The primary time the manufacturing facility doorways open, it sort of feels such as you’re in an airport, besides there aren’t any indicators directing you the place to go and no gate numbers. One way or the other, everybody else is aware of precisely the place to go, and also you’re the one one misplaced. When most individuals consider a manufacturing facility, they consider stitching, however there may be SO way more occurring than simply that. At present I’ll take you on a manufacturing facility tour and clarify precisely how garments are made, from cloth to garment.

And right here is the most effective half. Each manufacturing facility by default, must do the identical 7 steps. I’m going to show you the way to spot if a manufacturing facility does them nicely and makes a high quality product, or is slicing corners.

Right here’s what you’ll be taught on this information to how garments are made…

1. A fast story about my first time in a manufacturing facility seeing how garments are made
2. Going with the stream
3. Material and supplies checking
4. Reducing
5. Stitching
6. High quality assurance
7. Urgent
8. Packing
9. Logistics
10. Extra sources

My first time in a fast-fashion manufacturing facility

Factories are thrilling, not solely as a result of it’s the place a design involves life, however due to the vitality. The primary time I walked into a quick style manufacturing facility within the Philippines will ceaselessly be one in all my style core reminiscences.

Woman Gaga was blasting. Materials, bins, and other people have been whizzing previous me. And rows and rows of sewers (we’re speaking longer than a metropolis block) sat stitching as quick as they might underneath a tin roof.

The vitality was Mad Max meets evening membership meets workplace cubicles. One thing it is advisable expertise to actually perceive – it’s an intensive course of. 

Now, your first go to to a manufacturing facility may not be this large (we have been producing hundreds of thousands of models of clothes on this manufacturing facility), however I promise you’ll really feel the loopy uncooked vitality of the individuals behind the clothes being made in no matter manufacturing facility you find yourself in.

Anyway, let’s dive into the small print of what’s going on . . . 

HOW CLOTHES ARE MADE, THE FASHION FACTORY WORKFLOW 

The very first thing it is advisable perceive is {that a} manufacturing garment manufacturing facility is quite a bit like a residing and respiration organism. You possibly can consider it just like the human physique with issues consistently stepping into, popping out, and transferring throughout. There are 1,000,000 little issues taking place that each one work collectively towards the identical objective – making clothes.

I’ve been in a whole lot of factories, and they’re all roughly arrange the identical approach. However there may be one key distinction between smaller workshops and the large guys which can be doing high-volume orders. And that’s the entrance and exit.

Factories function like a river, that means they solely stream a method. A lot in order that many factories even have arrows drawn on the flooring and solely permit staff (and guests) to journey in a single course.

Huge factories have the area to have a extra linear stream with an entrance and exit on separate ends of the constructing. Materials and uncooked supplies enter on one aspect, and clothes depart on the opposite. Actually large factories may even have two entrances (one for individuals and one for deliveries of cloth, trim, tags, and so forth). 

However with a smaller manufacturing facility (like the sort most startup style manufacturers discover themselves in), there is just one entrance/exit. The whole lot is coming and going via one door. So the stream is extra of a circle than a straight line. And that’s the reason issues can really feel much more hectic.

Because of this newbies usually suppose bigger factories are extra skilled when that isn’t all the time the case. They only have extra space and a unique organizational system.

This text is usually going to deal with how small factories function.

STEP #1 – FABRIC AND RAW MATERIALS CHECKING

Step one in how garments are made is an inspection. (Spoiler it is also one of many final steps too).

Earlier than a manufacturing facility can begin slicing and stitching your cloth, they should do a material examine. Many new style manufacturers neglect this step as a result of, truthfully, they don’t even know they want it. But it surely’s essential. Right here’s why.

Let’s fake you get your completed garment within the mail and there are stains on the material. You’ll most definitely name your manufacturing facility in a panic, demanding to know what occurred (and asking for some a reimbursement for the damages). 

9 occasions out of 10, the manufacturing facility will say, “We received the material that approach. Go discuss to your cloth provider.”

So that you’ll name your cloth provider and say, “Hey, what the heck occurred?”

And, you understand what they’re going to let you know? “We shipped good textiles. The garment manufacturing facility did the injury.”

And spherical and spherical you’ll go. By no means getting a straight reply and by no means getting compensated for the broken merchandise.

So, to keep away from all of this, cloth inspection is step one that may create accountability. As quickly as the material enters the manufacturing facility, it’s checked. And if there are damages, the material provider is alerted instantly, so the material will be returned or mounted earlier than it’s minimize and sewn. 

STEP #2 – CUTTING 

As soon as the material passes inspection, it strikes onto the slicing space.

BTW, most sustainable style startup newbies discover this step in how garments are made essentially the most attention-grabbing. 

First, the manufacturing facility unrolls the material and stacks it in layers on a protracted desk, normally concerning the size of a tennis courtroom. They then place the paper patterns (fyi, sample making is completed through the improvement course of) on prime of the stacks of materials. And, lastly, they hint the patterns onto the material with both chalk or a particular pen that may disappear with water.

In spite of everything of that, it is time for slicing. However not with scissors. With a chainsaw. Yup – you learn that appropriately. 

It’s fairly cool to look at. You possibly can catch a glimpse of it on this video I created of your entire garment manufacturing course of for my consumer, My Little Belleville.

STEP #3 – SEWING

As soon as all of the sample items are minimize, they’re sewn collectively. Now, simply watching somebody sew will be fairly boring (regardless that it might be argued it’s crucial step, becuase it is fairly actually how garments are made). 

However, right here is the place it turns into attention-grabbing.

Every member of a stitching line is accountable for one a part of the garment. Which means, one individual sews the physique, one other the sleeves, one other the neckline, one other may placed on the labels and tags, and so forth.

As you stroll down the road, you possibly can actually watch the garment come alive from a stack of minimize cloth items to wearable clothes. It’s principally the evolution of a garment in real-time.

STEP #4 – QUALITY CONTROL

My household works in actual property. And each time my dad considers shopping for a property, he spends about 90% of his time inspecting the basement. Whereas different patrons are inspecting the crown molding and deciding if they need carpet or hardwood flooring, we’re underground as a result of that’s the place large costly issues are inclined to go flawed.

I take an identical strategy when interviewing factories and deciding if I need to give them my consumer’s attire manufacturing orders. I typically spend essentially the most time within the QA division. This can be a actual trick of the commerce. Rookies will spend their time within the stitching room, however style consultants comprehend it’s all about high quality assurance. IMO that is crucial step. It’s what’s going to make or break your model. 

Right here’s why…

Errors occur throughout garment manufacturing.

That’s simply a part of the style course of. Should you suppose working with an excellent manufacturing facility means every part comes out completely, nicely, that’s simply not the way it works in actual life. 

In actual life, needles break and get caught within the clothes seams. In actual life, typically the colour on the sleeve of a shirt doesn’t fairly match with the physique . . . or a dimension medium will get labeled a dimension massive.

What’s vital is catching and correcting these errors.

As a result of errors are inevitable, an excellent manufacturing facility with an excellent high quality assurance program may even produce additional clothes to make sure high quality within the success of your order.

Why?

That is really one in all my favourite secrets and techniques to share when instructing individuals about how clothes is made…

Factories know that whereas clothes manufacturing is imperfect, their purchasers anticipate perfection. So, they plan for about 5% in damages. Which means 5 of the shirts is not going to be good and can be tossed even earlier than they get to the client. (FYI that is excessive stage, and most of the people within the style trade don’t even know this). 

So, say you order 100 shirts from a manufacturing facility. A very good manufacturing facility with an excellent high quality assurance program will in all probability make about 105 shirts. 

Sort of wasteful, huh? That is the hypocrisy in sustainable and moral style. Most small manufacturers don’t even know this waste is going on. They spend a lot time specializing in getting the “good” product, they by no means trouble to ask the way it’s attainable.

STEP #5 – PRESSING

Subsequent up is urgent. This step will completely rework a garment. I like to think about it like a foul 90s rom-com makeover (like in She’s All That or The Princess Diaries) the place abruptly the woman is beautiful as a result of she took off her glasses and straightened her hair. We are able to unpack that one other day. Anyway . . .

When a garment is full and comes off the stitching machine, it’s crumply, frumpy, and appears like one thing you’d discover in a discount bin within the basement of a division retailer.

The ironing and urgent are what convey it to life. 

Professional tip – Not all cloth urgent is equal.

A whole lot of factories, in an effort to save lots of time, will lay the garment flat and simply iron excessive of it. That is horrible.

The precise option to iron a garment is to open and press every seam individually. It takes in all probability 5 occasions longer, however when a buyer tries on that garment for the primary time, they may really feel the distinction in high quality and match.

STEP #6 – PACKING

After propper garment urgent, it is time for packing. First in a poly bag, then right into a transport carton. This step isn’t a ton of enjoyable or very thrilling.

When the packing is completed, the model will get one thing known as a packing listing. A packing listing is what it feels like  – an inventory of every carton and what sizes and styles are in every field.

That is vital as a result of typically what you order will not be what ships. For instance, again to these 100 shirts. Possibly the manufacturing facility was solely capable of create 99 good shirts. In that case, you solely pay for the 99 shirts that get shipped.

You will need to all the time examine your preliminary PO (buy order) to your transport docs to ensure you are being charged for the proper portions. 

STEP #7 – LOGISTICS + EXIT

This photograph was taken once I was working within the Philippines. Whereas the employees wait to load the cartons onto the truck, they hang around and play video games beneath within the shade. They even arrange hammocks like this one typically! 

Lastly, now we have logistics on the exit.

That is the place garment producers stack up all of the packing containers with the clothes manufacturing order, and ships them out.

Now, right here is one thing to find out about transport. The key phrase it is advisable know is port metropolis. Port cities are cities the place items enter and exit. If a manufacturing facility will not be situated in a port metropolis, your order will must be shipped domestically to the port earlier than it may be shipped internationally. 

For instance, Jaipur will not be a port metropolis. So any clothes manufactured in Jaipur have to be shipped to Delhi first. Then it will probably ship internationally. If you wish to be taught extra about manufacturing in Jaipur, try this text. 

That is vital to know for 2 causes. 

The primary is monitoring. A manufacturing facility may let you know your items have shipped however not present a monitoring quantity. When this occurs, manufacturers usually suppose the manufacturing facility is mendacity. However what this normally means is that the products first ship domestically to the port metropolis, the place they’ll must clear customs. As soon as they clear customs, solely then will they get a world monitoring quantity.

The second cause is timing. Having a two-step transport course of takes extra time. So that is time that must be factored into your timeline.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

1. Easy methods to discover customized clothes producers for startups
2. Ought to I rent a producing guide to supply and develop my clothes line?
3. A Look Behind The Seams of an Italian garment manufacturing facility

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

Do you’re feeling higher ready in your first manufacturing facility go to now that you simply perceive the method of getting garments made? Let me know within the feedback another questions you may need about how factories work and the way clothes is made. Don’t be shy, it’s a posh course of, however I’m right here to assist reply your questions.