Producing clothing in China

Clothing production is not a single discipline. T-shirts, heavyweight hoodies, activewear and workwear need different fabrics, machinery and criteria. Before we suggest a manufacturer, we therefore pin down the article, material, fabric weight, construction, finishing, size range, packaging and quantity. Only then do we compare producers.

Our Chinese team around Felix manages manufacturer communication from China and works in the same time zone as the factories. Before a first order, we verify the company, including its business licence, and check whether production capabilities match the written specification. Ben works from Hamburg and looks after the commercial side with you: quote, contract and invoice.

Felix Sander, one of our two founders, lives in China and works there with a whole team. Wei Ming Wai leads our producer network. Together they know more than 100 producers personally, from the teamwear workshop that sews T-shirts, hoodies and vests to the streetwear manufacturer with its own print shop, embroidery and laundry. If you want to know whether a company really sews in house or passes the work on, someone from the team goes there and looks.

A clothing collection rarely ends up at a single factory, which makes China imports even more of a black box for many buyers. With us, one European contact goes through every item with you and makes the project happen, even when three producers work behind it. Your contact gets in touch on their own when a sample is ready or a date moves, and gives you delivery dates that are realistic. We do everything we can to keep them.

If something is wrong with a delivery, we call you straight away and come to you to look at the goods together. Trust is the most valuable thing we have. On price we are usually below sourcing yourself or other sourcing agencies: we handle the step in China and the step in Germany ourselves, compare both sides and take the cheaper solution on each. With the producers we negotiate the best possible price. Delivery is DDP, and the invoice comes from Germany.

A tech pack is the best basis, but a reference article, a sketch and clear notes can also start the process. We turn that information into a comparable manufacturer enquiry. For every garment in your order we have a sample made in one sample size and send it to you in Europe, so you can feel the fabric, try it on and look at the seams yourself. We charge for the sample and its shipping, and you know the amount for your article before the sample is ordered. Series production starts once you have approved the sample in writing, not before.

The approved sample and written specification then become the production reference. This matters for dimensions, fabric weight, colour, seams, trims, labels and packaging. Every change is written into the specification, so you can trace it later.

Our network is organised by specialty. One teamwear producer makes cotton T-shirts from 220 to 280 g/m², fleece hoodies and quilted vests, and keeps blank stock that can be printed quickly. A streetwear manufacturer works with heavy fabrics and wide cuts and does printing, embroidery and washes in house. For technical outdoor trousers and padded jackets we use producers that have specialised in exactly those products.

Socks and caps come from their own workshops with circular knitting or embroidery machines. A dedicated sock or cap producer usually does better on quality and price than a clothing factory that offers everything. We therefore split a mixed collection between the producers that make each item themselves, and you still deal with one contact and one contract.

Our own team in China checks your garments twice at the producer. The first check takes place while the series is running: the first finished pieces are compared with the approved sample for measurements, fabric weight, seams and colour, while corrections are still possible. The second check covers the finished goods before loading. Both checks are part of the order unless you waive them, which makes the order cheaper.

We organise sea or air freight, customs clearance and delivery to your address. From the end of production, sea freight takes about 50 to 65 days to your door DDP, air freight about 15 days. The quote states the delivered price, so you do not have to add freight and duty yourself. The minimum order is 300 pieces.

The more precise the enquiry, the more reliable the first quote. Per article, these help: a photo or reference garment, the fibre composition and fabric weight you want, the fit (regular, oversized, women’s cut), the size run with quantities per size, colours with Pantone numbers, and the finishing method with position and size.

Send logos as a vector file and also as a high-resolution image. Tell us whether you want your own neck labels, care labels and hangtags; we add them to the specification so the producer plans them in from the start. Under the EU textile labelling regulation, the care label must state the fibre composition, and we look out for that in your label file. If there is no tech pack yet, we go through the article with you in a short call and write the specification together.