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Apparel production comes with its own language. This is a plain-language reference for founders and brands — the terms you'll hear from factories, pattern makers, and consultants, explained without jargon.
Development
The full process of turning a concept into a finished, production-ready garment. Includes design, pattern making, sampling, fit review, and spec finalization — everything before the factory runs your full order.
The original vision for how a garment should look, fit, and function. Communicating design intent clearly — through sketches, reference images, and written notes — is what allows a pattern maker or factory to build what you actually have in mind.
An existing garment used to communicate what you're going for. It could be something you own, a competitor's product, or a vintage piece. A good reference sample is often worth more than a detailed sketch for communicating fit and construction intent.
A fashion sketch — typically a simplified figure drawing used to illustrate a garment's design. Useful for early-stage communication but not a substitute for a tech pack or pattern when it comes time to build.
A document showing all styles in a collection — typically with a sketch or photo, colorways, available sizes, wholesale price, and order minimums. Used primarily for selling to retailers, not for factory production.
Patterns & Fit
The template — typically flat pieces of paper or digital files — from which a garment is cut and assembled. A pattern encodes every dimension, seam allowance, and construction detail of a style. No pattern, no production.
The process of creating a pattern, either by drafting from measurements, draping on a dress form, or adapting an existing block. Done by hand or digitally (or both). A skilled pattern maker is the difference between a garment that fits and one that doesn't.
A base pattern with no design details — just the core shape of a garment type in a specific size. Think of it as the starting point from which new styles are drafted. Brands that develop multiple styles often build their own proprietary blocks over time.
The process of scaling a pattern up or down to create a size run. Grading is not simply stretching the original pattern — it requires applying specific measurement increments across each size so the garment proportions remain consistent throughout the range.
A review where a sample is tried on a fit model or dress form and evaluated against the intended fit. Notes are documented and fed back to the pattern maker for corrections. Most styles require more than one fit session before the pattern is approved.
A padded torso used for fitting and evaluating garments during development. Dress forms are sized to a specific set of measurements and used when a live fit model isn't present. Not a substitute for a fit model, but essential for in-studio development work.
The margin of fabric between the cut edge and the stitch line. Typically ⅜" to ⅝" depending on the construction method and factory standard. Seam allowances are built into the pattern — factories cut and sew to them, so accuracy matters.
Tech Packs & Specs
A technical document that tells a factory exactly how to build a garment. Includes flat sketches (front, back, detail views), a bill of materials, a measurement spec sheet, construction notes, and label/care instructions. A complete tech pack eliminates ambiguity — which eliminates costly errors.
The measurement page within a tech pack — listing every point of measure for each size in the run, with tolerances. Factories sew to the spec sheet and QC teams check against it. Often used loosely to refer to the entire tech pack.
A complete list of every material, trim, and component used in a garment — including fabric, thread, buttons, zippers, labels, hangtags, and packaging. The BOM is the sourcing document: it tells everyone exactly what needs to be purchased and in what quantity.
A specific location on a garment where a measurement is taken — chest width, sleeve length, hem circumference, and so on. Tech packs list every point of measure with exact dimensions per size and an acceptable tolerance range for production.
The acceptable range of variation at each point of measure. A tolerance of ±½" on a chest measurement means the garment can be up to half an inch larger or smaller than the spec and still pass QC. Tight tolerances cost more to hit — set them intentionally.
A technical illustration of a garment shown flat (not on a figure), typically front and back. Used in tech packs to communicate construction details, seam placement, pocket specs, and topstitching. Different from a fashion sketch — flat sketches are precise and functional, not artistic.
The label sewn into a garment with washing, drying, and care instructions, fiber content, and country of origin. Required by the FTC for garments sold in the U.S. Care instructions need to be specified in your tech pack before production begins.
Sampling
A physical prototype of a garment built from a pattern and tech pack to test fit, construction, and appearance before committing to a production run. Samples are how you catch problems early — when they're cheap to fix.
The initial physical version of a new style. Often built in a substitute fabric to keep cost down. The goal of a first sample is to evaluate construction and rough fit — not to produce something retail-ready. Expect revisions.
A sample built specifically to evaluate fit and proportion — usually in the correct or closest available fabric. Used in a fit session to measure against the spec sheet and identify what needs to be corrected in the pattern before moving forward.
A production-quality sample made in the correct fabric and colorway, used for selling, photography, and press before the full production run ships. Usually one of the last samples in the development cycle.
A sample produced by the production factory — in the actual production fabric, with all trims — before the full run begins. The PPS is the final check that the factory can execute the style correctly. Production should not begin until the PPS is approved.
The time from when specs are submitted to a factory to when the physical sample arrives. Domestic turnaround is typically 2–4 weeks. Overseas turnaround is typically 6–12 weeks — and each revision round adds another cycle on top of that.
A cycle of changes made to a pattern or sample after a fit session, followed by rebuilding and re-evaluating. Most styles go through 2–4 revision rounds before the pattern is approved. Each round with an overseas factory can add weeks to your timeline.
Production
Cut, Make, Trim. A factory arrangement where you supply the fabric and materials, and the factory provides the labor to cut, sew, and finish the garments. The most common production model for independent brands — you own the materials and the factory executes.
A factory arrangement where the factory sources all materials, trims, and labels in addition to cutting and sewing. You provide the design and specs; the factory handles everything else. Convenient but offers less control over material quality and sourcing.
The full quantity of a style being manufactured. Once the pre-production sample is approved and fabric is in-house, the factory cuts and sews the entire order. This is the point in the process where changes become very expensive.
The total time from placing a production order to receiving finished goods. Includes material sourcing, fabric delivery to the factory, cutting, sewing, finishing, and shipping. Domestic lead times are typically shorter than overseas — but both require planning well in advance of your launch date.
Manufacturing within the United States. Higher unit cost than overseas production, but with shorter lead times, lower minimums (often), easier communication, and the ability to visit the factory. Increasingly relevant for brands that value speed and supply chain transparency.
Manufacturing outside the U.S. — typically in Asia (China, Vietnam, Bangladesh, Cambodia, etc.). Lower unit cost at scale, but longer lead times, higher minimums, more complex logistics, and longer sample cycles. The right choice for many brands at scale — but not always the right choice for development.
Stock Keeping Unit. A unique identifier for a specific product variant — typically one style in one color in one size. A single style in two colorways and three sizes is six SKUs. SKU count affects inventory complexity, production minimums, and warehouse logistics.
Materials & Trims
The primary outer fabric of a garment. Called the "shell" in technical contexts to distinguish it from lining, interlining, or other components. Shell fabric is typically the largest cost driver in a garment's materials.
Everything attached to a garment that isn't the shell fabric — buttons, zippers, snaps, elastic, drawcords, labels, patches, rivets, and thread. Trims are listed in the BOM and must be sourced and delivered to the factory before cutting begins.
A small test run of a custom fabric print or dye to check color accuracy before the full fabric yardage is produced. Always approve a strike-off before committing to a full fabric order — color on screen and color on fabric are rarely the same.
A specific color version of a style. A shirt offered in navy, white, and olive is one style in three colorways. Each colorway requires its own fabric sourcing and may require its own sampling.
The amount of fabric required to produce a garment or a production run. Yardage is calculated per style based on pattern piece sizes, fabric width, and run quantity — plus an overage allowance for cutting waste and defects.
A layer of fabric fused or sewn between the shell and lining to add structure, stability, or body. Common in collars, cuffs, waistbands, and plackets. The choice of interlining affects how a finished garment feels and holds its shape over time.
Costing & Minimums
Minimum Order Quantity. The lowest number of units a factory will produce per style, per colorway, or per fabric run. MOQs exist because factories price their labor and setup costs across a run — below a certain quantity, the economics don't work for them. MOQs vary widely: domestic factories often run 50–300 units; overseas factories often 300–1,000+.
The total cost to produce a single unit — including fabric, trims, labor, and any other direct production costs. Does not include marketing, shipping to customer, or overhead. COGS is the foundation of your pricing: everything else stacks on top of it.
The true total cost of a unit once it reaches your warehouse — including production cost, freight, duties, customs fees, and any inspection or compliance costs. Landed cost is what you should actually use to calculate margin, especially for overseas production where duties and shipping can add 15–30% to the unit cost.
A retail pricing method where the retail price is set at 2x the wholesale price, and the wholesale price is set at 2x the cost of goods. Common in apparel as a starting framework — but margins vary significantly by channel, brand positioning, and product category.
Free on Board. A shipping term meaning the seller's responsibility ends when goods are loaded onto the vessel at the origin port. The buyer covers freight, insurance, and import costs from that point. FOB pricing is standard for overseas production — it's not the price to your door.
Quality Control
The process of inspecting finished goods against an approved standard before they ship. QC checks include measurements against the spec sheet, visual inspection for defects, seam integrity, and label accuracy. Skipping QC is one of the most common — and costly — mistakes in production.
Acceptable Quality Level. A statistical standard for determining how many units to inspect in a production run and what defect rate is acceptable before rejecting the lot. AQL 2.5 is the most common standard in apparel — it means roughly 2.5% of units may have minor defects without triggering a full rejection.
Defects are typically classified as critical (safety hazard or renders the garment unsellable), major (visible defect a customer would reject), or minor (slight imperfection that doesn't affect function or appearance significantly). QC standards define what falls into each category for your product.
A QC check that happens during production — not after. An in-line inspection catches problems while there's still time to correct them without reworking or scrapping finished goods. Especially important for large runs or complex constructions.
A QC check of finished, packed goods before they ship. Typically done by a third-party inspection company or by your own team. For overseas production, a final inspection is the last chance to catch problems before goods leave the factory — after that, resolution gets much more complicated.
If you're developing a product or moving into production and want a partner who speaks this language fluently — let's talk. A free discovery call takes 15 minutes and costs nothing.