For a startup, the right clothing manufacturer is the one whose minimums, sampling process and payment terms fit the first run you can afford and realistically sell, and who can still make the same product well when you reorder. Big-name capability matters less than fit with your stage. Decide your own limits before you contact anyone, match the type of manufacturer to how developed your product is, and compare suppliers on total landed cost and risk, not on the unit price in the first quote.
Step 1: Set your limits before you contact factories
- Cash for the first run, including samples, freight, duty and a reserve for a second sample round.
- How many styles and colours you really need to launch. Every extra style or colour multiplies minimums.
- How many pieces you can sell in the first months, by size. Unsold stock ties up the cash you need for reorders.
- Target landed cost per piece that still works at your retail price.
- Your launch date, worked back through sampling, production and shipping.
Writing these down first stops you from accepting a minimum or a timeline just because a factory offered it.
Step 2: Match the type of manufacturer to your stage
| Your stage | Usually the better fit | Trade-off |
|---|---|---|
| Testing an idea or a design | Blank garments plus your print or embroidery, or a supplier’s stock programme | Low minimums and speed, but little control of fit or fabric |
| First own-label product | Private label: a supplier’s base style with your fabric colour, labels and small changes | Moderate minimums, some differentiation, faster than full development |
| Proven product, growing volume | Full custom cut-and-sew from your own pattern and tech pack | Most control and consistency, highest development cost and minimums |
You do not have to start at the top. More on each route: private label or custom cut-and-sew and in-stock versus custom hoodies.
Step 3: Understand how minimums hit a small range
Minimum order quantities are usually set per style and often per colour, and the factory’s figure may be driven by the fabric mill’s minimum for dyeing a colour, not by sewing. As an illustration only: if a factory’s minimum were 300 pieces per colour, launching one style in three colours would mean 900 pieces, spread across your size range.
Ways startups usually make minimums workable:
- Launch fewer colours, and add colours once a style sells.
- Use a fabric the factory already stocks or buys regularly, so there is no separate mill minimum.
- Use the same fabric and colour across two styles, for example a hoodie and joggers.
- Ask whether a higher unit price is available for a smaller first run, and get it in writing.
See clothing manufacturing MOQ explained and how hoodie minimums work per style, colour and size.
Step 4: Budget for sampling
Expect to pay for samples, and expect more than one round. Ask each shortlisted manufacturer:
- What a sample costs, how many revision rounds that includes, and whether the cost is credited against bulk.
- Whether samples are made in the bulk fabric or a substitute, because a substitute can hide fit and shrinkage problems.
- Which approval they need from you before bulk (fit sample, size set, pre-production sample).
More detail: fit samples, PP samples and what to approve at each stage.
Step 5: Compare total landed cost, not unit price
Two quotes can look far apart only because they include different things. Put every quote into the same line items: garment, decoration, labels and packaging, samples, freight, insurance, customs duty and fees, inspection, and delivery to your warehouse. Check which Incoterms rule each quote uses (for example FOB or DDP), because it decides who pays for and carries the risk of each leg. See FOB versus DDP for a first order and comparing quotes on the same specification.
Step 6: Agree payment terms that protect a small order
- A deposit before production and the balance after you have seen the result of a final inspection is a common structure. Avoid paying the full amount before goods are made.
- Tie the balance to an inspection against your approved sample. An AQL sampling plan based on ISO 2859-1 is a common way to set how many pieces are checked.
- Keep every approval, change and price in writing, even with a small factory you like.
Step 7: Remember compliance stays with your brand
The manufacturer sews the label, but you are usually responsible for what it says in the market where you sell. For the U.S., the FTC’s textile rules require fibre content, country of origin and the identity of the responsible business on most garments, and the Care Labeling Rule (16 CFR Part 423) requires care instructions. Children’s clothing has further safety rules; see drawstrings on kids’ hoodies. Give the factory your final label wording rather than letting them write it.
Questions for the first call
- What is your minimum per style, per colour and per size, and what drives it?
- Which of these garments do you make in-house, and what do you subcontract?
- What does sampling cost and how long does each round take?
- Can you show a garment you make that is similar to ours in fabric and construction?
- What are your payment terms for a first order?
- How would a reorder of the same style work, and what changes in price or minimum?
When you have a shortlist, check each one before paying a deposit; see how to vet an apparel vendor and how buyers verify capability before sampling.
Working with Knitwear Base
We make knit T-shirts, hoodies, underwear and sportswear, including private label programmes. Send us your styles, quantities per colour and launch date through our contact page and we will tell you what minimums and sampling would apply.
Sources and further reading
- FTC, Threading Your Way Through the Labeling Requirements Under the Textile and Wool Acts
- eCFR, 16 CFR Part 423, Care Labeling of Textile Wearing Apparel
- ICC, Incoterms® 2020 rules
- ISO 2859-1, Sampling procedures for inspection by attributes (AQL)
Rules and standards are summarised from their official pages for general guidance; this is not legal advice. Check the current version and the requirements of your own market before you rely on them.
