Discuss the wholesale blanks industry: Factory direct, custom labels. You can also use this forum to locate a wide variety of wholesale products including t-shirts, hoodies, mousepads, coffee mugs and other imprintable products.
I've been reading posts on the site and from what i gather is that most of you are screen printers. I dont have any equipment just a lil money and a design book full of ideas. I plan on starting my own shirt line, but the thing is i cant find the exact feel or durability that im looking for from any major companies(i.e. gildan, hanes, etc.) and if i do find a good material i cant find shirts i want. I have ideas for striped shirts, acid dyes, certain seam types and locations and im coming to the conclusion that the only way to get what i want is to have shirts made from scratch. I figured im in the right spot for some good advice. Long story short i guess my main questions are:
- How would i get striped hoodies made( thicker stripes in colors i could pick) would i have to find that material or could i actually get it dyed like that.
- What do you call seams on a shirt that look kinda like they are sewn inside out kinda?
- How would i get a shirt that looks like it has patches in the background of a hole (so to speak) of a shirt
- is it expensive to get a shirt made from scratch and what would be a good guide to learning materials and wieghts for quality shirts
i have so many questions but i'll save some for next time. Hopefully someone could atleast point me in the right direction, Thanx in advance
it is expensive to get shirts made custom... mostly because of the high quantities. If you go overseas you will usually have a minimum order of at least a few thousand pieces... and that is probably not what you are looking for to start up a company with
you should look at some of the more "fashion forward" blank companies. Some good ones to check out would be American Apparel, Continental Clothing, and Alternative Apparel. I have worked with all three, they all have great products at reasonable prices. Check out their websites and apply for a wholesale account if you find what you are looking for.
Thanx, i was kinda figuring it would be more expensive, but i also see it as if i do get thousands of blanks made , i would just have them for later in business and all i would have to do is get them screen printed or embroidered. I hear you guys mention those companies alot but they dont really offer the baggy /comforatable fit im trying to accomplish. I will check them out though thanx again!
- How would i get striped hoodies made( thicker stripes in colors i could pick) would i have to find that material or could i actually get it dyed like that.
Hopefully some useful answers to some of your questions:
Stripes shirts or hoodies are usually yarn dyed for best results. They can be printed.
We call those seams "inside-out hems" but we also refer to them as reverse hems as Rodney had mentioned I think. I will post a pic to make sure we are on the same page.
I don't know what you mean by patches, maybe you can post a pic?
It really dosen't cost a lot to custom produce, but as others had mentioned, the quantities need to be higher. But not as high as most would think. Usually most will do 100 per style to gain your business in hopes of bigger orders. I just finished one at 25 per design and I am not sure I would personally do that again because it's a lot of work!! But, sometimes you can find a manufacturer during one of their slow months and work out something.
I think I know what you mean by the patch thing. I have a shirt like that from Aeropostale. The fabric of the shirt itself is cut out, usually in a certain shape. So basically you have a hole in your shirt that you can put your hand through (depending on the size of course.) And then a second piece of fabric is stitched into the inside of the shirt, usually a different color. On mine, the shirt itself is black, and then inside the "hole" the fabric is white (the piece that is sewn in) so you have a nice two color thing going.
I've just been going through the process of having t-shirts manufactured so I may have some answers for you.
If you want to go off-shore, the best way to go is through an importer. They have all the contacts and know which factories to use for what you want. I would suggest emailing off a rough list of styles/quantities to a variety of importers, and ask for a rough idea of what price they could get for you. They will generally have more questions for you before they will give you a price, but use this to get an idea of what quantities you will have to order per color/style etc. and determine whether it is worth it.
You really need to think about the total price each garment is going to cost you (including printing/freight/packaging/etc.) versus what a reasonable price to sell that finished item would be, will you make enough back on your investment to;
a. order more stock when inventory gets low
b. pay the bills to keep your business running, and finally
c. make enough profit to make it worth all the work you're about to do.
If you get an answer that seems reasonable from an importer, then the next step is to start locking down some proper details. Try to work out some detailed figures on what styles you want made/sourced, what designs you want printed, what color you want each garment made in, what yarns you want used in the garment construction (cotton is best for printability and wearer comfort), and quantities for everything. You also need to think about what size range you want to have, you said that you couldn't find the right loose comfy fit you were after which means this is important to you.
The best way to find the right measurments for you garments is to find something you like the fit of, then measure it. You can then use those measurements (and make any changes you want such as making the garment longer, extending the sleeves etc.) and make up a list of sample measurements for your garments. Most clothing companies will have all their garments made up in a particular size, then once all the measurements and details are right, they will have that garment made in the full range of sizes.
If you want to check the fit of the samples on yourself, then your sample size should be whatever size you are. That way, once the garment fits properly on you, you can have them grade the pattern into a full range of sizes based on the sample (I'm sorry if this sounds confusing, it's a lot to take in all in one go, but is pretty straightforward once you get used to it). If you want a list of where to measure the garment let me know and I'll post them here.
All you really need at this stage though is the measurements for your sample size, with a list of the measurements and preferably some sort of graphic showing where each measurement was taken. Write these all out very clearly so your importer can understand exactly what it is you're after. Ideally you would also want some sort of sample to send them as well, whether it is a sample of the kind of garment sizing you're after, the type of stripes you want, the feel of the fabric you want to use, fabric colors, the type of garment you're after, the type of garment detail you're after, zips, buttons, etc. These samples could take the form of fabric swatches, photos, trims, or whole garments.
The more information you can give your importer the more accurate quote they can give you, and the more likely your garments will turn out the way you want. As far as your prints go, you don't necessarily want to send out your original ideas to be shown around to a bunch of possibly unscrupulous factories overseas. So maybe send a mock up of a print, just a rough idea that approximates the kind of design you might want printed, whether it be a large multi-color print, a small single color design or something in between.
When you have as much information together as you can get, send it off to your importer clearly marking what each item is and ask them for a more detailed quote, along with some samples.
What will happen next is your importer will take your stuff, and show it around to a bunch of factories that they use, trying to get a good price. They will either try to source ready made garments that match your specifications or, failing that, source fabrics to have your garments manufactured. Once they find a solution, they will have some samples bought/made and send them to you for approval, along with a price based on your quantities. You will then measure the garment, check all the details, trims, color etc. and either approve or deny the sample.
If you approve the sample, then you can pay your importer and they will have the full range bought/made and sent to you to start selling them. If you deny the sample, tell them why, and they will try to rectify the problem and send you a new sample, and so on it goes...
Be warned though, this sampling process can take a LONG time and can be very frustrating when they just don't seem to do what you ask. If you are just meeting their minimum quantities then they will be in no hurry to make your samples for you, and won't be too fussed about losing your business (these are factories that make hundreds of thousands of garments a year, so to them you are a very small fish in a very large pond).
It is also common practice for a factory to suddenly decide to raise their minimum quantites right before you go into production. I've had a factory go from a minimum of 1000 t-shirts per color, to 10,000 t-shirts per color right before I placed an order with them. They wouldn't budge, so I lost months of my time developing my product with them.
Also be sure to ask your importer for the average 'lead time' (the time from you placing your order, to you recieving you stock) including shipping your garments to you to get a feel for how long this takes. Manufacture of your goods may take about a month, but shipping can easily take another 3 months.
I encourage you to test the waters, if you get lucky with a good importer who uses a good ethical factory, it can be a great arrangement which can save you a lot of money and open up a whole world of possibiltities. But unfortunately, there are a lot of things that can go wrong, and it can be very difficult to maintain quality when dealing with these factories on your own.
Sorry for the essay but I hope some of it helps, if you have any more questions, just let me know...
Last edited by Comin'OutSwingin; December 21st, 2007 at 04:24 PM.
Thanks for your post. Its good to read a detailed account of the process. Would you be able to enlighten me regarding where to take measurements? I found this post:
At the bottom of the page, there seems to be 9 separate measurements. Do you know of a resource where I can find out how to take some of these measurements?
Complete Tshirt construction 
Re: Complete Tshirt construction 
