into the finished garment.