How much fabric should you buy?
Mastering your fashion business’s fabric inventory and production quantities is a crucial aspect that can directly impact your label’s operations, finances, and overall success. One common challenge businesses face is excess fabric inventory, which can lead to storage issues and financial strain. To effectively manage your fabric inventory, it’s important to set the best practices based on whether you’re producing locally or overseas. Additionally, the art of fabric sourcing plays a significant role in successful business growth. By strategically planning, smart sourcing, and implementing practical business growth strategies, you can save money, reduce waste, and contribute to the success of your fashion brand.
When managing a fashion business, one of the most critical aspects to consider is how to effectively handle your fabric inventory and production quantities. Whether you’re running a small startup label or a more established brand, this can be a challenge. Yet, it’s a crucial part of the business that can directly impact the operations, finances, and overall success of your label.
We’ve seen a multitude of reasons why this happens – from premature fabric procurement during the sampling process to an abrupt halt in production due to fear or other constraints. Sometimes, businesses may order too much fabric for their production run, expecting to launch subsequent ranges, only to find that their initial launch didn’t pan out as expected. This leaves them with unused fabric that requires storage and can cause financial strain.
The best practices in managing your fabric inventory can vary depending on whether you’re producing your fashion line locally or overseas. If you’re producing your garments overseas, the level of fabric that you’re required to procure will often set your minimum order quantity for garments. For instance, if your fabric can be purchased end-of-run, you might secure a smaller quantity. However, if you require a specific type of fabric that needs to be manufactured, you may need to order larger quantities, say 300-400 meters. This then sets your minimum order quantity of garments. Why? Because the ultimate objective is to use up all the fabric, as no factory anywhere wants to be left with rolls of unused fabric.
If you are producing your garments locally, don’t fall into the trap of thinking that purchasing fabric from overseas and shipping it in will be cheaper. It is important to remember that many fabric agents have a stock of fabrics stored in a local warehouse, available for your use. It’s incredible to hear stories of successful brands that started off small, say with 5 meters of fabric, and gradually scaled up their orders as their business grew. This is a sensible and logical approach to fabric sourcing and business growth. If you engage with these fabric agents and purchase the fabric stocks they have available in their warehouses, you can manage this process more effectively. Not only does this method curtail unused stock and the potential for wasted money, but also allows your business to grow and scale organically.
At the end of the day, managing your fabric inventory and production quantity boils down to strategic planning, smart sourcing, and practicable business growth strategies. By carefully overseeing these aspects of your business, you can save money, reduce waste, and ultimately contribute to the success of your fashion brand.
Are you looking to start and grow a successful fashion label from scratch? Register for my free workshop for fashion designers where I help you understand the steps to starting your own clothing label.
What’s included:
- The 5 Reasons why NOW is the BEST time to Create a Locally Made product
- The 7 Different business models of product launch growth. We’ll show you how you can start ASAP on a low-budget
- The 6 Biggest Mistakes to Avoid When Manufacturing Locally
- The Essential 6 steps to developing and manufacturing your label from Scratch (missing even ONE of these can put you on your back foot)
- Discover YOUR Fashion Business Super Power
- How to Market Your Unique Label
- How to find the IDEAL Customers who will LOVE your design and Get Quick Feedback on Your Idea
- The Fashion Business Success Blueprint to Successful Fashion Label Development and Manufacturing (this is EVERYTHING you need to know)
- How We Can Help you Create Your Label
- Dozens of Examples of Labels that are Thriving (and what they did to succeed)
Book your seat for the ‘Start Your Fashion Business’ Workshop which is valued at $920 but FREE today. It’s not too late. Sign up today and watch the recordings over the weekend.
