If you are planning to launch a clothing brand, finding a method to make it different from a sea of other brands is important, and a great way to achieve that is to sell unique products.
The challenge is to find those unique products, which is why several entrepreneurs choose to make their own products. Deciding whether to supply clothing items to adults, kids, or both is not easy, and you may require some help to start this process.
Do you wish to launch your own business with custom clothes? If yes, then you will need your own clothing designs, and you will likely have to work with a manufacturer to turn your designs into products.
It can be tricky to launch a clothing business, particularly if you wish to make your own products, so we have made this post to guide you through it. In this article, we will cover everything you have to know when seeking a manufacturer for your clothing brand.
Do You Require a Clothing Manufacturer?
A question you should ask yourself when you are considering launching a clothing business is this: “Do I have to work with a manufacturer?”
If you are just starting, then it is important for you to understand that to work with a clothing manufacturer could just be a risk – in terms of your time and finances.
When you work with a manufacturer, you will have to place periodic orders for your stock in bulk. This means you will get numerous products which you will have to store and handle – this could eat into valuable funds if you are starting on a tight budget.
This is not an issue if you know that customers like the clothing you have created, but there is no guarantee this will pan out just the way you want it to, and it is a problem even the world’s largest retailers face. The lone difference is that taking the loss when some of their products do not hit the ground running is something that retail giants can afford.
As said above, working with a clothing manufacturer could just be a risk.
If you are just starting a business, or you wish to experiment with niche products, then it is suggested that you begin lean.
We do not want you to eventually be in a circumstance where you try clearing out your inventory at a discounted rate, which could lead to you losing money.
If you are to start a clothing business with a dropshipping model, then you will not have to bother about sourcing, handling, or shipping your stock. There are numerous great dropshipping products which you can pick from, and your clothing supplier will ship those directly to your customer.
You can also change the products you are selling easily – there is no financial repercussion as there would be if you had already made the products.
You only have to worry about growing your clothing business. With options such as drop shipping available, we suggest that you consider starting small to learn whether there is an audience you will be able to tap into before making moves toward working with a clothing manufacturer.
Finding a clothing producer and creating your own stock is an excellent way to operate your business. Let us look at the most important aspects of working with a clothing manufacturer.
Selecting a Clothing Supplier for Your Business
When you are in the search for a supplier, you will have to ask yourself if you wish to work with only domestic manufacturers in the nation you live in. Else, you can source clothing products from overseas manufacturers. Both of these choices have distinct pros and cons, and choosing the one that best suits your business in terms of quality, funding and business ethics is up to you.
We will break down the advantages and disadvantages of working with domestic clothing manufacturers and overseas manufacturers below.
Domestic Producers
We live in an age where consumers are becoming more and more conscious of the materials used to manufacture the products they are buying, in addition to the working standard of those who are producing them.
With domestic clothing manufacturers, you will likely get superior quality products, with regulated labor standards. These will still come at a price – sourcing products from domestic clothing producers will be more costly.
If you will pay the additional fees to use these manufacturers, then emphasizing the fact that you are working with local segments in some marketing material is a great idea. This can help you make your brand image stronger with consumers who are also conscious of these matters.
Another great advantage to working with clothing manufacturers from your native is that the shipping times would be quicker than these would be should you choose to work with manufacturers from abroad. The shipping is usually affordable than it is if you work with foreign manufacturers of clothing. This is yet another benefit of working with domestic manufacturers.
A notable downside you might find if you go down the domestic route is there is usually a smaller choice of clothing products they can produce than manufacturers from abroad. This may not be a problem for you if are looking to make generic products; however, if you are seeking something obscure, then you may find overseas suppliers to be the better choice.
Overseas Clothing Manufacturers
Plenty of overseas manufacturers can help you make products for your clothing business, and it is often at a lower cost compared to what it would be should you work with a manufacturer from your nation.
The quality of clothing products from foreign nations might not be just as good as those that come out of domestic manufacturers. You have to always be aware of this, in addition to the unregulated standards which may be used by those clothing manufacturers. Overseas manufacturers can include those from India, Taiwan, China and a host of other nations in Asia. Most clothing manufacturers are from the subcontinent. Those from China are the most popular, with companies producing all kinds of products for dropshipping and online resale found easily.
Besides, you will likely experience relatively longer shipping times when you work with an overseas company, and shipping will possibly turn out to be more costly than it would be if you work with a domestic manufacturer.
Ways to Find a Clothing Manufacturer
Now that we have broken down some pros and cons of domestic and overseas options, it is time to give you the information you require to find a clothing manufacturer for your business.
Industry Meet-ups
These can be very useful for you in the search for a manufacturer for your clothing business. Attending larger-scale trade shows and local events will help you meet a lot of people having affiliations with clothing manufacturers.
Search Engines
You can use search engines such as Google to find a clothing producer. These are also an excellent resource to find one for your business.
It is worth noting that clothing manufacturers do not update their sites regularly, so you will perhaps have to trawl through many webpages before finding any relevant results. Do not worry, lots of legitimate clothing manufacturers are available online.
Facebook Groups
Plenty of groups on the social networking website are full of business people, who want to help others. We recommend that you join groups such as “Kingpinning” or “Shopify Entrepreneurs” and use any resources available there to find a manufacturer.
Be sure to go through the specific group rules, and ask questions regarding starting your clothing brand.
If you are interested in drop shipping, then a great group we recommend you to join is “Drop ship Business Masterminds”.
Old Fashioned Research
Networking and asking the industry people for tips on ways to discover the right manufacturer for your business is also important. For example, it is important that you make sure that China clothing factories have the right substance control measures in place, and that these comply with textile regulations in your nation. For manufacturers in the UK, China, or the US, sizes could be a nightmare when you are selling products in various markets; therefore, it is paramount to have a manufacturer that lets you make a custom label for clothes. Consulting with others who have already worked with Chinese and US manufacturers can also help you answer every relevant question you have with regards to this.
Choosing the Right Manufacturer
When you go through the aforementioned resources, you will likely have a number of potential manufacturers for your clothing company. The next step to take is refining your list. Consider the following things.
- Price
- Quality
- Shipping Times
- Experience
You will wish to go for the manufacturer that can give you the best quality products at a price point, which aligns with your present business funds.
You will wish to find one that can give you the quickest shipping times possible, depending on whether you have chosen an overseas or a domestic supplier.
You will also wish to work with a clothing manufacturer with the most experience – after all, you want to ensure that it eventually delivers on your requests.
Ways to help you find clothing suppliers are mentioned above, but all of those are also great to validate the suppliers you have found.
Do your research. Talk to many people to learn more about this. Try everything possible to find the clothing manufacturer suitable for your business.
Ideally, we always suggest visiting the manufacturer so that you can evaluate their processes, in addition to their efficiency. We know this is not possible at all times, but when you can, ask the manufacturer whether you can visit them before you make orders. In addition to helping you validate your choice to work with them; this will help build your relationship, which is important in a long-term deal.
Wholesale Clothing Manufacturer
These can be the best options whether you are planning on starting a small or big clothing business. Wholesale is an excellent business model when you have room to store merchandise with no trouble as you can economically buy large volumes of stock, which you can sell to people at a marked-up rate.
If there is no space to store a large number of products for any time period, then you have to think about dropshipping, where storage is not required. When you source clothing from a supplier, you do not have to order anything – simply offer products to customers to purchase online. When an item is bought, contact the supplier or manufacturer of clothing to place that order with them. Then, they will arrange to have the item shipped to your customer in a reasonable time frame.
Are You Ready to Start Your Clothing Business?
That is everything you have to keep in mind when choosing a manufacturer for your clothing business. As this is an important business decision, take the time to research and find a clothing manufacturer that fits your business requirements. The more time you spend today will help you avoid larger setbacks down the road.
