Dress Manufacturers for Growing Fashion Brands

A new dress can originate from something as simple as a drawing, a photo, or a fabric dream. Developing that into a quality product is much more than sewing pieces into a design. Fabric selection influences the drape, pattern selection manages the silhouette. Small touches such as linings, zippers, sleeves, and hems can alter the entire silhouette. For apparel labels, selecting the appropriate dress manufacturers entails finding a manufacturer to manage those details and still keep the product consistent with increased production batch sizes.

Start With the Fabric

Fabric typically determines the line of a dress prior to the factory cutting the initial pattern piece. Viscose, for example, can give a maxi dress a gentle, flowing drape, whereas cotton poplin will produce a neater, crisp line for a shirt dress. Jersey and rib fabrics will accommodate more fitted shapes, and linen and linen blends are more common in lightweight summer ranges.

Various fibers also produce various processing problems. Stretch fabrics require more careful handling on the seams and measurements. Light weight fabrics tend to shift while you are trying to cut and sew them. Sheer fabrics require lining or another type of seam treatment. Today;‘s dress producers in the marketplace all have listed several of the following fabrics as part of their dress program: viscose, poplin, rib knit, jersey, linen blends, satin, and chiffon and other woven and knit fabrics.

Prior to production, the development team should test for weight, width, stretch, recovery, shrinkage, opacity and drape of the fabric. Though it gives an indication of the color and surface of the fabric, a sample cannot indicate how the fabric will perform in a whole garment.

Build the Fit Through Pattern Development

Now we have to create a shape out of the measurements. Once the pattern is made, measurement become a three dimensional shape. All measurements are related to each other. Measuring the bust, waist, hip, shoulder, armhole, sleeve and length you haven‘t just taken individual dimensions:mdash;

Think of a fitted dress, based on the correct bust size. It can still look very wrong if the waist is in the wrong place, the armhole is cut to low, or the side seem shifts towards the front. When it comes to Maxi and midi dresses, there is a another problem at hand, namely the skirt length, and how the drape can alter the balance of the entire body silhouette.

Size grading adds extra dimensions to the work. One medium size pattern may not produce the same proportioned appearance in an XS or a XXL. The pattern team has to vary certain measurements levels throughout the size range to preserve the same look.

Construction Brings the Design Together

Using the pattern once successful the garment is sewn together from the individual panels. Construction varies depending on the design.

Ruffles, gathers, pleats, darts, princess seams, pockets, straps, smocking and elastic inserts demand various treatment. An unlined sleeveless dress will often be finished with less sewing than an evening dress with a lining a number of panels and an invisible zip.

Necks are important to consider because they are visible and also detail the shape of the dress. Sleeves should be designed to give a good fit through the armhole, but even a small change in a sleeve width or armhole shape can give a change of appearance when the garment is worn.

Manufacturers now advertise features like smocked bodices, puff sleeves, ruffled tiers, cutouts, wrap closures, invisible zippers, lining and embellishing work. These choices clearly represent variations in construction between styles of dress.

Lining Changes More Than Comfort

Lining is often considered a second choice in the initial stages of a garment, but it can influence transparency, mobility, silhouette, and how a dress feels.

Lightweight and/or transparent fabrics require a full or partial lining. Structured dresses may require an inner layer for support. Conversely, a close fitting dress requires mobility between the lining and outer fabric, so that the dress does not pull when the wearer moves.

Material compatibility is important here. If the outer fabric is stretchy and the lining is non-stretchy, movement may be restricted. Conversely, if the lining is slippery it may affect the drape of the outer fabric in relation to the body. Sampling should involve testing both layers together.

Closures Need Their Own Checks

The small details such as zippers, buttons, hooks, and snaps may be in a small part of a dress. They may cause an obvious problem when workers stitch or install zipper, button, Hook&Snap‘s awareness in the production line.

The invisible zip must be very smooth in line with the seam. The button plackets should be evenly spaced. For the hooks button holes must be stitched firmly, or double stitched. For heavier trims the reinforcement along the attachment point will be important.

Fabric also influences the types of closure chosen. Satin, chiffon, lace, jersey, and light woven fabrics stretch and behave differently under tension and when sewn. A manufacturer needs to look at fabric, closure, seams, and silhouette as a whole, not isolated decisions.

Sampling Gives Brands Something Real to Evaluate

Sampling provides a tangible garment rather than a pouch filled with sketches and measurements. The team is able to examine the fit, fabric, color, neckline, shape of the sleeves, lining, closures, hem, and general appearance before starting production.

The more defined the feedback, the more helpful it is, and directed instructions are very helpful. ‘Make the waist 1cm smaller’ is helpful to the pattern team. ‘The dress is too loose’, is a lot less help and requires the team to begin to analyze the problem.

Different sample list time current manufacturers. Potato Apparel mentioned 7 – 10 business days, Hualingniao listed 8 – 15 days. These data give brands an idea of the range they may face rather than an established industry norm.

Quality Control Should Start Early

It is also more effective to have the factory in control of the product during production rather than just at final inspection.

Fabric width, color, visible faults, controls for shrinkage and stretch are checked on the fabric prior to cutting. During sewing, checked on such aspects as measurements, how the seams are made, the position of the zip, the straps, the lining, the hems and construction.

Finally the inspection team can check the entire garment, check the measurements, check the appearanc., check for loose threads and labels, check pressing, check packing and all other requirements of the garment. Hualingniao has for example in its dress production process fabric check, sewing check, measurement check and AQL 2.5 inspection.

MOQ Depends on the Project

Minimum order quantities differ from each manufacturer. Depending upon the fabric, number of colors and printing, embroidery, custom trims, labels, packaging and the construction of the product.

Most of the present makers advertise a initial MOQ of 50 pieces per style. Potato Apparel has 50 pieces per style, Hualingniao has 50, Plucky Reach has listed 50 for its dress program. And GoVoloom runs 100 at the moment,

A small first order may be attractive to a startup. It minimizes inventory risk during a trial of a new design. Larger brands might want several hundred pieces in different colors and sizes.

In addition to MOQ, new brand should consider the sample quality, source of fabric, production capacity, communication, inspection and possibility to repeat same style.

Look at the Long-Term Production Process

Repeats are far more informative than a single sample. When a style is re-ordered a few months down the line, a brand expects the measurements, fabrics, trims, construction details and finishing to be identical.

Having good production documentation can help smooth this process. In the factory, the pattern information, measurement charts, fabric specifications, trimming specifications and construction instructions can be kept together for reference when you make subsequent orders.

Production capacity is also important. We have seen emerging manufacturers of all scales: some only produce batch orders of about 50 pieces, while others were talking about much higher monthly output. So brands should always balance the size of each order with the factory‘s capacity instead of going with the ones that has the lowest MOQ.

Choose a Manufacturer Around Your Product

Price is important – but the lowest quotation is not necessarily the most effective for production relationships. It can take many development iterations for a dress, and errors made with fabric, fit, construction or proportions can be considerably more expensive than a tiny variation in a unit price.

Inquire whether manufacturer is able to provide the variety of fabrics you require for your range. Confirm if the pattern cutting team can produce samples from a tech pack, sketch or garment. Talk through sample modifications, size grading, production capabilities, quality control, packaging, labels, packing and reorders before placing a full scale order.

For JiuvelWear, this requirements are related with the more general custom clothing manufacturing done by Dongguan Jiuzuo Clothing Co., Ltd. They have relationships with the brands for the work on fabric sourcing, sample, manufacturing, inspection and quality controlling.

A good dress maker should ultimately enable a brand to take the concept to a sound finished product without compromising the detail which makes the style unique. With the factory knowing the fabric, fit, construction, sampling and finish parameters early on a brand is well equipped for the repeat production process and growth over time.