Fashion sportswear suppliers and manufacturers

[Lauren Farmery]

Hi, I'm researching starting a new fashionable sportswear business for ladies. Along similar lines to Gymshark but I have my own ideas.

I'd like to know if there are any manufacturers here who specialise in this ad can help guide someone who is not in the industry yet themselves?

Also keen to hear from suppliers who may sell cool, girly sportswear - similar to the nice things TK Maxx sells.

Looking to set up an Ecommerce website. All feedback/thoughts also welcome!

 

[intheTRADE]

From what I know (very little) of the sportswear industry is that it is extremely competitive - You will really will need to stand out.

I think with things like this the product is only 50% of the business and the other 50% is the marketing. It will need to be spot

Wish you all the luck with it though

 

[Lauren Farmery]

Thanks for this insight. Yes I think what I'm thinking will.

 

[MOIC]

Hi Lauren

We manufacture for a number of sportswear companies with their own designs.

Feel free to contact me by email via my website in my signature below.

Regards

Ron

 

[Ray272]

Gymshark is a great success story which was built very quickly through social media by a student.

Great idea to replicate that model and in terms of starting. Do not look at China for garment manufacturing look at your own clothes and I'd suspect not many are made in China.

Begin with 3-4 designs and launch don't design too many items and launch/publish unless you can design and build them locally to fulfil orders. If it sells try to continue locally fulfilling but begin seeking garment manufacturers.

 

[MOIC]

Do not look at China for garment manufacturing look at your own clothes and I'd suspect not many are made in China.

You will be hard pressed getting cheaper (and better) gym wear from China.

The hurdle for the OP is to comply with MOQ's from any factory (not just China) to include sampling, amendments, labels, branding, specific fabric, specific colours etc etc.

Anything else, is just buying a plain garment and having your logo printed on. Not sure that's what the OP wants.

 

[Ray272]

In Thailand and Vietnam factories producing branded shoes can be found on streets with 1-2 workers producing goods. Manufacturers contract these workers based on requirements and it allows them to scale up and down very easily using multiple shoe makers. The quality of work is assured by the terms of the contract. Does not pass QA = no pay.

I know factories have relocated production to countries like Cambodia and this was way before the current trade war which is forcing production out of China.

I am often in Asia and I visit department stores a lot and look at the labels. A lot of product like branded Adidas are made in China but those same shoes in the western world are made in other parts of Asia. Different factories producing for different markets.

Levis produce in Thailand as do hundreds of garment manufacturers.

My point is. Many of these manufacturers realise cheapest option is not always the best option especially in the case of clothing.

MOQ is also not high in other Asian countries.

I'm struggling to think of one time when I've seen a buying request for clothes from China that were not open source.

 

[MOIC]

Having spent over 30 years manufacturing in China, maybe I'm doing something wrong.

I doubt it.

I don't doubt that Thailand, Vietnam & Cambodia (and even Myanmar) can and do produce clothing and footwear, but language problems will prevail and there is not the quality of factories that there are in China, unless these are 'owned' by the large groups.

To get a factory with 1 or 2 workers is simply asking for trouble to adhere to exact requirements and be consistent with each order.

For the OP to start her brand, she needs to work with a company that can understand her exact requirements, be able to sample correctly and have the ability to fulfill her requirements, order after order, as she grows.

The reason China factories are opening in Cambodia & Myanmar, is specifically to circumvent the trade tariff war. Thats for another thread.

 

[Ray272]

Having spent over 30 years manufacturing in China, maybe I'm doing something wrong.

I doubt it.

I don't doubt that Thailand, Vietnam & Cambodia (and even Myanmar) can and do produce clothing and footwear, but language problems will prevail and there is not the quality of factories that there are in China, unless these are 'owned' by the large groups.

To get a factory with 1 or 2 workers is simply asking for trouble to adhere to exact requirements and be consistent with each order.

For the OP to start her brand, she needs to work with a company that can understand her exact requirements, be able to sample correctly and have the ability to fulfill her requirements, order after order, as she grows.

The reason China factories are opening in Cambodia & Myanmar, is specifically to circumvent the trade tariff war. Thats for another thread.

This is all incorrect and I have met many factories and brands in tsim tsua ( hk) whatever and I always think this Chinese market of factories is just too polluted and is a mass counterfeiting producer. Ive asled countless factories how you stop counterfeiting and the answer ive heard most is- you cannot, must outsell. My response has alwaus been maybe you can if the location of production was changed.

Companies have been relocating way before trade wars.

You are clearly invested in China so you cannot see the changing face
Laying the blame on the trade war is a good excuse but for 3+ years the emergence of "made locally" made in UK etc and just generally not made in China has shown to have value.

Of course if you want to mass produce and you have the finance to control the quality then china can be done but ive never read about clothing companies success stories and hearing Chinese production.

Rife for clothing counterfeiting I've heard. The language gap has been vastly reduced with China now so everything is so much more accessible so perhaps a language barrier was a good thing in China before and that same disadvantage you speak of elsewhere can actually work in your advantage if you produce in a less trade competitive/english proficent country. I'm pleased to see china being pegged back due to their unfair trade practices. That's an issue that needs sorting out and factory relocations put of China seems to be a good way of doing that.

Vietnam and other Asian countries I expect could be like rewinding to how China was before and not what it is now.

 

[Chris Ashdown]

One of the most important things about sportswear, is the design to fit the person rather than just the design of the appearance, also the composition of both the fabric chosen and the threads.

Unfortunately most people who want to start their own clothing companies know little or nothing about design, fashion trends or fabrics, yet alone marketing and costings

Manufacturers seldom have time to find the materials and attachments for you they just make whats ordered, the designer is expected to do the hard work of designing, finding the correct fabrics in the quantity required ( often min order of a few hundred metres) and size dimensions and breakdown

Another problem is often a original order lets be kind 100 pieces, 25 XL, 25 Large, 25 med, 25 small, that fine, you then sell out of all the medium size, and have lots left of the other sizes, the maker will not just take a order for another 25 or even 50 mediums, but want a min order of 100 items again

Sports fabrics can be impossible to get as often made to one company and only sold in massive quantities for the likes of Nike etc, they are not interested in selling under a few thousand metres in one order

One supplier who sells a wide range of sportswear that may be another option is https://shop.ralawise.com/category/1956-sports-leisure.aspx

 

[MOIC]

This is all incorrect and I have met many factories and brands in tsim tsua ( hk)

Hong Kong is not China, as far as manufacturing is concerned. There are hardly any factories in Hong Kong any more, they have all moved to Shenzhen and Dongguan.

You mean Tsim Tsa Tsui - full of markets and counterfeiters!

Companies have been relocating way before trade wars.

These are Hong Kong companies setting up their own factories, mainly in Myanmar because of government incentives and tax breaks.

China companies will open a subsidiary in these countries, mainly for favourable tariff rates with the US and other countries where there are 'dumping' taxes imposed by both US and EU.

You are clearly invested in China so you cannot see the changing face

Wrong. I speak to all my customers and often visit other countries in South East Asia to source products, but these are mainly products which use local materials, which China does not have. Clothing is not one of them.

Laying the blame on the trade war is a good excuse

I'm not blaming anyone, I'm just stating facts based on my conversations with factories that have opened in these countries.

but for 3+ years the emergence of "made locally" made in UK etc and just generally not made in China has shown to have value.

The big boys do not share your view. they buy in abundance from China, Bangladesh, Turkey etc etc. hardly local . . . . .

Of course if you want to mass produce and you have the finance to control the quality then china can be done but ive never read about clothing companies success stories and hearing Chinese production

Open your eyes. Even International brands are manufacturing in China. They have their technicians stay in China to oversee production.


I agree on one thing - The current trade war between US & China will affect China factories. But to counteract that, they will look to supply other countries closer to them as well as inside China which is very buoyant, but not to the extent of US orders.


When you're next in China, I'll take you for a coffee and show you factories the scale you will not see anywhere else.

 

[jjscruff]

no one can compete with china on pricing and quality for every day clothing.

try a few suppliers on alibaba and compare sample quality

 

[Chris Ashdown]

Not always true, Far East needs large orders and long transit time, UK makers can produce smaller commercial runs quicker and same quality

Quality depends on many things, some companies relax quality to fit for purpose others want the best

As with many products it's perceived value that equates to customers cost , and perceived quality does not always mean the same thing as high quality, many companies live on old established quality ,that they no longer adhere to

 

[jjscruff]

Not always true, Far East needs large orders and long transit time, UK makers can produce smaller commercial runs quicker and same quality

Quality depends on many things, some companies relax quality to fit for purpose others want the best

As with many products it's perceived value that equates to customers cost , and perceived quality does not always mean the same thing as high quality, many companies live on old established quality ,that they no longer adhere to

i said "every day clothing."

the UK can produce high end clothing, of course it cannot compete with china for affordable day to day items

 

[Lauren Farmery]

Gymshark is a great success story which was built very quickly through social media by a student.

Great idea to replicate that model and in terms of starting. Do not look at China for garment manufacturing look at your own clothes and I'd suspect not many are made in China.

Begin with 3-4 designs and launch don't design too many items and launch/publish unless you can design and build them locally to fulfil orders. If it sells try to continue locally fulfilling but begin seeking garment manufacturers.

Thank you, Ray that's so helpful.