The garment manufacturing process can be complex AF. This guide will help you navigate through all 4 steps: pre-production, garment construction, quality control and delivery. 

During my 15+ year-long career in fashion, I successfully manufactured hundreds (maybe thousands?) of designs. Whether you’re a fashion school grad seeking for a refresher or a freelance fashion designer piecing together your latest client project, these are the steps you follow.

Overview of the Garment Production Process

To get a general sense of the garment production process, let’s break it down into 4 main phases:

1. Pre-production (1-3 months)
2. Garment Construction (1-4 months)
3. Quality Control (1 week)
4. Delivery (2-4 weeks)

1. Pre-production: Creating concept designs, tech packs, sourcing materials, and crafting initial samples.
2. Garment Construction: Also known as the bulk production phase, this is when the garments are assembled – from cutting, stitching, and finishing touches.
3. Quality Control: From the garment’s stitching, construction, and materials – each detail is inspected to guarantee top-tier quality.
4. Delivery: Once garments clear quality assurance checkpoints, the rest of the production order is set for delivery to your warehouse.

Pro Tip: While I’ve provided timeline estimates for each stage, the actual timeline will depend on your own circumstances. For example, higher order quantity, complex designs, and multiple sample iterations can set you back weeks to months from production. An established brand may be able to execute the entire process in 3-6 months but a startup fashion brand beginning from scratch can take 12-18 months to complete the garment production process for one design.

Step-by-Step Guide to the Garment Production Process

1. Pre-production Phase

Concept & Design Development

This is where your mood boards and initial sketches come in as the designer starts brainstorming and creating garment collection concepts.

Tech Pack Creation

Once the garment concept is approved, then the tech pack can be made. Usually done by a technical designer, tech packs include detailed information like graded measurements, fabric details, color codes, stitching requirements, and any embellishments.

For a deeper dive into tech packs, check out my step-by-step guide to tech packs.

Material Sourcing & Testing

This step involves selecting suitable fabrics, trims, and testing strike-offs for the garment. After confirming the final fabrics, it is important to undergo material testing to ensure that chosen fabrics meet quality standards, are durable, and perform well after production and washing.

True Story: I had a client who was in a hurry to speed up production and insisted on skipping material testing. When we reached the final stretch, it turned out the fabric shrunk after washing. So, we had to start over with material sourcing and creating another batch of samples. The irony is that it ended up costing more time and $$$ than if we had just done the testing upfront. 🙃 Save yourself the headache and get the testing done right from the get-go!

Sample-making & Evaluation

Next, a prototype garment is created based on the tech pack. Technical designers conduct sample evaluations to assess the design’s fit, pattern, materials, construction, and overall quality. This step makes sure that any necessary adjustments are applied before moving to bulk production.

Depending on the design complexity and requirements, it may take several iterations to get the garment sample right. 

If you’re working with an overseas manufacturer, it can take 2-4 weeks before receiving the next sample.

Final Sample Approval

Also called the pre-production sample (PP Sample), the design team provides their final approval as a signal to start manufacturing the garments in bulk.

Final Costing & Purchase Order Creation

Once the pre-production samples get the thumbs-up, a final costing evaluation takes place to align with the intended budget. 

A purchase order or P.O. is then created, serving as the formal request to the garment manufacturers. The P.O. outlines details such as the order’s style numbers / SKU, colors, and quantity.

For a quick checkpoint during the pre-production phase, you can use my pre-production checklist for clothing manufacturing as your guide.

2. Garment Construction Phase

Bulk Material Purchase

During this phase, the necessary amount of fabric and materials are procured. It’s important to ensure that your materials are free of defects, so including a quality control checkpoint at this stage helps address any potential issues down the line.

Patternmaking & Grading

Although initial patterns have already been made during the sample-making process, this step ensures that the pattern makers apply all necessary revisions before the final pattern pieces are graded into the requested sizes.

Marking & Cutting Fabrics

Pattern pieces are laid out so the clothing manufacturer can start cutting the fabrics. This step should be done with accuracy using techniques like computer-aided design (CAD) or manual methods. 

Sewing & Assembly

This is where the garment finally takes shape. The cut pieces are assembled and sewn together to form the garment.

Garment Washing

Depending on your design, some garments may undergo washing to soften fabric, remove shrinking, or achieve specific finishes.

Finishing

Embellishments and finishing touches like beading, appliques, and washing treatments are added to enhance the garment’s appearance and functionality. This is also the step where any additional material treatment methods like bleaching, dyeing and coating are done. 

Finally, the garments are pressed and iron to ensure a polished final product.

Pro Tip: Depending on the design requirements, finishing techniques may be done to the fabric prior to garment sewing & assembly. For example, a shirt with a print on its pocket might be printed on the pocket piece before stitching it on the body pieces.

3. Quality Control Phase

Quality Assurance & Inspection

This stage involves assessment of the garments to ensure they meet the brands’ predefined standards. QC inspections involve comparing finished garments against predefined criteria on construction, stitching, and materials.

4. Delivery Phase

Labeling & Packaging

Garments are individually tagged, labeled, and neatly packaged to prevent damage during transit. 

Delivery

Finally, the finished garments are transported from the clothing manufacturer to your warehouse. Depending on factors like urgency and volume, distribution options like air (faster but expensive) or sea freight (cheaper but takes longer) or fulfillment services are chosen.

Managing the Garment Manufacturing Process Timeline

With so many moving parts in play – from pattern making to fabric selection and cutting process, meeting deadlines can be as complex as creating the garments themselves.

Here are some tips to ensure you stay on track!

• Make sure you set deadlines that you and your manufacturers can actually meet. And remember, things almost always take longer than you think, so add a buffer of at least 1.5 times longer than you expect.
• Take the time to plan everything out from the start. There are many steps in the production process that can be done at the same time. For example, while you’re waiting for your garments to be made, you can also use that time to get your packaging sorted. Pre-planning helps everything move more smoothly.
• Be Proactive. Things won’t always go as planned, and that’s okay. Expect some bumps along the way and be ready to tackle them. Think of it as “right now” being the best moment to fix any issues that come up.

Pro Tip: Make sure to ask your garment manufacturers about their production and shipping lead times, including their holidays so you can keep track and avoid missing your deadlines! You don’t want to find yourself in a frenzy when they take off on a looong holiday like Chinese New Year (when everything in China shuts down for 2+ weeks), and you’re left with a looming delivery deadline. I’ve been there!