r/apparelstartup

How would you market a newly open jacket store, no ads, no physical shiii content creation is slow afffff drop some unique ideas that actually works.

Hi guys I’ve just started my activewear brand. Spent a year on research and patented fabrics that are light weight and feel great through the day. Everyone who’s touched them feels good and have great reviews saying it’s the best quality they’ve seen. I am trying to reduce as much cost and sell. But most of these celebrity backed brands just take the cake. People do not want to try something new either. I used to live in Australia and tried to develop great activewear that looks and feels good, but people only want to buy low quality celebrity backed brands. My spends goes off in Instagram marketing and nothing seems to work. Please advice.

Hi! I was wondering if anyone has had any experience sourcing custom fabrics for table cloths or umbrellas? There’s a Destination Planner called Moosh that has done so many cool projects but never tags vendors and I have a specific idea that I’d love to execute with custom linens if possible.

Many thanks! 💞

I am planning to start as an Amazon seller of co-ord set and maybe nighty. For now I am getting it from a contract manufacturer, I want to know downside and process of starting scaling a business like this, my aim rn is to book online and I also have plan to make it big to reach the retail market and if I am able to make it I'll open my own garments manufacturing. I have a small retail shop of all items like suits etc, also I have a tailoring setup but they are not capable of doing this rn.

Please give suggestions about amazon and how to start.

Hello Everyone,

I am establishing a women’s based clothing wear and wanted to know what was your experience working with a fashion development company? Was
it worth the time, effort and pricing?

Is it something that is crucial when starting a business to get more information or just another scam? Is it more theory induced based rather than outcome?

What have you learnt from them?

Any advice is appreciated

Ok, so a designer reached out to me yesterday for advice. she'd sampled the same coat twice, same trim issue both rounds.

I asked her to walk me through what happened.

Pretty quickly i realized the tech pack itself wasn't really the issue.

She'd made a few changes after the first sample. measurements had been adjusted after the fit review. there'd been a discussion with the factory around one construction detail because what the designer originally designed wasn't really feasible to produce the way they'd intended. there were sample comments, a couple of email threads, and everyone internally knew what had changed.

The problem was that none of those decisions had actually made it back into the next revision of the tech pack.

So the factory built exactly what was documented in the latest file they'd received.

Honestly, this isn't unusual. I've seen the same pattern across a lot of brands.

It's almost never one big mistake. it's usually a handful of completely reasonable decisions that happen during development, and somewhere along the way one of them never gets documented. by the time the next sample shows up, everyone's convinced they're talking about the same product when they're actually working from slightly different versions of it.

A few things I've learned watching this happen across different brands:

• The factory usually isn't the problem. They're building from the latest approved tech pack they've received.
• If a factory has to guess what you meant, you've already increased the chances of something coming back wrong. clear specs almost always beat more notes.
• Most version issues arise when a brand tries to manage tech‑pack versions in Excel or spreadsheets. I think that’s the core problem. As product development progresses, designers focus more on version control than on making the necessary updates, which can affect the final product. In other words, with more sampling rounds and version updates, designers become distracted between handling files and making valuable edits.

Quick disclosure before someone calls it out: I work on a tech pack tool called Techpack Builder, so I'm definitely biased. That said, software isn't a magic fix. Bad specifications are still bad specifications, and no platform can replace clear communication or good product development processes.

Happy to answer questions either way, whether you're using Excel, Illustrator, another PLM, Techpack Builder, or no software at all. Drop your situation, and I'll tell you where I think the process is actually breaking.

Hey everyone,

My name is Martin, I'm a student, and for the past few months, I've been working on a somewhat unique clothing brand project called Voyage Somatique.

I was tired of how "empty" clothes feel nowadays. I wanted to create something that feels like buying a story, not just a piece of fabric.

The concept: I design premium streetwear pieces, but the real difference is invisible. With every order, the customer receives an NFC card (similar in style to a premium credit card). By scanning it with their phone, they unlock a unique digital space linked to the garment they are wearing: behind-the-scenes content of its creation, the emotions that inspired the design, and the story the piece holds.

In short: the garment becomes the key to a full narrative experience.

Why I'm posting here: I'm trying to "build in public" on my socials, but I know the feedback here is completely unfiltered.

• What do you think about blending digital (NFC) and physical clothing to tell a story? Does this resonate with you, or does it just feel like a gimmick?
• What advice would you give to someone launching their very first drop?

I have absolutely nothing to sell yet. The first drop ("Fragments") is still in the works, but all your feedback will massively help me refine my vision.

Thanks in advance for your time!

Instagram: u/martin.somatique

Just launched deploywear — printed apparel designed for tech workers.

These are some of our current designs. Would love honest feedback on

https://preview.redd.it/xedgpfm9itah1.png?width=1440&format=png&auto=webp&s=22d8fee6915c2dc50779adc5898de89058e99a38

https://preview.redd.it/kju1jgm9itah1.png?width=1440&format=png&auto=webp&s=1f6d144f2740896662e0aa3ec47daf625a7d8e80

https://preview.redd.it/9ovzagm9itah1.png?width=4096&format=png&auto=webp&s=cde13bb5ad61043c4839193b3014d6bde2a70300

https://preview.redd.it/vjw5zgm9itah1.png?width=1440&format=png&auto=webp&s=eb05758cd50bfa98c28705da719702aa0412f3d2

https://preview.redd.it/lthmrgm9itah1.png?width=1920&format=png&auto=webp&s=3cfbcd499854b7a9a51797c04e5868773734877d

which ones work and which need improvement. Open to all suggestions!

Hi everyone,

I'm currently working on launching my first clothing brand. I have a strong vision for the brand, and I've already spent quite a bit of time designing the identity, building my own custom website from scratch (hosted on Vercel), creating the branding, and planning everything out.

The problem I'm facing now is manufacturing.

Because my starting capital is quite low, my original plan was to use Printify. I like the fact that there's no inventory risk, but after researching more, I'm starting to worry that it might not match the image I'm trying to build.

For example, someone visits my website, sees a premium-looking brand, then clicks "Buy" and gets redirected to a Printify Pop-Up Store or another external checkout. I'm worried that this could reduce customer confidence or make the brand feel less premium.

Another concern is the product itself. With Printify, I'm limited to blank garments and small print areas. My long-term goal is to create clothing that has its own identity, not just graphics printed on blank T-shirts.

So I'd really appreciate advice from people who have already been through this.

Here are a few questions I have:

• If you were starting today with a very limited budget, would you still choose Printify?
• Are there any better alternatives to Printify that are more suitable for building a premium clothing brand?
• Are there manufacturers that offer very low MOQs (around 10–30 pieces) while still producing good quality garments?
• Where do you usually look for manufacturers? (Alibaba, Made-in-China, Turkish manufacturers, Portugal, agents, etc.)
• Have you worked with any manufacturers you'd genuinely recommend?
• Does anyone know manufacturers that are willing to work with new brands or students?
• If you have any trusted contacts or factories you've worked with, I'd really appreciate any recommendations.
• At what point did you move away from Print-on-Demand and start manufacturing your own products?

Parents: What’s the biggest frustration you have with kids’ clothing today?

I’m researching the possibility of starting a children’s clothing brand and I’d love to hear honest feedback from parents.

What annoys you most when buying clothes for your kids?

* Poor quality?
* Clothes shrinking after washing?
* Inconsistent sizing?
* Prices that feel too high?
* Lack of comfort?
* Not enough practical features?
* Designs you don’t like?
* Sustainability concerns?
* Anything else?

I’d especially love to hear:

1. What is the biggest problem with kids’ clothing that no brand seems to solve well?
2. What have you bought for your child that ended up being a waste of money?
3. If you could create the perfect kids’ clothing brand, what would it do differently?

Please be brutally honest. I’m not trying to sell anything—I’m trying to learn what real parents actually want and what problems are worth solving.

I’ve seen a lot of new apparel brands get stuck before they even reach the real production stage

Not because the idea is bad

Usually because the product is still too vague when they start talking to factories

One example I see often is a brand asking for an oversized premium tee

They send a few reference photos and expect the factory to understand the fit

But oversized can mean a lot of different things in production

One factory may just make the chest wider

Another may drop the shoulder

Another may increase body length too much

Then the sample comes back looking off and the brand thinks the factory is bad

Sometimes it is the factory

But sometimes the starting information was not clear enough

A better way is to give the factory something they can actually measure

Even rough numbers help

Chest width

Body length

Shoulder width

Sleeve length

What part should feel oversized and what part should not change too much

I have also seen the same problem with fabric

People say they want heavyweight cotton or soft fleece

But those words do not mean the same thing to every supplier

A 260gsm tee and a 320gsm tee can both be called heavy depending on the factory

One fabric may feel soft at first but shrink badly after washing

Another may feel firm but hold shape better

So before making a full sample I would ask for fabric swatches first

Then wash them

Check handfeel after laundry

Check shrinkage

Check if the fabric twists or gets rough

It is a small step but it saves a lot of wasted sampling

The first sample should also not be treated like the final product

I usually see it more as a communication test

Did the factory understand the shape

Did they use the right fabric direction

Are the seams clean enough

Is the collar or waistband holding shape

If the first sample is close but not perfect that is normal

What matters is whether your comments are clear enough for the second sample

Instead of saying the fit is wrong

Say the chest needs plus 2cm

The body is too long

The shoulder drop is okay

The collar feels too loose

Before bulk production I would not rely only on a nice looking sample photo

Lock the final sample

Lock the size chart

Lock fabric trims labels print placement packaging and tolerance

It does not need to be fancy

It just needs to be clear enough that both sides are making the same product

A good factory can help improve a product

But they cannot guess everything from a logo and a moodboard

I've found that a curated selection usually works better especially for first-time customers. Too many options can lead to decision fatigue, and people often end up postponing their purchase instead of making a decision.
I've noticed this while working with StudioSuits, where fabric choice is a big part of the customer experience. Giving people a solid starting point with a smaller selection while keeping additional options available for those who want to explore further, seems to create a much smoother buying process.
In my opinion,it's less about the number of fabrics and more about how they're organized and presented. A well structured catalog makes customization feel exciting instead of overwhelming.

When I launched my apparel brand, I obsessed over every design. I'd spend hours adjusting tiny details that most people would probably never notice because I believed the artwork would be the biggest reason someone chose my products. After a few months, I started asking repeat customers what made them come back, expecting to hear about a favorite graphic or collection. Surprisingly, almost nobody mentioned the designs first. They talked about how the product felt, the little details that made it seem thoughtfully put together, and whether it felt like something they'd be proud to wear more than once. That completely changed how I think about building a clothing brand.

The difficult part is figuring out how to create that kind of experience without jumping straight into large production runs or filling a room with inventory that may never sell. As a small brand, every decision feels like a trade-off between staying lean and making the brand feel more established. I'm still trying to find that balance, and I imagine I'm not the only one.

For those who've been running an apparel brand for a while, what was the moment that changed how you approached your products? Was there one lesson that made you stop thinking like a designer and start thinking more like a brand owner?

I’ve been trying to sell premium oversized T-shirts online, but the response has been really low. I’ve been running social media pages and promoting the brand, but sales are still minimal.
For those who have built a clothing brand or sell apparel online, what would you recommend I focus on next? Should I improve my marketing, website, product designs, ads, influencer collaborations, or something else?
I’d really appreciate any honest advice or feedback. Thanks!