Style Source Apparel Blog

Finally,Cotton May Have Peaked!

2011-04-04T09:15:00.003-04:00

Latest word on cotton futures pricing is that it has levelled off with anticipation of declines through December. Plantings are up worldwide and, barring natural catastophies, blight or aliens absconding with the new crop it is anticipated supply will increase enough to impact pricing. For the first time in 10 months we were able to purchase yarns at the same price as the previous month. Although incredibly high, at least it was not another double digit increase. Be advised that our buying position is short, as we wish to pass on any price drops as quickly as possible. To do so, we must minimize inventories and jeapordize deliveries. We normally carry 7-10 weeks of finished goods inventories, but currently have targeted 5-6 weeks. This is particularly difficult with yarn deliveries being spotty and finisher schedules running short time due to lack of demand. As is usually the case, expect prices to drop much more slowly than they rose. We are hoping to begin trimming surcharges late in the third quarter (September) as we work through more expensive inventories. Stay tuned for future postings!

Branded Apparel Made in India to Increase 25%

2011-03-02T10:46:00.002-05:00

In their latest move, the government of India has enacted a 10% excise tax on exported branded apparel. Combined with the ongoing increasing cotton prices it is anticipated that the overall effect will be in the neighborhood of 25%. Additionally, the government has passed a new minimum wage increase of 15% which took effect February 1st 2011.

Domestically, we continue to see increases on a monthly basis on the cost of cotton yarns. The basic count of 18/1 100% cotton open end yarn is now quoting in the $2.35 range (compared to $1.02 last year). The finer counts in ring spun , especially organics, have increased at a more rapid rate. 30/1 organic was $1.85 last year and is now being quoted north of $3.70 a pound. Compounding these ongoing increases in cotton are freight and energy surcharges as gasoline and heating oil march northward. There is also word that companies are maxing out their credit limits as factors watch the trade with nervous oversight. This is resulting in a tightening of inventory levels as more dollars buy less and less pounds.

Another area to watch is quality, as cotton fiber becomes more difficult to procure. Inevitably, fiber that was once set aside for lesser products will be finding its way into higher channels. Issues with barre, contamination and color may begin to become more prominant.

Cotton hits $2 a pound, Chinese minimum wage rises

2011-02-16T09:42:00.002-05:00

For the first time in history cotton fiber reached $2 a pound in active markets. This is an increase of another 12% since last month. In the meantime, India announced it will not export any cotton this year, severely impacting Pakistans effort to boost supply and causing Pakistan to announce it will be seeking an additional 2 million bales to cover its internal domestic needs through June. China is experiencing the worst loss of labor in decades, with nearly 50% of factory workers not coming back to work after the Chinese New Year. This is due to increased urbanization in rural areas (creating jobs closer to home) and a shift from low margin, low value products (textiles) to higher margin products like electronics and pharmaceuticals. In an effort to woo them back, China announced an increase in the minimum wage. This will inevitably lead to higher costs of Chinese apparel imports.

Chinese Hoarding - The Latest Price Stimulus

2011-02-02T10:42:00.002-05:00

Reports from China tell of warehouses full of cotton, and many independant farmers filling their shacks and outbuildings with fiber in anticipation of even higher prices. With nearly 25 million Chinese cotton farmers, it is estimated that as much as 9% of the worlds supply is being held back.

In other news, Hanesbrand has announced an impending increase to offset lower revenues of single digit to up to 30% on certain products.

Cotton Soars to New Records as Chinese Demand Surges

2011-01-26T10:34:00.002-05:00

Chinese imports rose an astounding 86% in 2010 with record demand from the textile sector and a diminished cotton crop due to weather issues. Cotton settled at an all time high of nearly $1.62 a pound, climbing 11% in the past week (compare to last years price of $.52/lb). The US Dept of Agriculture reduced its estimated output while also increasing its estimated consumption forecast. The same held true with Indias Southern India Mills Association , which reported a reduction in production and increases in consumption estimates. Global inventories are at the weakest seen since 1995-1996, and hoarding is becoming prevelant with speculators.

PLAN AHEAD- Procure inventory now!

2011-01-21T09:09:00.002-05:00

Yesterday, I ordered more yarn to replenish inventories. To my chagrin, I fond prices have escalated yet another 18% since last months purchases. I spoke with several people close to the supply chain and all are concerned about outages late in the third quarter. It is also expected that prices will continue to escalate. Although Style Source does run a stock inventory position the cost of that inventory has risen close to 70%. This means that capitalization of inventory and carrying costs have risen accordingly. Although it makes some sense to increase inventory position in greige goods to ameliorate the possible shortages later in the year we must watch our spending and where cash is tied up to insure liquidity. Thus, we are HIGHLY recommending to our customers they consider funding dedicated greige goods inventories as insurance for supply for the second half of 2011. We will strive to maintain a strong stock position in all fabrics, but all it takes are several larger unplanned orders to create a short term shortage that may take much longer to replenish. We are all in this together, and, as yor supplier and partner, are doing all we can to communicate the urgency of this situation. Google some articles on "cotton shortage" or cotton fiber prices" to educate yourself and make decisions that will insure your success in 2011!

Cotton Yarn Costs Continue to Increase- Now its Australia!

2011-01-19T09:11:00.003-05:00

Although cotton fiber prices appeared to have plateaued last month the ongoing concerns over availability have forced prices ever higher. The floods in Australia have wiped out their crop, and India put a freeze on exports at the end of 2010 and has yet to lift it. To give you an idea on how prices have changed, we were paying $1.77 a pound for 30/1 combed ring spun yarn last year. Four months ago we were paying $2.35, last month we paid $2.70, and today I was quoted $2.95. That is a 67% increase. Yarn makes up about 65% of fabric cost and fabric cost makes up about 45-55% of a garments cost (variability due to the vast differences in labor between garment types). Another example is a basic 18/1 100% cotton open end yarn. Last year $1.00/lb, now $1.95/lb., a 95% increase. Our current surcharge on catalog pricing is 10%. For custom programs that have repeat styles from last year we are recosting as orders are placed. We highly recommend you inquire about the impact on your pricing while planning your coming season.

Cotton Likely to Remain Scarce/Synthetics Surging in Price

2011-01-05T16:36:00.003-05:00

I recently spoke with one of the most prominant people in the cotton fiber industry. He helped me understand the environment today. With the worldwide shortage there is a great need to increase plantings of cotton fiber. Unfortunately, other crops like wheat, soybeans and corn command higher dollars per acre than cotton. With the lack of availability of additional acreage the industry must focus on increasing the yield per acre. There is no slow down in growth in India and China, and even with increased yields it is projected we will continue to experience shortages for at least several years. In the meantime, with ever rising petroleum costs, synthetics are enjoying their own dramatic upward climb in prices. The only caveat to the negative news is the realization that clothing has never been cheaper in real dollars. In 1910 it took a man 50 hours of labor to afford a new suit. By 1940 that increased to 90 hours. Today, at an average wage of $20 an hour a $300 suit costs only 15 hours of labor. In that context, clothing has never been cheaper.

Polyester Prices Surge on New Demand- Cotton May Have Peaked?

2010-11-18T11:05:00.004-05:00

Recent news from China has all petroleum based fibers, especially PET, polyester, nylon and urethanes, increasing in price from 20-45% over the past two months due to increased demand and rising petroleum costs.

In the meantime, cotton may have peaked, as recent signs of a drop off in pricing could be either a telling sign of an eventual return to normalcy or a hiccup in the forward trend. Regardless, cotton bought at all time highs is in process or in the field and it will take many months for it to be converted to apparel and reach market, so we are facing serious price increases in apparel for spring and fall seasons of 2011. A new article on Bloomberg can be read here www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-11-16/gap-wal-mart-clothing-suppliers-raise-prices-on-terrifying-cotton-costs.html

The end of the world as we know it?

2010-11-09T20:12:00.002-05:00

Seems that way! Every day we look at cotton fiber prices and say there is no way benchmark pricing can increase further, Last year cotton was $.55 a pound, today it is $1.52 a pound, a 276% increase. The Chinese have been buying futures as high as $2 a pound. Compounding the cotton issue is the increases in polyester fiber, up 25% from a year ago, and trending upward at a faster pace as some programs switch to higher polyester blends in attempts to stave off the cotton increase. Invariably, profit taking will add to the drama. Further exacerbating issues on the import side is government money printing, causing the dollar to slide against foreign currencies and increasing the cost of imported apparel products.

What can you do? Educate your customers by sending them links to articles or to this blog. The more retailers hear of the impending increases the more likely acceptance will come. Discuss the historic rise in costs at dinner parties or social events, creating more awareness. Start planning. Develop next years budget anticipating apparel increases in the range of 6-10%. Consider forecasting, as it will become the most important tool you will use to remain in stock. Manufacturers are not mind readers, and with inventories now more costly than ever, controls will likely tighten up availability.

Read the previous blogs to gain a history of what has transpired and please consider the importance of your level of communication with your suppliers.

Cotton Market Goes Crazy

2010-11-03T09:26:00.002-04:00

The latest headline in Textile World magazine says "The cotton market goes crazy". I would call it insane. Prices on yarn quoted to me last week are up yet another 15%. Prices from 2 months ago are up nearly 35%. I received a quotation from a mill on a cotton fabric two days ago with a bold statement "Quotation good for two days only". I placed the order today, and the mill owner begged me to allow him another $.12 a yard, as the price had gone up in the past day. I held him to his quotation, and he is now modifying his disclaimer to read "quotation good for the day of quotation only.

I'm not sure where the deflation concerns are coming from, as yesterday I received price increase notifications that UPS will raise rates 4.7% next year and our snap supplier just raised prices 6.5%. On the sewing side, cotton thread is experiencing the same issues as yarns.

Experts are stating that world supply will be 3 million bales short this year. China is the main concern, for they are consuming at an expansive rate and if they heat up further pressures will be that much greater. The article also states that prices have not been higher since 1870, when civil war caused blockades in the north and cotton could not get through. A weakened dollar rounds out the picture of misery.

I cannot urge you strongly enough to anticipate first quarter needs and attempt to provide us with forecasts. We cannot invest all of our working capital on speculation inventories, as we handle so many fabrics and programs we would never be able to cover everyone. Open a conversation with us so we may work through how best to position you for the first quarter of next year.

Indias Cotton Export Restrictions Being Challenged

2010-10-27T08:33:00.003-04:00

Textile World magazine just published an article dicsussing Indias export restrictions on cotton. You can read it at www.textileworld.com/articles/2010/October/Indiaxs_Cotton.html . It discusses how every major trade organization is protesting Indias new export policy on cotton fiber and yarns. They are restricting export to keep domestic prices in India low, and selling off the bulk of their finer to China, who has subsidies in place to buffer the higher costs, giving both China and India unfair trade advantage in the worldwide marketplace. As the second largest cotton fiber producer, Indias policies have a major impact on worldwide supply and pricing. Additionally, large state owned textile operations in China are buying up fiber at any price, causing deep concerns in the USA about supply and ever escalating prices.

Cotton Crisis Escalates-No end in Sight!

2010-10-21T12:35:00.003-04:00

A recent announcement from India states that the 5.5million bales allocated for export for all of 2011 have been booked and registered in the first 10 days of release. Heavy booking from China subsequent to the Chinese holidays combined with domestic demand are forcing prices ever higher. Current cotton pricing is nearing $1.20 a pound (bear in mind that a year ago it was at $.55 a pound). Fears in India are of limited to no availability of cotton fiber for their domestic market in the first quarter. This bodes poorly for our market, as exported fiber and yarns from the major producing countries are diverted to their own markets or bid up in the Asian market. Forecasts for domestic pricing are an additional increase of 20-30% by January. We have experienced increases of nearly 10% in just the past three weeks!

Style Source Inc has increased its position in yarn inventories, for our basic fabrics, in the past months in an attempt to buffer and delay any price increases. Our current 4% surcharge on published pricing and booked programs will likely hold until 2011. It appears inevitable we will have to increase the surcharge as we deplete existing inventories. Any re-orders on custom styles costed prior to September of 2010 will require re-costing.

Conversations with many knowledgeable business leaders indicate the first quarter of 2011 will bring us delayed deliveries and shortfalls. Availability will be an issue. We strongly urge our customers to consider bulking up inventories by December to avoid any dramatic delays. We realize this will mean additional investment , but better to have the goods on the floor than to be unable to meet deliveries. Anticipate an additional 3-4 weeks of lead time for orders placed on custom goods after January, and plan accordingly.

Cotton Continues its Upward March

2010-09-20T15:17:00.003-04:00

A fascinating video is available for viewing to help you understand current conditions at www.bloomberg.com/video/62957562/

I have previously reviewed the loss of the bulk of Pakistans cotton crop, and now news of unending torrential rains in India has estimates for the Indian crop falling short of estimates by 3 million bales. Cotton has broken the $1 per pound mark for the first time since 1995. US mills have been panic buying, fearfull of running short. Subsequently, customers are being rationed shipments.

September rains in India are 122 percent of the 50 year average. In the largest cotton producing state, rainfall is 54% above normal. Global cotton inventories are now at the lowest level since 1996. Subsequently, cotton futures are expected to surge to close to $1.25 a pound by January, another 25% increase.

Worse yet, the cotton crop in China is suffering. Low temperatures and prolonged rains caused a late planting . China will likely increase importation, putting even further pressure on global supply.

Style Source Inc remains committed to offering the best possible pricing and will continue to keep you informed of worldwide developments and how they may affect your product costs for the coming season. It would be wise to build in yet another round of increases in the 3-4% range for the first quarter.

Update on cotton yarn availability

2010-08-06T10:41:00.003-04:00

Cotton yarn spinning has gone through quite an evolution in the past 5 years. Where there were once many smaller spinners churning out 1-3 million pounds a week (Cheraw, Borden, Avondale, Harriet and Henderson, Swift, RL Stowe,Vintage, etc) we saw a huge consolidation of acquisitions and mill closures, resulting in two top dogs (Frontier and Parkdale) , who produce in excess of 9 million pounds of yarn a week each (while all of the aforementioned mills are gone)! During the worst of the recession both of these spinners looked for efficiencies through reductions in labor and closures of less profitable operations. As demand started to build again both operations found a shortfall in capacity of the most basic of commodity yarns. Those utilizing open end yarns have no buying options outside of domestic mills, as the rest of the world never took to open end spinnings labor reduction gains, as they already had very low labor costs. Hence, import yarns are strictly ring spun. To answer the shortfall Frontier is investing $15million in its Sanford operations and Parkdale is re-opening a Gaffney plant purchased from Wellstone and investing $45 million to re-furbish and upgrade equipment and facilities.

In the meantime, production backlogs are extending weeks to months, as inventories have shrunk from weeks to just days. In many cases, buyers are having to resort to purchasing lower quality yarns to keep pricing in line with retailer expectations. Prices have risen over 40% on most commodity yarns in just the past 6 months, increasing apparel costs by 5-8%. As a buyer of apparel, you need to be aware of any yarn substitutions that may effect durability or eveness of the finished product.

Style Source Inc has not made any yarn substitutions and has continued to find alternatives to help defray rising raw material costs. We currently have implimented a cotton surcharge of 4% on our pre-patterned apparel, absorbing a portion of the overall increases. Buyers need to stay informed of market conditions, as most manufacturers are minimizing on hand inventories while material costs remain elevated, so ordering further in advance or taking a stronger finished inventory position is highly recommended.

Purchasing custom apparel from Style Source Inc means having a management team with over 100 years of industry experience to guide you with material sourcing, fabric selection, private label clothing options, re-labelling of existing apparel, or building an apparel brand. Our apparel import division has over 25 years of importing experience and can provide you with fully customized apparel starting at 1200 piece minimums per style and 600 per color. Give us a call at 910-399-2288 to begin your journey of creating custom private label apparel!

Made in China- Moving On?

2010-07-21T15:46:00.002-04:00

There has been an awful lot of talk lately about China becomming a has been in the garment manufacturing sector. Arguments of a rising currency, less government support/subsidies, labor cost issues, labor shortages, etc have all contributed to the conclusiveness that China has become non-competitive with other low cost producers like Cambodia, Vietnam, Indonesia, et al. A great article on the subject can be found here at http//www.just-style.com/comment/made-in-china-continues-to-make-sense_id108334.aspx?lk=dm .
What many easily pass off is the infrastructure that has been set in place to support the burgeoning textile and apparel engine. Very few countries in the world have the dedicated and versatile supply chain that the Chinese have built. True, there is a labor shortage, and true, there are many cost pressures affecting the cost justification basis for sourcing there, but they are still the place to service low minimum high custom programs.
If you read the article you likely know that the cost of cotton has been a very signifigant issue over the past year. It will continue to haunt our bottom lines as we attempt to absorb some of the impact while passing on what we must. Being this is a unilateral issue affecting every manufacturer worldwide, we at least can be comforted by the fact that EVERYBODY has had to raise prices over the past 3-5 months. The fact that China may be the least impacted by this cotton shortage /pricing may play out as a major offset to rising prices due to currency appreciation and rising labor costs.

Style Source Inc is constantly involved in strategic conversations regarding apparel sourcing and importing custom apparel programs. For customers seeking custom made clothing or private label garments at highly competitive pricng in smaller sized programs Style Source is your management solution.

Cotton yarn prices soar- Surcharges to go into effect

2010-05-11T16:33:00.003-04:00

In an economic environment where the manufacturing sector is just getting back on its feet we now have the latest in a dissying array of major hurdles for apparel manufacturers. Over the past 5 months cotton prices have been increasing as world demand causes higher prices for USA cotton and the fiber ships to the highest bidders, mostly overseas. This has been balanced by the fact that much of the fiber sent to India and Pakistan winds up comming back to us in the form of yarn. However, both countries recently ceased exporting yarn back to the USA as their own domestic demand has outstripped supply. On the USA front, after years of desolate news of yarn mills closing, or being bought up, capacity has been reduced to 2008-9 consumption levels. Now that demand is increasing capacity is not there to support it. A good article from Pakistan is here
http://sappk.wordpress.com/2009/11/25/cotton-yarn-crisis/ and from India here http://www.commodityonline.com/news/India-trashes-tax-incentive-on-cotton-yarn-export-27594-3-1.html.

The net effect is that cotton yarn has become difficult to secure and delivery quotations are extending to 3-5 weeks. Prices from 5 months ago are up about 35%. Even commodity yarns like 18/1 open end are in near sold out positions at the two major mills.

As in house inventories are depleted the cost increases will inevitably find their way downstream to the customer level. More importantly, however, is the potential impact on deliveries. It only makes sense for Style Source to limit the longer term effect of current price increases by reducing in house inventory levels of fabrics and yarns so that as prices drop we can move more quickly to lower costs and prices. As we closely manage inventories we risk outages as yarn deliveries remain extended. This means you, the customer, need to be sure you are allowing more time for your orders to be processed. If you are working on a larger order it is best to provide us with a heads up to review positions and insure we are tuned in to your pipeline needs.

As a temporary measure we will be implimenting a 3% cotton surcharge on all orders that are being serviced from fresh inventories. Our basic fabrics have been drawn down and we anticipate the surcharges to begin phase in around June 1. Be assured we will phase out the surcharge as soon as prices moderate and inventories are replenished with lower cost yarns.

Administration Functions Move to North Carolina

2010-03-10T15:08:00.004-05:00

Effective immediately we have moved all administrative functions for Style Source Inc to our North Carolina facility. Order entry, invoicing and accounts payable will all be handled from there. All payments should continue to be sent to our Allentown facility. Questions related to administration may be addressed to admin@style-source.com.

Cotton Prices Likely to Climb

2010-02-17T09:04:00.002-05:00

Cotton prices have taken a sharp turn upward in recent months due to world demand and a shortage of fiber in producing countries like Pakistan, China and India. The US exported 12 million bales and surplus US stock shrunk to one of the lowest levels ever of 3.3million bales. Global consumption increased by 1.17 million bales, bringing totals to 115.5 million bales. Based on these USDA figures world production will have to increase by as much as 12.8 million bales just to keep world stock levels from falling further. Pakistan alone imports about $800 million in cotton annually and Indias cotton crop suffered from a virus causing a 20% decline in output. The USDA predicts that ending stocks outside China will be no more than 33.8 million bales by the end of the season. This compares to 40.1 million a year ago and 42.2 million in 2007-08. Mills depend on these stocks in August, September and October to tie them over to new crop.

What does this mean to the US consumer? Increasing prices as our cotton supply is shipped overseas and as domestic mills pay more due to the tightening supplies. We may even see shortages leading to delayed deliveries.

Style Source Inc purchases cotton yarns and fabrics based on projected consumption levels. Customers can greatly aid the accuracy of these forecasts by providing their own forecasted needs to us to consider in our planning. Without projections, we can only guess at seasonal demand, and with us utilizing 8 yarn counts and 12 different base fabrics this becomes a complex act. Custom private label apparel manufacturing schedules cannot be built more than a few months out, as they are built solely on order placements in lieu of longer range forecasts.

Style Source at the PGA Show Orlando

2009-12-29T10:57:00.002-05:00

Anyone planning to visit the PGA show in Orlando on January 28 and 29 might wish to let me know, as I will be attending for two days to visit with many exhibiting customers. As many may know, we are a supplier to the golf trade, making thousands of Polos going to both startup companies and well established brands. We manufacture the bulk of our custom golf apparel in Macau and India and offer an extremely wide range of products, from basic polos to high end double mercerized or performance polo shirts, shorts, skirts, slacks, sweaters and belts. If you are considering adding womens or mens golf styles we can assist you with developing custom fabrics, logo trims (buttons, zipper pulls, neck tape etc) and styles. Please do contact Geoff at 910-399-2288 if you wish to set up a meeting at the show!

I might also mention I will be attending the Tucson Gem and Mineral show from February 9-14. Anyone in the Tucson area that may need to meet with me to explore custom made apparel or a private label branded apparel line, or even to talk minerals (my side business and hobby) please advise and we'll get together!

CPSC ISSUES STAY ON LEAD TESTING UNTIL FEB 10 2011

2009-12-29T10:55:00.001-05:00

A news release published by Textile Workd Magazine informs us of a stay on required testing for lead and pthalates on childrens products until 2011.

"The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) approved a one-year stay until Feb. 10, 2011, of enforcement of a standard requiring testing and certification of the lead and phthalates content in children's products, including some textiles and apparel. While the testing and certification have been stayed, products still must comply with all applicable rules and bans. CPSC said the stay of enforcement will remain in effect while the agency continues to work toward recognizing labs and procedures for third-party testing and certification. The commission pointed out that the stay does not apply to any requirements under the Flammable Fabrics Act. CPSC also voted unanimously to adopt an interim enforcement plan allowing more flexibility in component testing."
December 22, 2009

Demand (and costs) for Yarns Escalating

2009-12-08T13:09:00.004-05:00

There are times when you just sit back in your highback and let out a deep sigh of ambivalance. I just had one of those moments after getting off the phone with a yarn order taker (they used to be called salesmen but they really don't sell anymore). I was informed that the supply side is getting tight AND cotton fiber prices are escalating, thus the yarn I bought for $1.52/lb last month was now $1.70/lb. AND I may have to wait an extra week or two for delivery. I can live with this news when the US market is alive and domwstic manufacturing is sopping up all the yarn the spinners can spin, but this is the opposite scenario. Here, the dollar has weakened to the point where USA made yarn is a bargain. Business last year was so bad that two major spinners went out of business, which, at the time, had almost no impact on supply. Now, demand for USA made yarns is increasing for companies that produce in the Carribean, Central and South America. This includes both domestically owned businesses with textile factories as well as Asian and European operations with factories in this hemisphere. Translation, domestic textile producers must pay more for, and wait longer for, yarns made here because the bulk of them are being bought up by huge conglomerates and being shipped out of this country. As demand increases the loss of capacity by the two major mills further constricts availability and leads to undercapacity which, in turn will cause inflationary pricing and delivery delays mounting into weeks and possibly months. In 1965 95% of all apparel sold in the USA was USA produced. In 1985 it was down to 70%. In 1995 USA production accounted for only 50% of all apparel sold in the USA. Today? Less than 5%. Yes, LESS THAN 5%. Now, in this mother of all recessions, we have to raise prices for unleaded snaps and cotton! I think I'll recline in my highback and let out another ambivalant sigh.

CPSIA Lead Laws

2009-10-29T10:36:00.003-04:00

I am printing a copy of an article published in Textile World Magazine pertaining to the new CPSIA regulations.
CPSC Issues Policy Paper On Lead Content In Children’s Products
James A. Morrissey, Washington Correspondent
The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has issued a new policy statement covering the lead content in products used by children. The policy appears to exempt virtually all fabric, both dyed and undyed, from testing and certification requirements. The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act requires that products intended for use by children under 12 years of age may not contain more than 300 parts per million of lead. Products that exceed that level are required to be tested by third-party labs and certified as to their lead content. In its announcement, CPSC said: "The law limits our ability to exempt products from the lead content limit, however, we have found that certain products, by their nature, will never exceed the lead content limit, so those products do not need to be tested and do not need certification to show that they comply with the law." CPSC says textile fabric falls into the exempt category, but the exemption may not apply to after-treatments such as screen printing, transfers, decals or other printing`. With respect to final products that may contain a number of components, including some exempt and non-exempt, the commission said it will address that question in a later rulemaking. October 27, 2009

This is good news on the apparel manufacturing front, but leaves the burden of compliance in the use of snaps, screen prints, embroidery patches, zippers, etc. Let's discuss this a bit.

It is now a given that the textile componant will pose no lead hazard. How about a snap or snap tape? New "low lead" snaps are on the market, and the cost of these products is 50-85% MORE than the standard product. Lead is a necessary evil in the manufacture of snaps. so even the "low lead" units have some lead content, but are below the boundary of 300ppm. Now, has anyone tested how much lead would come out of an unpainted nickle based snap if sucked on for 100 hours? How many snaps would be required to be in an infants mouth, and for how long, before any lead would leach out into their system? Is there an ASTM "suck test"? Would they need to eat the snaps? Wouldn't the consumption of snaps fall under some other safety regulation regarding sharp objects or removable objects? How about screen printing? Sure, plastisol printing can be abraded by teeth and possibly be consumed in small quantities, so maybe, if indeed there is lead in plastisol ink, it makes sense. What about water based digital prints or discharge prints? I suppose the ASTM "suck tester" would be needed again, but we are speaking of ink. Do we need a lead test on every piece of paper with printing on it that may come in contact with an infant? What about that digital print on the cute little phenol free bottle he has? What about the printed bumber pad and pillows in his crib? His sheets or pillows likely have zippers!

I am not against safety regulations, but if we are going to regulate than we had best be sure that the consequences of these regulations are not onerous and do not cause a litigatory creative rigamortise so that anyone trying to enter the industry is scared silly. In the meantime we are using "low lead" snaps, and the costs are having to both be absorbed or passed on.

Garment and Fabric Shrinkage Secrets Revealed!

2009-10-27T13:27:00.002-04:00

Why is it that a consumer must evaluate a garments fit, when new, with an angel on one shoulder saying it will fit after laundering and a devil on the other saying to buy a size larger to accomodate shrinkage? Why do cotton fabrics shrink more than polyester fabrics? Why do wovens shrink less than knits? Why does a tumble dryer cause shrinkage when a washing machine doesn't? Have any of these questions ever crossed your mind? Here, finally, in plain english, are the answers.

In the industry, we break shrinkage into two seperate catagories. The first is called relaxation shrinkage, and is exhibited by taking a piece of unlaundered fabric, laying it in a bowl of water, and observing the dimensional changes. The first thing you will note is that it does not move much at all. Placing a fabric in a liquid suspension will cause two things to happen. The first is that the water will act as a lubricant and allow any residual energies or tensions in the fabric to relax. The second is that, if the fabric is absorbant, the fibers will swell, causing the structure that binds them to consolidate. It is old hat that polyester and nylon do not absorb, but in todays world, don't be fooled. Both fibers can now be temporarily (through topical finishes) or permanently (through molecular change) modified to absorb (think "performance fabrics"). Conversly, there are finishes that can be applied to cotton (stain resistance, water repellant) that make cotton non-absorbant. Regardless, this "relaxation shrinkage" is a very very small componant of the shrinkage you experience in a finished garment. Maybe a half a percentage, if that, is caused by relaxation.

The second measure of shrinkage is called "consolidation shrinkage". This is a consequence of combining lubrication (water and heat) with mechanical action (tumbling) that facilitates the movement of the structure as it releases the tensions that caused process deformation of the woven or knit structure. This deformation is caused by the inherent tensions when bleaching, dying, hydro-extracting, and drying the fabrics in an industrial environment. Consolidation shrinkage is the primary cause of shrinkage in home laundering.

Woven fabrics(poplins, muslins, duck,canvas,georgette,etc) are constructed by laying yarns across each other in engineered patterns. The yarns are typically tightly woven in a manner that leaves little space between the yarns. For this reason, wovens are inherently more stable (and less stretchy). There are exceptions (like gauze), where the fabric is loosely structured, but we won't concern ourselves with exceptions or this article will be longer than you will care to read (are you still reading?). Cotton wovens will, typically, have higher shrinkage than synthetics or blends, but not for the reasons you suspect. Synthetic fibers all have a heat range in which they begin to soften (glass transition temperature). When a fiber is brought to that temperature for a very brief period of time it will cool and "set" itself in whatever arrangement it is confined to. What this means is that you can process fabrics with synthetics to purposefully heat set them so that they stabilize at that specific point in time within the structure, thereby stabilizing the structure itself. You can't do this with natural fibers. Therefor, it is not the fact that cotton fabrics shrink more, it is the fact that synthetics can be manipulated to shrink less!

There are a few processes to help stabilize cotton shrinkage. In years gone by, the industry used urea formaldehyde resins to cross link the fibers and set them. This worked great, as long as nobody cared that the plant workers were dying of cancer. Once the link of urea formaldehyde and carcinogens was found the industry resorted to mechanical compression. Although there are several types of methods used, they all result in squishing the fabric temporarily together, so that when washed, it does not move as much. This is known as "pre-shrunk". The only issue is that these processes are not exacting. They cannot measure how much the fabric was stretched in previous processes and cannot measure the variability of those forces over any given length of fabric, so that the entire process is reliant on an operator setting the equipment to a fixed setting. This allows for variation yard to yard and roll to roll, especially in knit products. Add to this the fact that fabrics are then spread on a cutting table, and that the tensions involved in spreading may actually pull out some of the compaction, furthering the variability!

Knit fabrics are a story unto themselves. There are two main knit catagories, weft and warp, and most fabrics you encounter in casualwear (tees, sweats, undies, polos, etc) are weft knits. Warp knits are typically found in lingerie and foundation garments. Therefor, we will stick with weft knits here. Knit fabrics are made up of loops that are formed one within another. Unlike wovens, where yarns are laid across each other, knits require bending and forming of yarns into all kinds of constructions. This means knits have allot more space between the yarns, which lends to their being stretchy. These spaces allow room for the structures to deform more readily in processing. As fabrics run through rollers, are soaked in liquids (making them extremely heavy) and dragged over and under beams they are stretched. It is the challenge to recover those fabrics to their original form that defines how much they shrink. Therefor, knits shrink more than wovens due to their less stable structure.

Now, why does a garment shrink in the dryer but not the washer? If you have been paying attention you now know that the washing machine simply makes a garment wet and that means relaxation shrinkage is the only factor involved. Yes, there is mechanical action and yes, there may be hot water, but therin is the rub. Fabrics do not begin the process of consolidation shrinkage until they reach a moisture level near 20%, and in a washer, they are fully saturated. I had mentioned heat acted as a lubricant, in conjunction with water, but the weight of the water must be low enough to not cause drag and fiber swelling. Once the fabric begins to near a level of dryness the structure is aided by the reduced swelling, lower coefficient of friction, and the loops and yarns can begin to recover to the original state in which they were formed. This is why hanging clothes to dry results in no shrinkage- no heat or mechanical action!

As always , your questions and comments are welcome.

Geokrazy Minerals Calcite Update

2009-10-25T09:05:00.002-04:00

Today, Geokrazy added a gallery of calcite specimens de-acquisitioned from the geoffrey Krasnov collection. This gallery features European calcites, many with signifigant provenance and historic localities. Represented are Andreasberg,Schneeberg, Saxony, Black Forest and Harz Mountain specimens from Germany, calcite specimens from Italy,France, Spain, Belgium, England, Bulgaria and several from the Karolytaro Mine in Hungary. Three specimens came from the famous Mary and Gardner Miller Calcite Collection, featured in the Mineralogical Record Volume 18,#6,1987. One of those calcite specimens is ex Krantz. Another came from the Oren Root Collection and traces this signifigant calcite specimen from his collection to Hamilton College and onward. The link is www.geokrazy.com and you should have a look if interested in display quality minerals in varieties of sizes, colors and forms.

Geokrazy Minerals Launches New Website

2009-10-17T20:06:00.003-04:00

Geokrazy Minerals is a DBA of Style Source Inc, and was established to offer high quality display minerals for mineral collectors, decorators, artisans, and those seeking information about our natural world. I have been collecting natural mineral specimens for display since childhood, and it eventually led me to trading, field collecting and selling minerals at local shows. Crystal healers use mineral specimens for their energies, jewelry makers enjoy wrapping natural crystals in wire or setting them into necklaces, potters use them to mount to acheive a balance of man and nature, decorators use them as centerpieces, and mineral collectors simply enjoy their beauty. People collect minerals for their colors, their forms, and their associations (don't forget fossils too!). They collect all sizes, from micro-mounts to toenails and thumbnail, small cabinet, cabinet and museum sized. They collect them polished and carved. You would be amazed at the number of people that attend mineral shows and make some form of mineral collecting their hobby. The Tucson show, held in February each year, occupies dozens of sites, runs for three weeks, occupies 6 hotels, and attracts tens of thousands of people from around the world. Geokrazy is a side business for me, and I fill my spare time updating the website at www.geokrazy.com and keeping up with new finds and prices. If you know of anyone interested in mineral specimens be sure to tell them about Geokrazy Minerals!

Import Apparel Pitfalls -How to Import Clothing and Not Lose Your Shirt

2009-09-09T10:56:00.005-04:00

Style Source Inc has been importing custom clothing for 5 years now, but our depth of experience is much deeper than that time period portrays. Years ago, we made the decision that turning away customers because we could not hit their price points with domestic manufacturing was wasted opportunity. Having had experience in sourcing with Sara Lee Corporation, I knew that starting from scratch with unproven vendors would be a long and difficult road. I had learned that you cannot judge a book by its cover, and that all the great things a sales representative at a trade show booth could tell me they were capable of had little relation to what could be expected when the rubber hit the road and it came time to develop and impliment custom apparel from customer specifications. The decent english spoken by the man in the booth was, typically, the companies best effort, and the soldiers manning the front lines brought about a new challenge in communication. Therefor, I decided to tap the shoulder of someone who was well established, with over 20 years of experience, and with rock solid proven channels. Thus was born the relationship we have today with our import apparel partner, which has proven to be one of the best decisions we could have made.

When looking for an import partner pay very close attention to the initial processes. It is your responsibility to define the product at a detailed level. This normally takes the form of specification packages. When dealing with another country and language barriers, it is critical you define the fabric for content, yield and performance parameters. You need to know the garment construction, or at least have a sample to go by. You must define the sizing and the size grade. Packaging, labelling, placements, etc must all be very specific. With a company like Style Source, we help you gather this information and even offer the service of creating initial spec packs. When dealing directly with a foreign entity the responsibility falls solely on you.

Pay very close attention to initial samples. If the samples are shoddy turn and run. The factory should supply you with approval samples of the fabric, all the findings, and lab dips of your colors. If embellishments are being added these should also be sampled first for accuracy, detail, placement and colors. Many of these operations will require a deposit of 100% before starting this process. Beware, as once the money is overseas you have no out!

The issue of logistics comes into play, and this facet of the decision makiong process needs to occur at the onset rather than as an afterthought. When dealing directly with an overseas based supplier terms are usually ILOC or payment up front. Shipments are made FOB port of origin, meaning you release your letter of credit when the goods reach the port of origin. You then have full responsibility to have the goods scheduled, insure all documents are processed, and to pay all fees (broker, port, security, inland and ocean freight, duties, document preparation, etc etc) from that point. Be SURE to add up all the fees and the duties and to add them to your FOB cost to determine your true landed/duty paid(LDP) cost!

Style Source Inc takes all of the pain out of this process. We will quote you an LDP price (exclusive of freight) and estimate the freight costs for you. We pay all of the fees and duties and handle the logistics. We manage the sampling process. We offer terms of 50% down and 50% at document presentation for export, allowing you to hold onto 50% of the order value through the typical 90 day manufacturing process. Most importantly, we offer a guarantee of satisfaction, and as a US based company, you have the assurance that you have recourse if there is any unresolved issue. What do you pay extra for the managment of the entire process of importing private label clothing and the security of full package custom apparel importation? We like to say nothing, as our pricing is most competitive and we channel enough volume through our suppliers that we receive favorable pricing from them. Unless you are producing thousands of units a month on an ongoing basis and sourcing direct you will not find more competitive pricing.

HOW TO START A CLOTHING LINE-SEARCH STRINGS

2009-09-04T11:25:00.002-04:00

We review allot of satistics here at Style Source world headquarters, and I found it interesting that the search strings most commonly used to find us reference the word clothing instead of apparel. " How to start a clothing line " was number one followed by " private label clothing " and " starting a clothing line ". Mis-spelled or abbreviated terms also come into play like " starting clothing line " how start custom clothing ". No matter how you spell it, or what string you use, you will land at Style Source, your preferred alternative for manufacturing custom clothing or custom private label apparel! Our website is full of helpfull information about importing custom clothing or how to import custom apparel. Our import division has set a record this year in volume, and has imported polo shirts, childrens custom rompers, woven dress shirts, jeans, hats, shorts, dresses, canvas totes, belts, ties, and many other items with 100% customer satisfaction. Feel free to inquire about your custom clothing line and we will help guide you!

A REVIEW OF THE MAGIC AND KIDS TRADE SHOWS

2009-09-04T11:03:00.002-04:00

We just returned from 110 degree smoke filled (both outside from the wild fires in California and inside in the Casinos) Las Vegas and here are some thoughts on what we saw.

The MAGIC ( originally Mens Apparel Guild In California)show has continued to evolute. There are added venues as the definition of catagories has transformed. How to differentiate between Pool, Project , Street and Slate has become a challenge, as it seemed we were seeing virtually the same merchandise with different graphics in each venue. The fact that Pool, Slate, Street, Mens and Premium all blended from one to the other in the same humongous hall did not help. At least Project was in a different building, but if you asked me the difference between Pool and Project I would be hard pressed to answer! The use of decorations continues to expand and gain importance, as evidenced by the riot of colors and graphics overlayed with crystals, foil, applique and whatever other creative means could be employed. This means the bulk of products were either made in the Los Angeles area, where these types of decorating are available, or made overseas. Finding booths that relied more on cut, fabric drape, and style versus patterns, color combinations and decorations was a chore!

The kids show at Magic was laughable. There were maybe 8 booths of kidswear. It adjoined Ecollection, which was an area I expected to be greatly expanded with the advent of organics and natural fibers. Unfortunately, this area consisted of about a dozen or two of booths, with very little in the way of fashion or childrenswear!

We attended the WWIN womenswear show at the Rio, as we have several customers that were showing there, and , when catching the shuttle we noticed there was an independant Kids show at Ballys. If not for the shuttle sign, we would have never known! We went there and had no issues navigating the aisles, as, apparently noone else knew of this show either. Exhibitors were setup similar to the ENK show, and the show size was pretty decent, but it was extremely disheartening to see how poorly attended it was, a foreboding sign for the shows future.

CPSIA EXEMPTS TEXTILES FROM LEAD TESTING

2009-08-27T11:26:00.002-04:00

The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has decided to exempt virtually all textile products, including natural and manufactured fibers, from the lead testing requirements of the Consumer Products Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA). In making the announcement, the CPSC said the staff had reviewed hundreds of test reports submitted by interested parties and concluded that most textile products are manufactured using processes that do not introduce lead or result in an end product that would exceed the CPSIA lead limits. The blanket exemption does not apply to all products that may be altered by dyeing or printing, but the commission said the exemption could apply in most circumstances. The CPSC ,on its website, listed the following exempt textile fiber products:• natural fibers - cotton, silk, wool, hemp, flax, ramie, linen, jute, kenaf, bamboo, coir, sisal, kapok, alpaca, llama, mohair, cashmere, angora, camel, horse, yak, vicuna, qiviut and guanaco. • manufactured fibers - rayon, nylon, lyocell, acetate triacetate, rubber, polyester, olefin, nylon, acrylic, aramid, azion and spandex. Components of apparel products such as buttons, snaps, zippers, trim and fasteners are not exempt.

CPSIA COMPLIANCE- IT'S A SNAP!

2009-08-10T09:52:00.003-04:00

Now that we have reached the deadline for compliance to the new CPSIA lead content laws we wish to advise you of our understanding and actions we have taken to stay ahead of it. The primary componant that goes onto a garment that bears a lead threat is a snap. All metal snaps require a certain degree of lead in the manufacturing process. Our supplier, Kane M, has researched products and now offers metal snaps that fall under the new minimums. We have received a compliance certificate and are now purchasing only this new product. We are told these new snaps hold up well in most garment dye applications, but , without testing every single possible dye environment, cannot guarantee them in all conditions. Therefor, it is imperitive you test some garments in the dye application you will use for production, to insure you are satisfied with the product. We do not use painted snaps at all.

It is our understanding that the textiles we utilize to manufacture apparel are exempt for the testing requirements, as they have historically shown no jeapardy whatsoever in regards to lead content. If we do need to use zippers or other types of fasteners we will insure we recieve compliance certificates to keep on file.

The intent of the CPSC to protect innocent lives from dangerous products is admirable. However, these laws do not come without costs. The new "lead compliant" snaps will cost us $15-20% more, and we will have to re-evaluate any style that takes snaps at the time of order. Naturally, a style taking only one or two snaps will be minimally impacted, but those requiring more will likely have a small price adjustment.

In addition to the lead issue, the new law has additional requirements for labeling. We must now include the date of manufacture and lot number in the labels. For products in which we make the joker labels, we will be including this information on them. For customers supplying their own labels, we will have to add an additional label to meet the law. We will affix this extra label to the back of your logo label for a professional appearance, at no additional charge. If you want it placed elsewhere there may be a small charge.

Feel free to comment, and to ask any questions that may be related to this subject.

ORGANICS AND LIGHTWEIGHT THERMALS LEAD THE WAY

2009-07-20T15:13:00.002-04:00

I've had a few inquiries this past week about what we are seeing in terms of fabric trends. While burnouts were big over the past 6 months they seem to be running their course. Modals, bamboo blends and rayon-like fibers remain a staple for womens tops. Organics are likely making the biggest gains. There has been enough demand for us to start carrying baby rib and lightweight jersey in 100% organic cotton. Additionally, there has been a steady diet for lightweight poly/cotton thermal as well as even finer baby rib. If any of your custom private label apparel programs may benefit from any of these fabrics feel free to request swatches. It is always advantageous to tie into an existing fabric program, as it reduces minimums in white or PFD and, in some cases, may also mean there are leftover available colors to take advantage of.

Custom Import Apparel

2009-06-08T16:09:00.002-04:00

Our import division is the fastest growing segment of our business. As much as we prefer to manufacture garments domestically we cannot ignore the advantages to importing custom apparel. The higher the value added, and the higher the amount of labor, the more sense it makes to import. The bottom line is that you are competing in a marketplace that is saturated with low cost import apparel, and to penetrate you must not only have the styling, the fabrics, the colors and the graphics customers want but you must compete on price. Typically, for a mid labor intensive garment with some value added graphics (embroidery, screen printed, patches etc) you can buy 5 import garments for the price of 3 domestically produced. With higher labor/value added that can change to 6 imported garments for the price of 3 domestically made. More importantly, the methods employed overseas include many hand labor applications that simply cannot be done domestically due to prohibited labor costs. This translates to signifigantly greater capabilities overseas with decorating and decorative stitching techniques.

If you are entertaining the thought of starting an apparel line then you may wish to weigh the possibility of custom manufactured imported apparel versus domestically made custom apparel. We can help you weigh the pluses and minuses and assist you either way. Our import division simplifies the task of getting a quality made garment to your specifications landed and delivered to your door!

Hot Trends in Import Apparel

2009-06-02T09:40:00.002-04:00

Our import division has been seeing a discernable uptick in business over the past 6 months, despite the economic turmoil. Leading the way is polo shirts and polo derivatives. With workplace attire moving towards casual and lifestyle branding catching fire, polos make the perfect customizeable statement. Our resources make for the best names in golf, and our long standing relationships make the process of fully customized wearing apparel simple. Customers simply provide the artwork for labels, custom neck and vent taping, buttons, and logos, provide direction for fit and fabric type, and we are off and running. The most popular fabrics are a 40/2 6 ounce pique (the plied yarn makes it incredibly smooth and consistant) and we find bamboo blends to be coming on strong. Bamboo imparts natural anti-microbial and anti-bacterial properties, and, when combined with organic cotton, adds to the sustainable/organic movement story. A bit of spandex is often used, in either fabric, to impart added mobility/recovery.

If you are seeking a reliable, consistant, quality supplier for custom private label import apparel you are home. Style Source facilitates every aspect of the process, from development to samples to manufacturing, logistics and quality control. We will quote you (in most instances) a landed, duty paid, delivered to your door price (excluding freight). If you wish to use our LDP pricing, we will set you up with our customs broker, who, along with us, will manage all transportation scheduling, paperwork, duties, tarrifs, fees, and customs declarations. You only need to review and approve samples, place your order, and receive the goods.

STYLE SOURCE TO BEGIN ACCEPTING AMERICAN EXPRESS

2009-05-22T10:05:00.002-04:00

Yes, it's true, we have caved in and set up our systems to begin accepting American Express cards as of June 1, 2009. We have had many customers want to use their rewards cards in the past and found their fees out of line with the other major cards. However, Am Ex has become more aggressive and are now competitive. We are pleased to provide this additional flexibility and now accept Master Card, Visa, Discover and American Express for your private label apparel manufacturing needs!

Delivery assumptions may be dangerous to your business!

2009-03-26T10:04:00.004-04:00

I recently had the experience of explaining to a good customer why her assumptions about deliveries were not relevant to current operating conditions. Upon reflection, I have to giggle a bit because I made the very same assumptions when ordering from a vendor recently. One would think, with business as slow as it is, that production channels would be wide open and , subsequently, deliveries would be quite speedy. When I went to order some custom colored yarn from a specialty spinner I had that assumption in mind. I called my salesman and we had the usual discussion on the economy and I then said" I know you normally quote 4 weeks, but considering how slow it is will I see it in two weeks? He laughed, and said "well, actually, we have laid off half our people, the plant is running only one shift, and we have depleted our colored stock and are only ordering it as we need it, so your delivery will be closer to 8 weeks". Now, my customer, who needs fabric from this colored yarn made into garments, waited until he was depleted of inventory and for an order to come in before contacting me to make more. He assumed I had some fabric on the floor awaiting his order, which he expected filled in 3-4 weeks. I, in turn, had depleted our fabric inventory in that color on his last order and did not replace it on speculation like I normally would, as his ordering had slowed to a trickle and we were at the end of the ordering season.

What is the lesson here? If you want to insure you do not lose orders due to out of stock positions and are counting on rapid just in time response from your vendor you might want to discuss your needs and expectations with that vendor now. They may have laid off workers, cut shifts, or even be operating three days a week. Dyers and finishers have to fire up boilers and often would rather shut down certain days than run short shifts. Vendors supply inventories are being managed much closer, as carrying costs are a controllable cost factor. The supply chain may repeat in this manner so that delays from the source compile with each hand they pass through.

In times like these it becomes imperitive to remain in close contact with the vendors you most rely upon. You need to communicate the position you are maintaining and your expectations in regards to deliveries so that an understanding of the likelihood of meeting those expectations is clear. Do not expect your vendors to have the supernatural ability to forecast your needs and have the resources to bear the costs of dedicated inventories. Partnering is a sure way to insure the path to on time delivery will remain open.

FURTHER CLARIFICATION OF THE CPSIA

2009-03-04T16:37:00.001-05:00

Recent clarifications now include the exemption of dyed and undyed textiles as well as sewing threads. Read about it at http://www.apparelmag.com/ME2/dirmod.asp?sid=&nm=&type=MultiPublishing&mod=PublishingTitles&mid=CD746117C0BB4828857A1831CE707DBE&tier=4&id=A9831B619F124BDEB96A283859BEC7B3

DEALING WITH THE DOWNTURN-WHAT HAVE WE DONE FOR YOU LATELY?

2009-02-25T11:24:00.002-05:00

Ok, so every day we get up and face the same depressing news and fear for the length and depth this downturn may take. We all have businesses to run, and as sales decline we find the need to fill in but have the issue of purchase minimums from vendors. At Style Source, we take our needs as a sign that our customers likely have those same needs. Our response is to temporarily lower our minimums to accomodate you. Effective February 1 we have lowered our re-order minimums to 10 dozen of a style/color. This means that any style you have ordered in the past may be re-ordered at a 10 dozen minimum with no surcharge. For new developments for existing customers, we will now accept 20 dozen minimums with a $225 development surcharge to cover some of our development expenses ( the 30 dozen minimum waives development fees). Our $375 development fee for new custom apparel remains in place for first time customers. These changes allow for greater flexibility and lower inventory investments.

Style Source remains one of the few alternatives for U.S.A. made custom private label apparel at low minimums. Fortunately, you do not have to sacrifice quality, timeliness or superior customer service for the flexibility we provide to clothing decorators, printers, embroiderers, tie dyers, or hand embellishers. We source fabrics and trims for you, create patterns, grade, make samples and provide technical input in both construction and apparel design. We are your one stop shop for all of your apparel needs.

CPSIA Delayed for 1 Year on Apparel Products

2009-02-03T08:43:00.003-05:00

A just released statement has provided a one year moratorium for those apparel producers concerned about the new lead and pthalate testing requirements. Read the latest at
http://www.strtrade.com/wti/wti.asp?pub=0&story=30183&date=2%2F3%2F2009&company

This is particulary good news for crafters, as the policy wonks will actually now take the time to evaluate the impact these new requirements may have on specific industry segments and weigh the potential threats to children against the potential economic harm on products that were non-threatening in the first place.

One question we have been trying to have answered is cumulation. Current metal snaps are all made with lead as a componant, measured around 90ppm. The lead cores are typically coated with non-toxic coatings , which is nearly impossible to remove. If a garment contains 10 snaps would the garment then be rated at 90ppm X10 ? Could a child possibly get all ten snaps in its mouth when they are securely attached to different parts of the garment?

We now have a year to ponder, reflect, and act upon the supply chain to insure we are addressing lead as a hazard and minimizing its use. Sanity has prevailed!

Doldrums and Stagnation...What to Do?

2009-01-23T08:36:00.002-05:00

Clearly, the effects of our economy are hitting every possible sector. Each day we witness more layoffs by venerable corporations, we watch the news and hear of crashing financial markets, states near bankruptcy, foreclosure rates climbing etc etc. We ask ourselves what to do to stimulate sales. With every action there is a reaction, and so it must be prophetic to surmise that opportunity rests within the cold hands of recession. What is it about your product that makes a small difference in peoples lives? With gloom all around would it not make sense to produce product that gives the wearer a feeling of pro-activity, of uplifting spirit or of empowerment? Everyone is looking for some small action that can make his or her day just a little bit better, and every day people must get dressed. Whether they put on pajamas to hang around the house, activewear to run errands, casual wear for meetings or formal wear for occasions, they all must put on undergarments, blouses, pants, skirts, jackets and hats. They must clothe their children.

There are thousands of creative minds out there working on the next seasons line, or developing a new one. Great ideas may be born, yet the inability to execute, either due to lack of know how, insufficient capital, or an inadequate confidance level, die out. There could not be a better time to channel your energies into creating a new custom private label apparel line that will seize the attention of those who still pass the shop windows or surf the internet looking for inspiration. Domestic custom clothing manufacturing may be wounded, but the channels are open and waiting for production. Domestic private label manufacturers still have to deal with material minimums, and custom colors and findings have to be made to order, but there are still willing and able apparel producers that have reasonable minimums and pricing. Style Source is one of those manufacturers, and if the domestic apparel prices are simply too high to compete within the selected channel, we offer full import custom private label sourcing. Our services include selection of the appropriate country and facilities (based on proven track records), sampling, in process quality control, a full warranty, logistics services, LDP pricing, and an established reliable quality supply chain. We handle everything from importing infant and childrenswear, casual wear, woven tops, slacks, jeans, accessory products (ties, belts, aprons, luggage) and polo shirts. Our minimums begin at 1200 pieces per style/600 per color, for most items (exceptions include sweaters, boxers,luggage). We will develop your labels, hang tags, custom packaging, etc, all as part of the service.

Consumer confidance is the engine of our economy. It must start like hunger does, as the realization that nourishment is required, builds into an all consuming urge to satisfy it. The first pangs of confidance will come from those of us that know, in our hearts, souls and minds, that this great nation will recover, and that our collective spirit is that first synapse alerting the body it is hungry. We are the front line, we are the backbone, and it is our positive influence on those we touch that will encourage them to feel that hunger as well, creating a groundswell of urgency in turning the tide.

A Few More Bits on the CPSIA

2009-01-21T16:53:00.004-05:00

It was brought to my attention that a class action suit is being filed against the CPSIA. The website to view the activities is http://reformcpsia.org/ . You will note that the counsel needs a retainer, so the more people that sign up the lower the cost per individual/company. Personally, I have recently contacted my states Secretary of Commerce, who happens to come from the apparel supply chain, and I encourage each and every one of you to contact your state representatives and let them know how blatantly unfair this law is to the childrens apparel manufacturers, crafters and retailers. We should be pushing for a delayed enforcement date and for clarification as to the frequency and quantification of testing criteria. It only makes sense that if downstream certification from all suppliers is obtained that an apparel item would be certifiable.

Another recently released article ( http://www.apparelnews.net/news/manufacturing/CPSIA-Ruling-Goes-Forward ) states that testing costs per garment would run in the $600+ range, and that the ruling clearly specifies each garment be tested. Clearly, this is untenable, and I do not read the act in that manner. Unfortunately, there is no clarity whatsoever on the rigors of sample size or frequency.

NEW CPSIA LEAD AND PTHALATE LAWS CREATE CONFUSION

2009-01-12T16:28:00.006-05:00

I have received at least a dozen calls from concerned customers about the new law passed by the Consumer Products Safety Commission in response to high lead and pthalate content in childrens products. I will try to cover. to the best of my understanding, how this new law affects childrens apparel.

- the law requires a product to be certified by the selling agent as having less than 600ppm of lead content. Verification of this must be performed by a third party testing laboratory, which would issue a conformance certificate. Although products made of raw fiber may eventually be excluded from the provision, they are currently in it.
- any textile going through processes that impart color, change the hand or involve a wet process will have to be certified. Unfortunately, there is no clarity as to whether certification by each supplier is adequate or whether there needs to be redundant testing as a fabric, or piece of apparel is processed. There is no definition for sample size or frequency of testing.
-The law, as currently written, also requires any product that exceeds the limit be removed from shelves and inventories. How a store might determine how many dyelots or sewn lots are represented in order to properly test them is unaddressed. The reality is that it is impractical and unfeasible to expect the wholesale liquidation of product. or the back testing of product, that may be in inventories. It is also unlikely there is enough laboratory capacity to test all product within a reasonable time.
It is my belief that there will be amendments to this law as the backlash of repercussions is felt. Already , a federal ruling on Friday announced that consignment and resale shops are exempt. This is likely the first of many "clarifications" the government will issue. ( go to http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml09/09086.html to see the latest). Note that the CPSC cleary is targeting childrens toys and jewelry and items that pose a greater lead or pthalate hazard. Clothing would not typically fall in that catagory unless embellished with painted or plastic items.

Also, Kathleen Fasanella has been blogging about this for some time. You may want to see what she has to say at http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/new-product-safety-regulations-that-affect-all-manufacturers/ . Follow her blog string, as she covers allot of ground. If you want to read the act in entirety follow this link (pdf)

In the meantime, we are working with our supply chain to organize certifications throughout so that the final product will be backed by previous certificates of all componantry and processes (which may not be adequate). For instance, a garment made from dyed fabric with gripper snap attachments and a zipper would have certificates issued for the zippers, snaps, each chemical and dye used in the processing of the fabric, and possibly even testing of the water itself, if necessary. Hopefully, that will cover a finished garment without requiring the garment itself to be tested.

For those of you in the crafts market that hand embellish , dye, marbelize, hand paint, etc, you may have more to worry about. At the least you should ask for certification of the dyes, chemicals , paints and componants. Whether you will need to worry about testing the water in which you dye or wash the goods is yet to be answered.

For our import customers, it has been a bit more progressive overseas in that our suppliers have agreed to test the garments and forward the test resuts to us along with a blank certificate of compliance for you to sign upon reviewing the test results. It is the responsibility of the company selling at retail to sign the compliance certificate.

I will update you with any new information as soon as I hear it. In the meantime feel free to contact your state congressman and let them know what it means to you to have such a sweeping law passed without solicitation of public or industry comment. We know the intentions are good, but knee jerk reactions without consideration of the implications should not be modus operandi for government.

CHANGING DYNAMICS IN FIBER PRODUCTION

2008-12-03T09:54:00.000-05:00

The latest edition of Textile World Magazine offers some interesting quantifications on man made fiber production from 1987 to today. In 1987 the predominant fibers produced were polyester (39%), nylon (20%), cellulosic ( rayon family-15%), acry;ic (14%) and olefin(polypropelyne-12%). Today, those figures are polester-67%, olefin-14%(primarily used in carpeting), nylon -8%, and acrylic and cellulosic at 5% and 6% respectively. What a dramatic change in polyester usage! Attribute this to the advent of technologies that imbue water absorbtion, water vapor transport, anti bacterial and anti microbial, and anti odor properties. With the latest nano technologies and plasma (ionized gas) applications it is likely this increase in market share will be permanant.

It is also interesting to look at where these fibers are made. In 1987 it was Asia at 34%, North America at 23%, Western Europe at 21%, Eastern Europe at 15% and the balnce in the "other catagory. Today, can you guess? 75% made in Asia, 10% Western Europe, 9% North America and 6% other. Asia has taken market share from every part of the world, and a huge part of it. If you are wondering what percentage of the worlds total fiber output is cotton, today that stands at 36%. Keep in mind that there are other natural fibers (wool, cashmere,hemp, etc), and, although I don't have market share numbers, it is safe to assume that natural fibers today make up less than half of total fiber output in the spectrum of textile products, from automotive to geo-textile to industrial to flooring and, of course, apparel. With the pressures of eco-sustainable products, as well as petroleum intensity, it will be interesting to watch which fibers become "cradle to cradle" and and gain share and which lose favor.

Fabric closeouts a great way to make your own clothes!

2008-11-24T11:23:00.000-05:00

Due to the number of customers and the vast variety of fabrics we work with we almost always have fabrics left over from programs. We sell these fabrics off at cost, which is a bargain for anyone comparing prices at wholesale outlets like JoAnn Fabrics. We currently have 11 colors in a 1x1 baby rib. This fabric is used for infantwear as well as womens tanks and tees. It is made from combed ring spun cotton, so is very soft. We also have a quantity of woven broadcloth with a plaid check print, 2x1 rib in grey heather and wedgewood blue, lightweight jersey in grey heather,charcoal,natural and black, pink baby terry with spandex, black, camel and greay heather heavyweight french terry, black camel and heather heavyweight 1x1 rib, pink and blue polar fleece, and many other odd colors and fabric types. Feel free to inquire with us about discounted wholesale fabrics . Our minimum is typically one roll (40-60 yards), but we will sell small rolls that do not require cutting as well.

Import Apparel - Competing at Retail

2008-11-17T09:14:00.000-05:00

There is a very strong sentiment that many startups stress as central to their thinking. They want made in USA apparel, as they believe the domestic consumer values the origin higher and is willing to expend more at retail to get it. The truth of the matter, is this is less true with domestic consumers and more true in overseas markets where "Made in USA" carries panasche. We are pleased to manufacture custom clothing or private labbel apparel domestically, but are always ready to offer import if price points are not workable. Importing apparel has gone from 10% of our business 5 years ago to a projected 45% next year. We handle virtually any sewn product and primarily source on Macau and India. From maternity wear to infantwear to technical garments we have a well established network providing superior quality and price. An advantage we offer is LDP (landed/duty paid) pricing, which means we will handle all logistics and include all duties and fees (portfees, security fees, broker fees, etc) and have the product delivered to your door. The only expenses we do not include are the fee for an import bond and actual freight costs. The advantages are numerous. Besides the obvious advantage of price, the price/value relationship is much stronger. You may fully customize the garment, from stamped logo buttons to printed neck tape to embroidery, applique and hand embellishments. The flexibility to obtain exactly what you are looking for is extreme.

Another advantage of utilizing Style Source for your custom import apparel is that we begin at low minimums. Our starting point for most types of apparel is 1200 per style/600 per color. A few items, like jeans or dress slacks) require 2400 piece minimums. When you consider the price advantage, it is common for the cost of 1200 imported units to be equal to or less than the cost of 700 domestically produced units. This varies though, as duty rates for CVS (chief value synthetic) are 15% higher than CVC (chief value cotton). Bamboo apparel and rayons (modal,tencel, etc) are considered synthetic by US customs. The catagory of apparel also plays a major role, as an item imported as infant sleepers will bear a signifigantly different duty than booties.

Generally speaking, the higher the labor value and the value added content (printing, embroidery, embellishments) the greater the overall savings. This becomes an imperitive when your targeted competition is importing as well.

If you are considering importing custom private label apparel please do give us a call to discuss your specific needs. We can assist you from spec pack development through sampling and sales samples.

Trends in Apparel Printing

2008-11-12T09:25:00.000-05:00

The level of interest in our printing services continues to increase as more and more people find the low entry costs, minimal inventory risk and brand building opportunities. The increasing number of printing venues has further accelerated this growth. Let's review the different systems.

Plastisol Screen Printing- This is the most common method of printing, and the one you have likely seen. Screens are burned for each color seperation, resulting in screen charges, and the garments are placed on pallats which then have the screen placed on top and a squeegie presses the plastisol ink onto the garment. This can be done in low volume with hand presses and in large volume with automatics. It is the least expensive form of printing. The image can be felt as a soft slightly rubbery surface, although this can be minimized with proper screen densities and applications. For more complex images that require sensitive color gradients, 4 color process printing can be employed that utilizes CMYK colors to acheive better color blending. Our minimums for this process are 144 pieces per image.

Digital Printing- This method involves no screen making. Art is directly transferred to the cpu of the print machine. A water based ink is used to spray onto the garment and the results are near photographic quality. Most digital printing is done on light shades of garments for several reasons. The first is that color control is more difficult, and the darker the shade the more it affects the color being applied due to bleed through. The second reason is that new systems do allow for putting down a white base first, then applying the image, but the time it takes and the higher ink usage make the economics difficult to justify. Digital printing is about 4 times more expensive than plastisol printing, but the excellent "no feel" hand and the near photographic reproducibility give it some distinct advantages. Our minimums for this process are 72 pieces.

Jumbo Water Based Printing - This system is the one used on the garments you see that have all over printing that crosses seams, is very complex and can't be felt. The brand Affliction uses this technique. This process is also more expensive than plastisol, and very few companies in the USA are using it. Setups require signifigantly higher minimums. Our minimums for this process begin at 1200 pieces per style/graphic design.

Naturally, Style Source Inc will provide private label services for custom made and re-labeling services for branded programs. Bear in mind that your art must be created in Illustrator so that the art is vectored.

Is now the time to start a clothing line?

2008-10-22T13:53:00.000-04:00

This question has been asked of me three times in the past two weeks, so I will assume that if you are considering custom apparel manufacturing you are asking yourself the same question. My answer is always consistant, as it comes in the form of a question back to the inquiring mind. Do YOU feel that the time is right? Are you prepared? Have you written a business plan? Have you researched your potential competition and differentiated your product so it stands out in the market? Do you know the fabrics you wish to use, their fiber content, their construction and their weight? The time to start a custom private label apparel line is when you feel ready. In my opinion, the economy has little to do with the initial success. You will find success through an incredible drive, energy, motivation, and perseverance. Starting up requires a gradual momentum build, based on advertising and distribution strategies. Profitability takes time, usually 14-16 months, so who knows whether the economy will be in the doldrums or on a huge upswing a year and a half from now? Maybe with a slow economy you will have more time to sweat the details, to iron out the kinks and to ready yourself for the next plateau! I can readily say that mills and factories are quieter, so that translates to faster turn times and possibly to a bit more attention from players who ordinarily might shy away from startup situations. As for Style Source Inc, we are always ready to assist companies seeking private label apparel manufacturing, pattern making, sample development and fabric sourcing.

Prepared for Dye Garments and Garment Dyeing

2008-09-30T08:11:00.000-04:00

What is it about prepared for dye (pfd) garments that is so different from normal white garments you can buy at any store? What are the pitfalls of using white garments for garment dyeing?

PFD garments have many attributes that are not at all obvious to the naked eye. It begins with fabric preparation. Fabrics must be in a condition that they will readily accept a range of dyestuffs, from direct to reactive and pigment. Garment dyeing is done atmospherically, that is, they are dyed at atmospheric pressure. Fibers that do not accept dye without being subjected to pressurized equipment (all synthetics), therefor, cannot be garment dyed. Different cellulosic fibers will have different affinity to particular dyes. I won't get into chemistry, but suffice it to say that rayon or pima cotton will have a vastly different dye uptake (rate of assimilation of the dye) than normal cotton or hemp. Therefor, dyeing garments together that have different fiber composition is risky, and will likely result in garments with completely different shades.

The first step to insuring you have the best possible prepared for dye fabric is to insure the yarns are knit into specific lots, and the lot integrity be maintained through finishing. Trim (ribs) should be knit from the same yarn as the body fabric, and batched with the body fabric into a single dyelot. Care should be taken to not use leftover yarn from a previous purchase. Greige goods (unfinished fabric) should not sit for prolonged periods in storage (over 6 months) as they will begin to degrade in their UV factors which will affect dyeability.

To properly prepare a fabric it must undergo wet processes that do not, in any way, block or resist dye penetration. Most fabrics are bleached, to remove excess natural oils and waxes from yarn spinning, and to provide a uniform base. This leaves us with an eggshell colored base fabric. Some will add optic brightners, to instill a brighter base that will rsult in brighter colors. There is some dispute to using brightners, as they are a catagory of dyestuff and do take up some dyesites. Uneven application of optical brightners will lead to a splotchy, uneven dyeing. However, proper even application will not harm the dyeing potential and will add the ability to hit brighter pastels. Another advantage is that those garments not being subsequently dyed may be used as a nice bright white.

Another area of concern is the application of sewing lubricants and softeners. Some catagories of these finishes (silicones being most notorious) may inhibit dye absorbtion. It is best to use an innocuous finish that aids in lubricity but is not a risk for potential dyeing issues. Softeners can be added after garment dyeing if desired.

To insure a pfd garment fits after garment dyeing, consideration must be given to the shrinkage that will occur in the dyeing and drying process. The prepared fabrics must be tested, and the shrinkage must be added to the base zero shrink pattern to insure conformance to specifications upon delivery.

Once a proper pfd fabric is in hand one must insure the marker making, spreading and cutting is performed properly. This is one area where inattention can lead to disaster. Ideally, you want all the garments components to come from the same ply of fabric. Fabric may vary somewhat yard to yard, but the bigger concern is having a body from one roll and sleeves from a different roll. This could lead to shading (sleeves come out a different color than the body, or the front is different from the back). It is best to use trim that is processed with the body fabric, or the possibility of shading of trim to body may occur.

When sewing pfd garments you must use a dyeable thread. This can be cotton or rayon. A rayon thread will dye up brighter and shinier and provide a contrast. You also must consider the labels to be used. Certain labels will lose their printing in a dye environment and be unreadable. Others may curl or crinkle. Be sure to discuss with your label supplier the fact that the labels must stand up to a garment dye process before you order them.

With over twenty years in the business of providing custom private label prepared for garment dye products Style Source has the experience to insure no issues arise due to fabric or garment preparation. We can manage garment dye programs for you (either pigment dyeing or reactives) and handle the sorting by size and quality control as well as insuring the garments meet specifications after being dyed.

HEATHER FOCUSES ON DISNEY MARATHON IN JANUARY

2008-09-08T15:23:00.000-04:00

Yes, she's at it again. Training with Team in Training for the Disney Marathon on January 11 in Orlando. Since her first leukemia remission 5 years ago, Heather has participated and completed the Nike 26.2k, the Dublin 26.2K, handled one leg of a triathelon, and has been an active contributor of her time to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. She feels the monies raised in the past saved her life, as the treatments she received were new and her protocal for her bone marrow transplant was a clinical trial. Now, nearing the anniversary of her second year since the transplant, with no sign of the disease, she is again raising funds to participate. The Team in Training organization assists athletes in the various aspects of training for events and coordinates the entries, travel and logistics. 80% of the funds raised go directly to blood borne cancer research, while the balance goes to administration/training and expenses. If you feel compelled to donate to her goal of raising $7500 please go to http://pages.teamintraining.org/nce/wdw09/HelpBeatCancer

WHY ARE SALES SAMPLES SO DARN HARD TO GET?

2008-08-13T14:17:00.000-04:00

I get this question alot. The classic conundrum of not being able to sell a product if you can't show the product. At Style Source, we call them speculation samples, but the bottom line is the need to put sample garments in the hands of sales representatives is real. The fine line between needing them to show to existing customers with an established company and needing them to show to potential customers as a new kid on the block is not going to be addressed here.

Sales samples must represent, to the potential client, a near duplication of what they are to expect production to look like. This means the fabrics, findings, colors, labels, hand, fit and construction must be representative. For custom apparel production utilizing made to order fabrics and trims the challenge becomes how to execute them without making committments to production and without prohibitive costs. Here are some realities we face in this regard.

Custom findings, like dyed to match lace, logoized elastic, made to length dyed to match zippers etc all have minimum order quantities(MOQ's) from the suppliers. As much as they want to believe that an investment in producing pieces of a custom trim item will lead to an eventual bulk order history has taught them that maybe 10% of the time this may be true. Many will simply not sell through their product, others may switch to another supplier, and others may have used the service to "visualize" their concept. Therefor, supplier minimums for custom items are strictly adhered to. This means that if we need to make a set of 5 sales samples in 4 sizes with DTM zippers we must buy 100 zippers per size and will have 380 left over zippers at maybe $1-$1.25 each.

The same holds true for textiles. Sample dyeings for knits require a minimum of at least 75 yards. The dyer will add a surcharge to run a one roll sample. If a trim fabric must be dyed to match add another 50 yards or so to process. Finishing one roll may result in different hand or performance (shrinkage), as setting up equipment to finish a single roll is imprecise and there is no time to "tune"it in. If a special finish is required, the padding machines must be drained and filled with the correct recipe, of which maybe 2% of it will be used. The bulk of the finish must then be drained. Of that 75 yards maybe 10 or 15 yards are needed to make the samples , the rest must be absorbed. If the garment takes a second color or a contrast trim then double the amount of labor and materials and waste.

To sew the samples a sample room must be employed. These highly skilled sewers hand cut and assemble the garments, typically taking three to five times the amount of time it would typically take in production while earning 30-50% higher wages. If specialized folders are needed they must either be made (about $150 each) or borrowed from someone. Thread colors must be matched, which often means having to buy 3 or 5 cones of thread just to sew the samples. If binding must be cut minimum cut charges are incurred (if it cannot be hand cut).

Now add value added options like embroidery, printing, applique, etc. Tape or screen charges are incurred. Setup fees are charged due to the excessive down time to set up, mix colors, match threads, clean up, lost production time, etc. Color matching, artwork approvals, positioning (placement), etc must all be addressed and stipulated.

The responsibility of every facet of all of these processes in the production of a dozen or so garments falls on the manufacturer. Imagine the extra management time spent insuring the garments are flowing and quality is maintained. All of these efforts go into the making of so few garments is it any wonder there is resistance to produce them when there is not an accompanying production order?

Taking an example of a garment that requires a body fabric, trim dyed to match and zippers in three lengths we wind up with a minimum of 380 left over zippers and 100-125 yards of fabric. This alone could add up to $600-$700, and this is the most basic of examples. In the golden oldie days we had sample rooms filled with excess fabrics and colors and trim rooms abounding in all sorts of left over findings to choose from. That was when labor was abundant, the faucets of continuous production were wide open, and the margins were fat. Those days are long gone.

Style Source is always pleased to discuss your specific needs regarding the production of made in USA apparel, custom private label manufacturing or specialized apparel import programs. We strive to keep the conversations open, honest and meaningfull.

Shifting Sourcing Opportunities

2008-08-08T11:52:00.000-04:00

It never ceases to amaze me how quickly the playing field for custom apparel sourcing changes. In the late 1980's it was all about Puerto Rica (936 legislation) and then the Carribean Basin, with Jamaica and Costa Rica leading the way. Then the tides turned to Mexican maquiladoras, as NAFTA legislation was enacted. Mexico fell out of favor in just 3 years, as Central American countries like Nicaragua, Guatemala and Honduras offered better infrastructure and less restrictive labor laws. Haiti and the DR had some presence throughout these periods, with Haitis lack of stability being a never ending issue. In 2005 worldwide quotas were dropped, and, suddenly, the world was flat. As China woke up and waved its "full package" capabilities the surge to Asia left a backdraft far stronger than that "giant sucking sound" Ross Perot envisioned. India recognized the urgent need to improve their supply chain, and came on strong a year later. Players like Myanmar, Phillipines and Malaysia saw market share drop as the behemoth countries built infrastructure. Vietnam came late, as final acceptance by the WTO came only several years ago, but has now exceeded India in apparel exports to the USA. Cambodia is also strengthening.

This sourcing shift is now furthered by the declining dollar and the cost of freight. A full container from Macao cost about $2,500 in 2005. That same container today is over $8,000. These dynamics are forcing companies to look much closer at Central and South America once again. Proximity is a much greater strength today than it used to be. Enhanced textile supply is being addressed by the building of textile plants across the region. Full package is a language they are all now speaking.

These transformations are dizzying, but we have an obligation to stay on top of it. Servicing low minimum custom private label apparel customers is what we are best at, and we constantly strive to find resources that will service smaller import clothing requests.

COST ESTIMATING GARMENTS

2008-07-24T16:26:00.000-04:00

We often receive phone calls inquiring as to how much a private label garment may cost. When I hedge a bit and mention we need specific information to begin a costing process I am confronted with "oh, just give me a ballpark guess". I know my mission is to assist any and all that may call with as much helpfull advise as possible, so I take a deep breath and begin the 20 minute conversation on why guessing at garment cost is less accurate than weather forecasting. For those that don't mind reading, I offer some insights here.

For costing a domestic garment we must know the specific fabric we are using. Fabric comprises 45-55% of a garments cost (in general). Fabric weight (yield) is essential to know, as all fabric costing is done by weight. We buy pounds of yarn, knt by the pound and dye by the pound. It is only when the fabric is finished that yards are measured. The more a fabric weighs, the more it costs per yard. We also have to know the fabric content. 100% carded cotton costs less than combed cotton which costs less than pima and organic cotton. Bamboo, modal, spandex etc all are more expensive than cotton. The fabric color is also important. White is least expensive and the darker a fabric color the costlier it becomes. Dark color also affects yield, so the fabric may gain 3-5% in yield from a light yellow to a deep forest green. The fabric shrinkage is also a critical factor, as we have to build in the shrinkage to insure proper after wash dimensions. A fabric that shrinks 4% more in length than another fabric will typically use 4% more fabric. Finally, fabric finished width is crucial, as it should be obvious that a garment with a 33" sweep won't fit on a 31" tubular fabric and where three 20" wide panels may fit across a 61" fabric they will not across a 59" fabric. Now, knowing all of this, how on earth can I respond to a question like "I have a kimono and need a price so I can write my business plan".

Once we get past the fabric we have to look at garment construction. I can't see the garment over the telephone. Does it have neck tape? Are the seams clean finished? Is there fusing or interfacing? Is it three needle merrow or safety stitch? Is the V mitered or pinched? Is it to be made in size 5XL? Combine these unknowns with the fabric unknowns and tell me how to guess. Tossing a Hail Mary price in the air to make a sale is simply not in my nature!

The best way to guess at a cost is to find comparable garments in the market at retail. Work backwards, knowing the retailer marks up 100-125%. Take that number and reduce it by the margin you are planning to make to see where you would need to be. A normal margin is 40-60%, depending on your business model and overhead.

Costing custom private label apparel is a tedious and time consuming job. An appreciation for what has to go into these costings will be an asset to those who take the time to understand and recognize the variables.

Pattern Making and Marking Services Expanded

2008-07-04T13:49:00.000-04:00

Style Source Inc has expanded its service offerings to now include apparel contract pattern making and marking. Our development department utilizes TukaTech CAD, which, as an open system, can be translated both to and from any existing CAD software. Our patternmakers are production oriented, and we also will provide sewn samples as an additional service (first samples for fit and construction only, NOT sales samples). If you are unsure as to whether you will be able to meet our custom private label custom apparel minimums or just need to bring your sketches to life, you may opt to select these services on a straight rate contract basis. With our own production as a backdrop, it is obvious why it makes sense to utilize these services through our company versus utilizing a pattern maker who strictly makes patterns. Having ongoing feedback from a production process allows for a deeper understanding of the nuances that must be accomodated with certain fabrics and sewing processes. This experience helps guide our proficiencies. Feel free to inquire with us!

Maternity to Infant to Adult Apparel..even Pet Clothing!

2008-06-27T09:27:00.000-04:00

Style Source Inc manufactures a full range of custom private label apparel. We produce custom maternity dresses, belly supports and nursing tops and gowns. We have produced custom wicking sleepwear in nightshirts, gowns and pajamas. We service a broad range of knit infant apparel including knit hats and bibs. We produce custom private label childrens clothing with expanded capabilities in our overseas apparel manufacturing facilities. We have produced pet apparel, including dog tee shirts and dog sweatshirts and many novelty sewn products. Recent interest in natural fibers including organic fabric, bamboo blends and pima cotton fabrics have been serviced with both 100% made in USA as well as less expensive versions using imported yarns formed and finished in the USA. Another trend in performance fabrics has us producing custom performance apparel in a range of blends including nylons, polyesters and value added agents that add enhanced anti microbial, anti bacterial, thermal regulation, compression and anti odor. Our versatility with private label clothing production allows for one stop shopping, from pattern design to packaged finished product. Join our family of interwoven companies that share a mutual regard for excellence in product, service and relationship!

Circular Knit 100% Cotton Fabrics Our Specialty

2008-06-20T09:10:00.001-04:00

Style Source Inc offers 11 basic 100% cotton knit fabrics for sale in 7 base colors with minimums as low as a single roll! We offer jersey fabrics in both open end and ring spun in several weights, 1x1 100% cotton rib fabrics, french terry, fleece, super soft interlock, baby rib and 2x1 rib. We will custom produce or source virtually any circular knit fabric, including cotton/spandex, bamboo blends, modal, organic cotton or performance fabrics. We will also custom color your textiles at dyelot minimums that begin at 400 yards. Call us for a swatch card and price quotation at 910-399-2288.

Custom Printed Tees and Relabeling Services Offered

2008-06-19T11:25:00.001-04:00

Style Source Inc has been servicing the high demand for custom re-labeled and branded apparel for years. Many start ups find the best avenue for creating branded tees is to utilize the buying power and technical resources of our printables department. We provide plastisol, digital (light colored garments only) or heat transfer capabilities as well as rhinestone applications. Our low 144 piece minimums per print (or embroidery!) allow for multiple styles to receive the same graphic image. Our relabeled tee shirt program has a 244 piece minimum and includes removal of the previous logo label and replacement through single needle stitching . We also produce custom hats as low as 48 piece minimums through our affiliation with a Vietnamese company who excels at embroidered or printed custom colored headwear. Those seeking private label printed tees need only give us a call at 910-399-2288!

Quality Custom Polo Shirts Our Import Specialty

2008-06-19T08:15:00.000-04:00

Style Source Inc has been importing quality apparel for over 5 years now, and we are fortunate to have partnered with one of the finest placket shirt producers in the world. We produce custom private label apparel from all over the world, but our primary golf shirt supplier is based in Hong Kong with the largest factory in Macau. We have access to a huge assortment of fabrics and can custom manufacture stripes or patterned fabrics to your designs and colorways. We offer logoized taping, custom hang tags, embroidery, custom stamped buttons, and superb stitching detail. We will produce your logo label in the base fabric of your choice, either printed or woven. Garment measurement specifications may be set by the customer, or we can suggest sizing and provide graded specifications for approval. Packaging is typically individual fold in a plastic bag with a SKU sticker, but you may specify virtually any alternative. We typically use plied yarns for improved uniformity and sheen. We will match any color, and provide lab dips for your approval. Our minimums begin at a low 1200 units, 600 per colorway.

We also have a superb relationship with a large vertical producer of knit apparel in Honduras. For larger, ongoing programs we offer conceptualization through finished product vertical services. For those seeking an import apparel program that is managed by highly technical tenured textile and apparel professionals you need look no further.

Many have asked if we are simply an import agent. The answer to that question is found in the level of services we provide as part of the import experience. We assist in the formation of technical specification packages and have two full time pattern makers on staff. We have established rigorous quality sampling and control procedures that insure the correct colors, needlework, sizing, findings, and every detail. On most programs we quote LDP pricing (exclusive of freight) and handle all logistics to your door.

Style Source is your source for custom private label imported apparel, and provides the added benefit of domestic custom apparel manufacturing for those programs that warrant the made in USA label.

Now is the Time

2008-06-17T12:49:00.001-04:00

Are you wondering how you could possibly launch a made in USA custom apparel line in todays economic environment? A custom private label line can begin with something as simple as a custom printed tee shirt to producing private label childrens apparel. Custom apparel manufacturing does not require a huge investment per se, but it does require adequate research into the channel of distribution as well as competitor price points and cash flow planning. Style Source Inc has always serviced start up apparel lines and will support your initiative within the confines of industry minimums. Feel free to call us to discuss your thoughts. Take full advantage of the discount code on our home page for purchasing the Fashion For Profit series of books and CD's. They are instrumental in understanding the fundamentals to getting an apparel line started. Your dream of custom private label production will require a great amount of energy on your part. Put the Style Source team on your team, and we will endeavor to fulfill your custom apparel manufacturing needs as your industry partner.

Cotton Pricing Soaring, Adding to Industries Miseries

2008-03-06T09:19:00.000-05:00

Compounding the ongoing issues with price escalation due to the lagging dollar and rising petroleum related pricing comes news that cotton futures have reached a price level not seen for the past 7 years. From mid-year 2007 to now pricing has increased 65%, from $.55/lb to $.90. Much of the blame was being placed on Chinas growth and demand for fiber, but more recently has been impacted by the speculation market, which has driven nearly all grain and fiber pricing higher as plantings for bio-fuels increase, taking the place of commodities like wheat and cotton. The impact is being felt at the grocery stores as well as at the mills, who have been reluctant to pass on increases but have no place to go with this type of escalation than to push it forward. Basic 18/1 cotton yarn has risen from mid $.80s to the $1.05-$1.10 range, with another increase in the horizon. Yarn producers have taken a big part of the increase on the chin, but that can't hold for long.

Style Source uses cost averageing to accomodate yarn market fluctuations. We have not had a wholesale price increase for 3 years. This has been accomplished by planning for increased pressure and insuring our structure is resilient enough to accomodate market disturbances. We all have limits ,however, and further escalations of material costs may have us pointing back to this blog with a deep sigh.

SLIDE OF THE DOLLAR IMPACTSAPPAREL IMPORTS

2008-03-04T09:28:00.000-05:00

As an extension to my previous blog, we are now 5 months later and have seen further erosion of the dollar. Since December, the dollar has devalued from 10-18% against most worldwide currencies. This is a triple whammy. First, everything imported costs more just due to the exchange rate. Second, oil pricing is dollar based, so everything related to petroleum(transportation, synthetic fibers, plastics etc) are rising in cost. Third, many nations are turning their attention to Eur-Asian countries and domestic markets, shying away from the dollar altogether. Exacerbating the issues, Chinas recent labor law changes have forced many layoffs and factory closings. Additionally, the Chinese government has regulated the flow of loans to higher tech, higher wage industries and away from apparel. This has caused a reduction in capital expenditures and the closing of many companies that cannot obtain needed funding. Eyes are turning back to our domestic market, of which the decimation of years of unfair trade laws have left a shadow of mills and capable LEGAL sewing factories. I emphasize legal, as as many as 70% of all small sewing factories left would be found in violation of OSHA , labor laws or workers comp accredidation. This is the natural consequence of haveing to try to compete against low wage countries that have little regulation or labor laws.

Style Source Inc works only with certified compliance factories, and has weathered alot of the storm. Our private label apparel manufacturing, custom apparel design, apparel pattern making and marking services and custom screen printing and embroidery services continue to provide our custoers with creative energies to enter the apparel field at the most reasonable possible thresholds. Call us at 910-399-2288 to discuss your needs, whether domestic or overseas.

US Dollar Decline Causing Unprecedented Increases

2007-11-07T17:12:00.000-05:00

As the value of the US dollar continues its downward spiral everything imported takes on the burden of the net effect. Fabrics we import from Canada have increased 45-60% over the past year. The Canadian dollar is now worth a dime more than the US$. Import garment FOB pricing, combined with increased freight costs, have started to sway purchasing of apparel back to the US. Unfortunately, the US infrastructure is no longer in place to support a broad return. What this will mean over the comming months is likely an overall acceptance of higher apparel pricing, whether domestic or offshore.

Speculative Sampling

2007-11-01T15:37:00.000-04:00

One of the most difficult things I have to deal with on a daily basis is the phone call that starts with "I want to start a clothing line, and need samples". There is often a long pause, as I wait for information relative to the specifics of the clothing they want to make. The difficulty is finding a nice way to determine whether this potential customer wants the samples as a final step towards producing or needs them to either see what their vision looks like in real life or to use for enticing prospective customers. Most often, the purpose is to show prospective customers in order to create interest , and possibly orders. We call these types of requests speculation samples, as their purpose is strictly speculative in nature.

There are other reasons samples are requested as well. Often it is for the purpose of pricing the garments. When this request is up front, it reflects a lack of preperation of the requestor. Anyone planning to launch a clothing line had best prepare a business plan. In the preparation of the plan you are forced to review competition within the channels of distribution you plan to sell. By looking at the price points at retail of these targeted styles it is simply a math excercise to work backwards to where you must be to sell the garment to that retailer/mass merchant/boutique/etc. A terrific book is available entitled "Costing for Profit" and is available at http://www.fashionforprofit.com/ .

In order to produce samples that could be used as sales samples there is a profound amount of sourcing required. Finding the correct fabric in the correct color is nearly impossible, so one has to make the fabric and sample dye it. Sample dyeings typically require a full roll of fabric, which is usually 50-70 yards. If trim fabrics are needed they also must be made up. Correct samples of the appropriate findings (zippers, buttons, bindings etc) in colors that match are another toughie. If embellishment is wanted then screens must be burned, embroidery tapes digitized, transfers made up. I could go on, but you get the point that creating SALES samples is very different, and far more costly, than making FIRST samples for construction and fit approval.

Custom private label apparel manufacturing is not a process that has short front end lead times. Often there are developmental questions, such as whether a particular type of zipper will hold up in a specific type of garment dyeing. Often, this requires testing, as suppliers will not warrant their products if they undergo unpredictable processes, unless they were made with that process in mind. Experienced apparel product development departments know to ask questions, to insure componants will work together, to consider future processes(will this white yellow in a screen print dryer?). For these reasons the process takes time, and rushing usually leads to unpredicted unfortunate results.

Our advice to anyone starting out is to be prepared to spend many hundreds of dollars per style for proper development, and to provide enough lead time for the process to work correctly. If you are not at least 6 -8 months ahead of the selling season then move forward to the next season to launch. If you want speculation samples call a company that specializes in sampling, not a manufacturer.

Wicking Fabrics- A Primer

2007-10-15T11:31:00.000-04:00

We often receive requests to source Coolmax fabrics. Why Coolmax? Because Coolmax has the highest brand recognition in the trade. Dupont was masterfull in its marketing campaign, and managed to address an emerging market with an improved product that would take the unfavorable connotation of polyester as a clammy, uncomfortable fiber and imbue it with a performance cache. They did this by changeing the cross sectional shape of the fiber from round to propeller shaped. The strategy was to create "channels" by which moisture could transport itself through capillary action. It was a good idea, and with alot of marketing money the idea of polyester as a performance fabric came to life. With the knowledge that channels provided a conduit to the fabric surface a second approach emerged that combined different filament sizes together in the same multi-filament yarn to create channels from the ill fitting spaces between the filaments. This approach works every bit as well (or better) than Coolmax and does not carry the premium caused by branding, as any non-branded polyester fiber can be made into a denier gradient yarn.

It is important to differentiate between filament and staple products when discussing performance fabrics. Filament fabrics have a smooth shiny surface, a cool hand, and a slinky drape. Staple products are made from chopped up filaments to simulate the look and feel of natual fibers. They have a more cotton like feel and a hairier surface. Approaches to moisture management vary widely between the two alternative systems.

For filament products their is either the capillary action approach or the absorption approach. Polyester is hydrophobic, or water hating. A drop of water on a standard polyester fabric will sit there until it evaporates. Chemical modification to the fibers can create either a temporary or pernmanant change causing the fibers to become absorbant. The changes are caused by the application of finishes during fabric processing. Some finishes will last in the range of 20-50 wash/dry cycles. Permanent change is possible with a product called Intera. These options allow the polyester to fully absorb, like cotton.

For staple products the most prevelant form of moistire management is the blending of cotton and polyester to acheive a balanced blend of absorption and rapid drying. One company has actually patented a specific blend and markets it as Dri-Release. Other approaches utilize 100% polyester staple and use an engineered fiber shape or a finish to enhance absorption.

Factors that aid in the decision making process is fabric hand, cost and appearance.

Apparel Start Up Companies Proliferating

2007-10-15T11:25:00.000-04:00

Considering the onslaught of imports and the declining margins due to price pressures and cost increases one would think that the number of people considering starting a new apparel line would be dwindeling. If it is we sure haven't noticed! We maintain an average of 8-12 new start up inquiries a week. Many merely have an inkling of an idea and have no idea where to begin. They visit our website long enough to get our phone number and call to ask "what is it your company does"? They have done no market research, have no business plan, and cannot tell a knit from a woven. This extreme is balanced by those that call with a good understanding of the business, either through research or experience. If you are considering starting a line our website offers a wealth of information to help you get started, and the resource page is especially helpfull for links to associated and relevant websites. We urge you to closely examine the competition from the standpoints of where their line is produced, their retail price points, the channel of distribution they are in, and how your product will differentiate itself enough to draw consumers attention.

BAMBOO ORGANIC OR BAMBOOZLED?

2007-09-27T18:30:00.000-04:00

I've had alot of inquiries about the "green" aspects of bamboo. I hope to clarify this for you here.
Bamboo is the fastest growing "grass" on the planet, growing as much as 36" a day. When harvested, it's vast root system regenerates shoots and there is no need to re-plant. As such, it is emminantly easy to grow, as it is naturally disease resistant and requires virtually no pesticides or herbicides. So far so good. Making fabric out of bamboo is another story. The predominant method utilizes a chemical process called hydrolisis alkalization. This, combined with multi phase bleaching, breaks down the plant material and creates a viscose solution which is extruded into fiber. This process is very similar to the manufacturing of rayon. It is very chemical intensive. A second, less used method mechanically breaks down the bamboo and adds natural enzymes to allow for the plant fibers to be extracted. This process produces "bamboo linen", so named due to the similarity of processing the flax plant into linen. Unfortunately, this produces a less uniform and much more expensive product. Some newer techniques, which are more eco-friendly, are beginning to emerge, but have yet to acheive any signifigant market position. Bamboo fabric is inherently antimicrobial and is extremely soft and silky. Whether it can be called "environmentally friendly" is up to the marketeer. For more information on fabrics, custom apparel, or private labeling go to http://www.style-source.com/ .

Custom Apparel Manufacturer- Have it your way!

2007-09-26T15:42:00.000-04:00

Style Source Inc (http://www.style-source.com/) manufactures custom apparel either with private label placement or as blanks for the wholesale trade. As an apparel sourcing company for overseas manufacturing we offer specification development, intensive sampling and quality assurance systems, brokerage/importation assistance, and full package apparel production. As a domestic apparel manufacturer, we have the ability to produce short run private label cut and sew services , but prefer to handle the entire custom apparel package from sourcing of materials and findings to packageing. We service companies that may be starting up with first production to mature larger apparel manufacturing companies that need to outsource programs. Call us to discuss your needs. You will find a highly competant technical design staff useing state of the art CAD apparel software and customer service that makes you feel as if we are your very own private label garment manufacturer.

MADE IN USA.....Worth a nickel?

2007-09-20T16:22:00.000-04:00

I am often approached by potential customers looking for private label apparel manufacturing who state that they want to make the products in the United States. Their rationale almost always comes from an imbedded sense of patriotism, often enhanced by the thought of child and slave labor overseas. This , inevitably, leads to discussion on what value consumers place on "made in USA" labels. The reality is that they may be willing to spend upwards of 10% more, but not much past it. Unfortunately, there are precious few high volume sewn products made here that cannot be made and imported for 20-35% less (with a corresponding volume). Exceptions are low labor products that have high duty rates (chief value synthetics is one). Even those catagories are then more inexpensively made in the southern hemisphere (Central America, Carribean Basin, Mexico and South America). It is only the low volume specialty products that don't have foreign competition (typically runs of under 1200 pieces), but what they do have is an even more insideous competitive field, illegal USA factories. Whether it is shops that don't pay workers comp or overtime, hire illegal immigrants, pay under the table, skirt OSHA regulations or other non-conforming practices it all amounts to subverting costs in order to remain competitive. Style Source Inc certifies every subcontractor for legal practices annually. It is our committment to maintain integrity on this front, even though many domestic competitors turn blind eyes to how their contractors operate. Many will plead ignorance of knowledge that their work is sent out from their legal shops on a tiered scale to illegal smaller shops. We do not tolerate our work being farmed out, period. Everyone is looking for avenues to decrease costs and pricing in an inflationary time. Our prices have not increased since the inception of Style Source in 2002. Our latest move, splitting headquarters and manufacturing has yielded us a signifigant decrease in overhead, allowing some breathing room. Just last week our finisher announced a wholesale increase in bleaching and dyeing prices, which we are fully absorbing. In the meantime, our Canadian fabric supplier has seen our dollar go from $1.40 to parity, and have announced a 35% price increase on all fabrics. Is made in USA worth a nickel? That question is not germain. The question is, is made in USA worth a dollar? The answer from consumers is NO. Custom apparel production is capital intensive and has high upfront development costs. Style Source has the experience to find creative paths in producing high quality custom apparel in short runs at competitive prices, and we do so with integrity.

NEW ORGANIC AND BAMBOO FABRICS

2007-09-19T08:36:00.000-04:00

Our partners are working hard producing new and exciting fabrics with the latest hot selling fibers. One of the latest is a lightweight 100% cotton certified organic slub fabric with a linen look, excellent for fashion tees. We have also sampled unbelievably soft bamboo and bamboo blend terry cloth, french terry and velour. A fabric that has commanded alot of attention is the bamboo/organic cotton/spandex jersey, which we have been useing for fashion tops and dresses. The bamboo fabrics dye richly and are competitively priced with rayons. Price points for these fabrics run from $4-$5.75 a yard, and add about $$1.75-$2.25 in cost to a comparable garment made from a combed cotton fabric. The luxurious hand and marketing panache bring enough value for better priced garments as to warrant the added cost.

SETTING UP

2007-09-14T14:02:00.000-04:00

Well, we're here in Wilmington and the offices are starting to look like offices. We are sorting out the phone system. We have two phone lines, but are unable to rollover, so if you receive a busy signal on 910-399-2288 try calling 910-399-2289. An automated atendant (sorry!) will route you to the correct extension or take a message. We have already received our first visitor! Maile the beagle is happy as a clam being with her owners day in and out and haveing a front porch to laze on. She is happily snoring on her doggie bed as I type this.

I'll be posting more frequent blogs, once fully settled, on all things related to fabrics and apparel, so check back frequently!

MOVES COMPLETED- WHEW..NOW TIME TO PLAY CATCH UP!

2007-09-11T17:26:00.000-04:00

Our Allentown facility completed the move to 825 N 4th St over the weekend and systems are up and running. Heather and I will finalize everything and hopefully be on the road Wednesday night Sept 12 back to NC. We should be back in operation on Friday down there and breathing a huge sigh of relief. FACTOID: It took 6 26 foot truckloads to move the Allentown facility. We appreciate everyones patience and kind words!

ALLENTOWN FACILITY ON THE MOVE

2007-08-30T08:50:00.000-04:00

We have initiated packing and have the move scheduled for September 6 and 7th. During the day of the 7th our phones will be switched over and there may be some interruption. Our phone and fax numbers will remain unchanged. Our new address will be 825N 4th St, Allentown PA 18102. This will NOT effect production in any manner. The physical move is only 4-5 miles from our current location, and we plan to be fully operational on Monday the 10th.

Wilmington Facility nearing completion

2007-08-24T10:33:00.000-04:00

We are excited to report that the offices are nearing completion. Rose began her training on Tukatech and has taken to it like a fish to water. Heather can't wipe the smile off her face as she sits on the front porch in the low 90 degree weather with her laptop on the wireless network and Maile the beagle at her feet. Aside from certain move-in issues all has gone smoothly. You may begin sending all new sample submittals to 913 Orange Street, Wilmington NC 28401. The official date of the office opening is September 17. Telephone numbers and contact information will be posted on our website under "contact us" on September 12. Please continue to use the 610-740-1633 phone for all contact until September 17th, as Heather and I will be in Pennsylvania moving the Allentown facility and our home furnishings until the 14th.

Style Source Move Implimentation

2007-07-27T14:10:00.000-04:00

We have formally closed on our office in Wilmington NC and are in process with setting up telephones etc. Heather will be moveing into the offices on August 15, and I will follow September 14. The Allentown facility move is scheduled for September 7. We are busy figuring out how our phone systems will work and integrating systems fo seamless communication between the facilities. The Tukatech conversion is on track and formal training will be on August 8 and 9. During those days Heather and Martha will be unavailable. For those of you who have developments pending or wish to submit new developments in the near future we are providing a rough estimate as to expected days for first samples. We appreciate your patience during this transitional period. Between now and August 24 expect a 6-8 week wait. From August 24-Sept 14 expect 5-7 weeks. Sept 17-Oct 12 should see an easing back to 3 weeks and after that we should be back to normal (approx 2 weeks). Once we have phone numbers we will post all new contact information to our website.

The picture above shows the boardwalk adjoining historic downtown Wilmington and the Cape Fear River.

New CAD Technology at Style Source!!

2007-06-19T15:36:00.000-04:00

We are pleased to announce that we are beginning the transition from an older Lectra CAD system to state of the art Tukatech pattern making and marking. In the month of July we will be converting all style files and conducting training and implimentation. We have hired a new pattern maker, Rose Bradshaw Northrop, to work in our Wilmington NC facility. Rose has extensive industry experience, formerly working for L.L.Bean Kids in technical design. Although the transition period in July may cause some delays in pattern making and sampling the long term gains will allow us to improve development response time. The demand for USA made short run private label apparel manufacuring appears to be on the upswing, as the advantages of lower minimums and faster lead times remain strong rationale. Don't forget the added advantages of our private label service for pre-made branded apparel for rounding out your offerings!

Apparel Start Up Companies Proliferating

2007-06-18T11:26:00.000-04:00

Starting An Apparel Line

2007-05-03T08:12:00.000-04:00

We receive 5-8 inquiries a day from individuals desiring to start an apparel line. Many of them start with "I need a minimum amount as I am on a limited budget" and then go on to say they want a line consisting of jeans, coats, swimwear, shoes, socks, blazers and purses. A recent inquiry requested mens and womens clothing including suiting, evening and wedding gowns, casual clothes, swimwear, and purses. They wanted a "reasonable manufacturer, possibly in China, that will know exactly what they are wanting . Although this is an extreme example, it does echo the theme of anxious potential purveyors of branded clothing lines.

Reality dictates the edict passed on to all of us in grade school. "Do your homework" was drilled into us for a reason. A custom clothing line not only requires a large initial investment for the apparel, but considerations relating to the funds needed for marketing, advertising, and negative cash flow for as long as two years. It requires a more than passing knowledge of fabrics, drape, shrinkage, fit and garment construction. Simply private labeling branded apparel may work for a graphics driven line, but as soon as you take the leap to full custom apparel you must be prepared to know the product explicitly. Any custom apparel manufacturer will need thorough and exacting detail on the fabric type, weight and content, the garment construction, the number of colors and quantities needed per color, the size range, packageing requirements, and any value added (garment dye, screen print, embroider, etc).

Many will ask us to quote an item with a generalized description. No manufacturer can provide an accurate pricing assessment without complete knowledge of the items mentioned above. Requesting a :eough idea" on pricing can be quite dangerous, as the answer, although caged in cautious language as a generalization, may make a decision for the inquirer, yet be as much as 40% off the mark. This is primarily true due to the unknowns of the actual fabrics cuttable width, shrinkage, and size range of the garment, which all effect fabric utilization. Fabric , as a cost componant, represents 40-55% of a garments cost(depending on the amount of labor that is required in garment construction).

The message here is you must do the hard work before inquiring if you want hard answers. The channel of distribution you plan to enter will dictate the price ranges the products will sell for due to competition. Identify that channel and determine the average selling prices at retail for similar products. Work backwards (go to www.fashion for profit.com for a book on costing formulas) to determine your selling price and back out your required profit margins. That will provide you with a target price for your similar items. Bear in mind that if the competition is importing the items and they are a larger company that the likelihood you can match those prices in the onset is non-existant. This is due to their sourcing leverage on volume pricing overseas. It is more than likely you would have to take very low margins in the first year or two producing as you build your brand. Hence the planning for negative cash flow during that period.

Style Source is intent in assisting apparel entreprenours. Our ability to do so is limited when you do not have a complete picture to present. We suggest you avail yourself of the resources listed on our resource page( http://style-source.com/about/resources.asp) to develop a business plan that fully defines the scope and details from projections of products and cash flows to marketing to product definition. With that information we can hit the ground running!

Organics and Bamboo...Both offered at Style Source!

2007-04-06T13:38:00.000-04:00

Organically grown cotton fabrics and bamboo have become extremely popular. Style Source works closely with the only US mill producing certified organically grown cotton. We also work with a Canadian mill that imports certified organic cotton yarns. We offer a full range of circular knit fabrics that may be custom dyed to customer specifications including ribs, interlock, jerseys, french terry, fleece and thermals. Additionally, we are running organic cotton/bamboo blends, many of which have a small percentage of spandex. When combined, bamboo and organic cotton make an extremely soft and supple fabric, on par with cotton/modal blends for hand.

Custom apparel production from these fabrics is going into womens tops and dresses, infantwear and tee shirts. Private labeling of these garments is offered at no extra charge. Organic apparel manufacturing continues to grow as increased plantings are dedicated to organic fiber production. Hopefully, worldwide demand will encourage additional organic acreage.

Style Source Relocation Plans

2007-04-06T11:54:00.001-04:00

In late September Style Source will make several changes. Geoff and Heather will be moving the corporate offices to Wilmington North Carolina. In addition, the Allentown facility will relocate to the site of one of its main sewing contractors. Why? First, and most importantly, we want our customers to think of a visit to Style Source headquarters as a destination trip. With Wrightsville, Topsail, Kure and Carolina Beach all within a 30 minute drive a visit to Style Source will be a mini-vacation! Within an hours drive are Myrtle Beach, Oak Island, Southport and the Outer Banks! If golf is essential to the visit Geoff will try to arrange a tee time at the Cape Fear National golf club. This would be especially fun for those who enjoy laughing at a really bad golfer.

Our headquarters will house our showroom, product development center, branded apparel, and import offices. All business will flow through these offices to our Allentown facility. Our Allentown management has been with us since the companies inception (and for 4 years prior to that!), and are dedicated to insuring production implimentation and processing remain seamless(that's an industry joke...seamless...get it?). Their re-location will put them on-site at one of our two largest cut and sew facilities.

For anyone who might know an experienced patternmaker that may wish to join our team in Wilmington please do pass the name along to us.

FABRIC LIQUIDATION SALE

2007-01-30T08:32:00.000-05:00

Over the past 4 years we have accumulated nearly 12,000 yards of obsolete or overrun fabrics. They are all first quality and mostly knits. Wholesale fabric pricing is reduced to as low as 50% of actual cost. There are 95% cotton 5% lycra baby french terry fabrics that cost $4.25 a yard listed at $2.00! We have a large assortment of single rolls, including prints, slubs, novelties and stripes. We will not cut yard goods, only sell by the roll. Call us to discuss your fabric roll good needs, or click on our homepage icon to access a partial list of wholesale fabric available.

A great year to private label!

2007-01-17T08:29:00.000-05:00

The turn of the calender year brings us renewed opportunities to identify and target markets with unique graphics and embellishments supporting your own private label brand. Style Source has expanded decorating options in our "branded apparel program" and now offers crystal application and digital printing. We will purchase the brand/style/colors and sizes you want, change the labels (private labeling) and print/embroider your specific art. We fully warrent the products to be fee of manufacturing defects and handle all aspects, including packageing, to deliver you the exact product you envision. If purchasing branded apparel does not suit your specific fit requirements we can develop customized styles useing virtually any type of fabric with minimums beginning at 360 pieces per style useing our stock fabrics and colors.

Feel free to call us at 610-740-1633 to discuss your specific custom private label or custom apparel manufacturing needs. Whether it is childrens apparel manufacturing, adult, or even dog tee shirts we will produce them with a high level of quality and integrity.

HEATHER COMPETES IN DUBLIN MARATHON

2006-12-08T09:06:00.000-05:00

Those of you who know Heathers story also know she has maintained a high motivation level towards "giving back" to research for a cure for blood born cancers. When she went in for her bone marrow transplant she was already talking about participating in the Dublin Ireland marathon the following year. Doctors humored her, and many encouraged the idea with the underlying presumption that haveing a goal is important but this would never happen. WRONG!

Not only has Heathers recovery been record setting but she began training 9 months after the procedure and in late October we flew to Dublin. There were over 12,000 participants and most were runners. Heather walks, but really, really fast. She completed the marathon in 5 hours and 42 minutes, averageing the 26.2 miles in 13 minute miles. She placed 6,912 , besting many runners.

We spent an extra week touring southern Ireland, from Dublin to Cork to Galway. It is an exquisitely beautifull country with every town haveing equal charm and not a friggin shopping mall in sight. There is something to be said for a total absence of moderninity. The exchange rate was dreadfull and the cuisine most basic, but the trip was a success in both reaching a life goal and setting yet another standard for what determination, perseverance and a positive attitude can acheive.

NEW KNIT FABRIC TRENDS

2006-09-01T09:42:00.000-04:00

Last year was the year of rayons. Meryl, Lyocell, Model, etc both in 100% and blended with cotton. Most popular was the model/supima fabrications for womens tops (primarily baby rib and jersey). These fabrics offered superb buttery hand with silky drape. They were pricey, however, running from the low $4 to $7 a yard.

This year it's all about organics and natural fibers. Bamboo has been very popular, mostly in bamboo/cotton blends incorporating spandex. Bamboo with organic cotton has also generated alot of interest. The bamboo fabrics have similar hand to the rayons yet are considerably less expensive (mid $3- low $4) . We have seen a run on organic fabrics as well, especially the 100% organics. People are beginning to realize that many of the products claiming to be organic only have 4-6% actual organic fiber. Be sure to ask the % organic content when buying!

Custom Apparel Manufacturer

2006-06-13T15:56:00.000-04:00

Custom apparel manufacturing is what we do! From your specs we produce custom apparel. We utilize either our 100% cotton stock fabrics or can source virtually any fabric for custom apparel manufacturing. Visit our website to view the catagories of garmensts we service at http://www.style-source.com/apparel-categories/index.asp . For a list of information we require to start go to http://www.style-source.com/sample-estimate-clothing-line/index.asp. Our website is full of information, whether the garments are pre-made, sourced overseas, or manufactured to specifications. Give us a call for all of your custom apparel manufacturing needs.

Private Label Garment Manufacturing

2006-06-13T13:28:00.000-04:00

Many customers call to inquire about private label apparel. Some want to put their label on existing garments (private labeling commodity garments) while others want to have their own "private label" sewn in during manufacturing. Style Source will provide either service. We buy manufacturer brand products (www.4logwearables.com ) , remove existing labels and sew in customer labels. This is primarily done for customers who wish to print or embroider the garments (services we also provide). Often, when logo or graphics driven, it is the art that sells the shirt, and this approach requires much lower minimums and is less expensive than custom private label apparel. For customers who want products that are not commonly found due to shape, structure or fabric type we offer full package custom apparel to customer specifications with private labeling as an option. Custom apparel manufacturing for short runs is typically more expensive, as the costs to develop, sample, custom color and assemble short runs is inefficient. However, it does provide value added that may offer opportunity to reach markets that allow higher pricing.

Dharma Decides to Continue Original Styles!

2006-06-05T09:26:00.000-04:00

After a few months of feedback Dharma has decided to take the "classic coke" path by offering both Style Sources original styles and the clone imports. This makes for the best of both worlds. Those customers highly cost sensitive may purchase the import items and those who find our durability, uniformity and consistancy worth the extra expense may purchase the original empire dresses (style 77) and rompers (style 19) . We thank our partners at Dharma for realizing that cheaper is not always better, and we thank our customers for providing enough input to them to help them make the decision.

Golf Outing Raising Funds for Leukemia Research

2006-06-05T09:15:00.000-04:00

On August 25th we will be sponsoring a golf tournament at Olde Homestead Golf Course in New Tripoli PA to raise funds for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Heather plans on walking the Team in Training Dublin Marathon in October and we will be donating the funds to the LLS in her name to sponsor her efforts. Those of you who know Heather remember the difficulties she has endured with three relapses and her eventual bone marrow transplant. It is a fact that every 5 minutes someone is diagnosed with a blood borne cancer, and every 8 minutes someone dies from one. Our son, Aarons, good friend, Adam Wolk, died at the age of 18, just before high school graduation, from leukemia, and we are memorializing him with thes outing.

Anyone interested in participating, donating gifts to be used as raffle or door prizes, or wishing to sponsor one of the many events please contact geoff@style-source.com for a brochure and sign up sheet.

Original Empire Dresses and Jumpsuits Available From Style Source

2006-03-21T14:27:00.000-05:00

Style Source Inc was formed when Gee Kay Knit Products closed in February of 2002. We continue to manufacture two of the most popular styles Gee Kay made, the 77 empire dress and the 93 oversized jumpsuit. Dharma Trading Company is now offering imported styles as an option for those wanting the same styling but at better pricing. You can still buy our original styles from Dharma, and we encourage you to evaluate sizing consistancy, sewing construction quality, shrinkage values and dyeability to determine which products are best for your application. The products we produce are maintained at the highest possible level of consistancy.
Sometimes it is not wise to fool with a proven product, and Style Source has chosen to maintain the exact same product year after year. Dharma Trading Inc decision to offer a less expensive substitute for the 77 and 93 may make economic sense for them, but for those of you who want the traditional empire dress and oversized jumpsuit you may vote for them by continuing your loyal purchasing habits.

If you have tried Dharmas new "replacement products" please do share with us your comments by posting them to this blog.

American Apparel Producers Network - An Untapped Resource

2006-02-13T15:48:00.000-05:00

Most visitors to our website are potential customers. Perhaps 20% are vendors looking to establish business relations. An even smaller percentage are competitors, who want to "check us out" Each and every visitor, no matter which catagory you fall in, has something to gain by becoming familiar with, and joining the AAPN (www.aapnetwork.net). I won't bore you with the evolution of this network, but suffice it to say that it was, at one time, a trade association, restricted to like minded manufacturers. Trade associations used to have a signifigant impact on the inter-relationships between competitors and parts of their supply chain. Once or twice a year they would gather, usually at posh resorts, and swap war stories. They would host educational seminars, that were more promotional talks by select vendors, than they were interactively educational. They would have social hours, golf outings, and tours. The big wigs would hobnob, keeping any "real" information about their business or issues under tight wraps, seeking to eek out a tidbit of something usefull some well lubricated exec might slip out. I know, I attended many, and I have fabulous memories of playing rounds at Grand Cyprus, getting VIP tours of Universal Studios and playing poker on free liquor and shrimp cocktails to odd hours of the morning. I'd return back to my corporate job and write a three page "trip report" about all the things I had learned, which I would glean off the promotional material handouts.

There are still trade associations. They still play their part, albeit to a much smaller crowd. The AAPN is NOT a trade association. It is a network representing the entire spectrum of the apparel and textile supply chain. From cotton growers to synthetic fiber producers to yarn spinners to knitters, dyers, finishers to software to elastics and buttons to retailers and sourcing executives. When the AAPN has a meeting, it is a networking meeting. For the first several hours each attending member stands up and introduces his company and what they do. I have been a member for 8 years, and I have heard the same people get up each year. Interestingly though, I can't remember anyone saying the same thing twice. That is because they have had one more year to make the change. What change? The change we all have to make each and every year to not only survive but to persue the objective we all share, being profitable.

You might ask how anyone, and how any company, can manage perpetual change. You may have heard the saying that the only true constant is change. The answer is simpler than you might imagine. Change is managed by understanding our past, knowing our present and seeking our future. I can't speak for you, but I don't have the mental capacity to fully understand the dynamics at work within every facet from fiber to the retail shelf. There are no books telling me how to successfully transition from a contractor to a vertically integrated provider. I can be clueless about issues that face retail buyers or sourcing managers. Ideally, I need a community of knowledgeable people representing all aspects of our trade available to me. I need to know them on a first name basis, so when I need an answer I can call and they'll receive me warmly and make every effort to help me. I even need to know my competitors on the same basis, as there are times I cannot service a customer yet want to refer them.

The AAPN provides the only true open knowledge incubation format in the industry. When we meet we are open with the issues we face, the solutions we have considered, the hurdles we have yet to overcome and the resources we are applying. We share with each other proactively, in an empoweing way, in a way that makes three page trip reports roll off our minds without second thoughts.

Avail your self of the website, the easy to use search engine, and the informative blogs and articles. Better yet, attend our fall meeting. You'll never feel alone in this industry again.

Importing Custom Apparel - Who Needs the "Middle Man?"

2006-02-02T12:11:00.000-05:00

We are often asked to explain our role in the import custom apparel food chain. Many prospective customers will ask us why they should use our services when they can go direct, after all, they met a fellow at a trade fair who said he could make their item at 25% less than our quotation. A synopsis of our routine answers follow.

1. Importing apparel from an overseas factory you have no experience with is a roll of the dice. All overseas producers require a deposit in full in advance of producing. You have no form of oversight, aside from factory management. If they do not ship, or ship defective product, you have no legal recourse for resolution. You must rely on what they tell you and on their approval systems. You have little to no influence and must handle all communications directly.

2. Going direct also means you are responsible for all logistics. You can hire a broker on both sides to handle this, but must co-ordinate and deal with issues as they arise.

3. To communicate on issues of a technical nature (color, fabrication, construction, etc) you must be knowledgeable of fabric and garment construction. Issues like light fastness, fabric shrinkage, labeling compliance, etc. will likely come up and have to be addressed.

4. Never forget the mantra that if it seems to be too good to be true it probably is. The fellows at the international trade fairs have a mission to bring in prospects. I've never heard one say no to anything.

Utilizing our services does not mean you are hiring a "middle man". You are working with a USA based company to facilitate the importation of specifically designed and constructed apparel. We insure the spec pacs are complete and instructive. We handle all communications, sampling processes, oversight and logistics. Most importantly, we GUARANTEE the products will conform within commercial standards, and as a USA based company you have recourse to resolve issues that may arise. We are able to do so, with confidence, due to our combined experience of over 30 years working with specific overseas vendors. In this business, a track record is tremendously meaningfull.

If you were to handle the importation of apparel yourself, your time would have a monetary value and you would have expenses for communications. The small percentage we earn for our services is likely no greater than the expenditures you would incur / combined with the risk you would take. Whether your need is for custom apparel, private label clothing or custom garment production Style Source www.style-source.com is the solution.

IMPORT OR DOMESTIC APPAREL SOURCING - WHICH IS FOR ME?

2006-01-25T09:29:00.000-05:00

We are commonly asked for "made in USA apparel" under the buyers belief that apparel made in USA is a strong selling point. Although it warms our heart to find the made in USA sentiment often sways potential buyers direction, it is usually followed by the reality of pricing and competitive position concerns. At www.style-source.com you will find a basic chart that compares relative advantages and disadvantages to making clothing in USA versus overseas.

Aside from the emotional considerations, the next major concern we address is where to place the products. Factors that come into play are quantities, lead times, reliability, quality expectations, freight costs, political climate, availability of textiles, transit time, and labor costs. You will find that custom apparel manufacturing runs minimums of at least 1200 units per style as an opening order, and discounting is not usually a consideration for quantities less than 5,000 garments.

Domestic apparel production has been facing a double edged sword. First, USA labor averages in the $10-$12 per hour range versus rates as low as $.40 (Haiti). Bear in mind these rates affect the textiles, the findings (elastics zippers etc) as well as apparel assembly. This can be somewhat offset by manufacturing lower labor items as well as by utilizing technology and efficiencies. The second issue is far more ominous. With the decline of apparel manufacturing the infrastructure has begun to crumble. Findings such as buttons and snaps and zippers are no longer produced in this country and custom apparel manufacturing often requires custom trims. Subsequently, the minimums have increased and lead times have become extended. Additionally, US textiles have never been known for diversity, especially in the more "European" influenced fabrics. Textile mills have been closing at an unprecedented pace, leaving fewer and fewer to service the sector. Those surviing mills face irregular demand, forcing them to cut their labor force. Topping it off is the fact that energy accounts for a large percentage of a mills overall costs, and this has forced them to run less shifts or less days in attempts to lower consumption by shutting down boilers. When demand peaks these understaffed mills cannot respond fast enough, and deliveries suffer both from a timing and quality perspective.

The companies that specialize in domestic clothing manufacturing are dwindling. Those that remain must be extremely agile, must maintain a broad sourcing network, must maintain an extremely efficient/ low overhead structure, and must constantly be ready with alternative approaches to successfully service domestic private label apparel and custom apparel manufacturing requirements.

Custom Apparel manufacturing

2006-01-16T15:28:00.000-05:00

Many customers ask us what the advantages are to custom producing apparel versus useing branded apparel and re-labeling. As a custom apparel manufacturer, Style Source (www.style-source.com) must maintain an inventory of stock fabrications in order to provide low minimums and quick turn around times. Unfortunately, inventory means tying up working capital, so the range of fabrics and colors must be kept under control. The beauty of custom apparel is that you can provide complete styling/coloration and fabrication guidance in creating a style unique to your specific needs. Private label apparel manufacturing allows for us to become an extension of your company. As a private label apparel manufacturer we assume the role of your production management team. Custom apparel manufacturing requires an acuity at sourcing, planning, co-ordinating and technically interpreting the garment requirements. Apparel is the only commodity product that changes dimensionally after use and yet must conform to specific fit standards. Laundering causes relaxation and shrinkage that must be accomodated in the original patterns to insure after wash fit.

Utilizing the branded apparel program allows for quicker turn times and lower prices on commodity apparel. Obviously, we have no control over the quality of these pre-made garments, but if you are solely applying graphics or embroidery , and the message on the garment is the focal point, a branded program can work extremely well with a much lower initial investment.

Heather's Health Status

2005-10-12T15:28:00.000-04:00

Ah, the joy of technology. Now we have a way to keep all interested parties informed on the health status of Style Sources Co-President (and my wife) Heather. For the latest info scroll down to the bottom....

Heather has Acute Promylecytic Leukemia (APL). It is a blood cancer that causes the immature white cells to become malformed and to not develop. Heather was diagnosed in August of 2001 and, through the heroics of Lehigh Valley Hospitals ICU was saved and acheived full remission. That remission lasted three years, at which point she re-lapsed. Remission was again acheived with the use of ATRA. A bone marrow transplant was to be performed but she again relapsed. Through the use of Arsenic Trioxide over a 65 day course we again gained remission in the beginning of October.

Heather will remain on the Arsenic Trioxide until her scheduled admittance for the transplant on November 9th. She is feeling great and has a very positive attitude. Her donor will be her first cousin, Lynn Gleason, from Phoenix Arizona. Lynns unselfishness is only outweighed by her love for Heather, and she will be flying here in early November for the harvesting of her stem cells on November 15th.

The procedure for Heather involves several days of chemotherapy, to reduce her bodies immune system and to weaken her bone marrow. We are useing a newer technology called a "mini-transplant" which does not require complete erradication of her marrow. On the day before the transplant Heather will receive a total body immersion of radiation treatment. The following day Lynns T-cells will be harvested and then transfused to Heather. Additional chemotherapy after the transfusion will minimize graft vs host disease http://www.healthatoz.com/healthatoz/Atoz/ency/graft-vs-host_disease.jsp , and after a week or so Lynns cells will take over and re-populate Heathers bones with healthy marrow. If all goes well, the hospital stay will be 3-4 weeks.

A good article on the disease and bone marrow transplantation can be found at http://cpmcnet.columbia.edu/dept/medicine/bonemarrow/bmtinfo.html

I will update this blog on a weekly basis until Heather goes into the hospital and then as often as I can to keep all of you in the loop.

For those of you who want to send something during her hospital stay, Heather is very involved with Team in Training which sponsors races to raise funds for the Leukemia and Lymphoma society. She plans on doing the 26.2K in Dublin next October, and requests checks be made out to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and sent to her. She has to raise $5,000 to participate.
Mail to 977 Hollow Court, Allentown PA 18104. All donations are tax deductable. Flowers or fresh fruit should NOT be sent as she may not be around plants during the first few months after the transplant.
Cards/letters may be mailed to Heather Krasnov Rm 1559, c/o Hahnemann Hospital, Broad and Vine St., Philadelphia PA 19102.

10/21/05- Heather is feeling great and her counts are normalized. Lots of pre-admission testing, and all looks good. She will be on the arsenic until 10/28 and then will be given a break until admittance 11/9. Her spirits are, as always, very upbeat. She was complaining yesterday that she could have done the San Francisco Nike marathon this weekend afterall. Jeez...

11/08/05- Tomorrow is admission day. We are picking Lynn up in Philadelphia tonight. We will be admitting tomorrow morning and Lynn will donate some of her blood to be used for herself after she donates next Wednesday. Heather will receive her first dose of mega-chemo. Her spirits are great and atitude is very positive. I'm a wreck.

11/09- The surgery to put in the Hickman port went smoothly. Heather received her first dose of cheno- a combination of two different drugs, and has been started on prophylactic antibiotics to ward off potential infection. Her spirits are excellent.

11/10- Really not much to report other than she is feeling better than she has the right to considering all the drugs they are giving her. Honestly, she feels great! Today is day three of chemo. I will be picking up dinner from Heathers favorite restaurant (courtesy of one of our dear friends/customer (thank you Christine!) and she will eat quiite well tonight. She brought enough food from home to survive for a month, so no hospital food for her! I figure the impact of the treatments has to hit her at some point here, but I'm thankfull for every day she feels well. Keep the prayers comming...

11/11-11/13- Heathers tolerance to the chemo is quite amazing. Basically zero side effects. She had lots of company, ate well and has boredom as her biggest issue, with one exception. The site where the hickman was implanted (a Hickman is an interveinous port surgically implanted to provide multiple access for fluids) began to swell and it was determined the device is faulty. This is a very rare occurance, and it means she has to go into surgery today to replace it, after she receives the full body radiation this morning. Otherwise, we are on schedule for tomorrows transplant. I'll be at the hospital the entire day so the next update will be Wednesday.

11/14-11/15- Everything continues to go incredibly smoothly. Heather has had zero side effects from the radiation. The Hickman was replaced with no issues. Lynn was harvested and is a bit sore and the transplant was uneventfull, aside from the gallery of nurses, doctors, etc fascinated by this somewhat rare procedure (Hahneman has only done a dozen or so of this type). We now enter the neutropenic stage. In a few days there will be more chemo for immunosupression. This supposedly reduces the chance of graft vs host disease. In about two weeks her counts should start to come up. After 60 days they will take a bone marrow biopsey which will indicate the degree of success. Keep the prayers comming, they're working!

11-16- Sleep deprivation from nurses monitoring this and that and fluid intake creating the call of nature every few hours left Heather a bit out of sorts for the day, but no health issues of consequence. I spoke to her this morning and she got alot more sleep and is feeling refreshed. This will continue to be a wait and see scenario, and let's hope it all continues to be uneventfull.

11-17- A touch of nausea corrected with two tiny brown pills was the major days event. Her counts continue to drop (as expected) but she is still doing office work I bring in (at her insistance) and eating well (no nasty hospital food, only catered fare from home). Tonight I'll pick up her favorite fish fry.

11-18-11/20- Heather received the two days of post transplant chemo (Fri and Sat). These doses were much larger, and she did have a day of nasua and exorsist type heaves. Sunday was not bad at all, with just a touch of residual nausea. They started her on anti-rejection drugs and also on a drug targeted to increase her white count. Miraculously, Heather is proceeding through this like it's a walk in the park. She is taking calls on her cell phone at 484-951-5121.

11-21- A decent nights sleep Sunday night and uneventfull Monday. The neuprogen shots (to raise white counts) are taking effect and her counts will see saw for a week or so as they play the balancing act of encouraging the stem cells to take without causing Leukocytosis (abnormally high white cell count). Immunosuppressants along with anti-rejection and prophylactic antibiotics are the regimen. Another good day with boredom the major issue. I can tell she is feeling fine when I call in the morning and she complains about all the rude loud people and nurses waking her at all hours and leaving the lights on. Better than hearing she is feeling ill, believe me!

11-22- All is well. The main issue is that Heather feels too good to be held prisoner. Another week of this and the hospital staff may pay me to take her home. Everything is on track and uneventfull. Donations for the marathon have reached over $2500 to date. Keep those checks comming made out to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. The stimulus for Heather to get right back to the treadmill is a terrific gift!

11-23-11-24- Heathers counts have about bottomed out, as expected, so she is most vulnerable to infection for the next 4-5 days. Hopefully her counts will begin to come up quickly. She feels great aside from a headache yesterday. Some good friends (thanks Mona and Debbie!) gave me T-Day food to take along yesterday and we had a semblance of a T-Day feast in her room. No doubt we have alot to be thankfull for.

11-25-11-27 - Counts remained very low and Heather received a platelet and two whole blood transfusions to maintain control on potential bleeding issues as well as energy levels. Small side effects from the anti-rejection drugs have been limited to some headaches and stomach upset. Heather promised to substitute white cells for sheep as she went to sleep to encourage their growth. No complications and we remain vigilant for signs of re-growth. The first indicators this is occuring are the increase in promylecites (immature white cells in growth stages), and they did come up over the weekend. Bonus update as of 9AM 11/28...we just found out Heathers white count improved from .1 to .4 over the past 24 hours. This is a very good sign, and if it continues she could be released at the end of this week!

11-28-11-29 - Was out of the office yesterday, so apologize for the skipped day. Worth the wait though, as Heathers white count was up to 1.2 and will likely be close to 3.0 today. (normal is 5.0-10.0). The immature cell count must be above 1.0 for two consecutive days for release and she was at 1.1 yesterday. Therefor, all indicators are for release this Friday. She will remain on imuno-supressants for at least 6 months, to help insure there is minimal GvH disease and will be confined to the house for at least 8 more weeks. Don't forget Heathers preferred gift of donations to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society...without that research this "mini-transplant" would not have been possible!

11/30- Although it feels like downhill, challenges will likely continue to rise. Side effects from low magnesium led to cramping in her legs and thighs through the day. Can you say u-n-h-a-p-p-y? The good news is that her white count hit 2.0 (not the 3.0 I was hoping for, but the trend is good) . The immature cells were again above 1.0, so that hurdle is cleared. We have begun the process of inquiries with the prescription drug plan we have to get the longer term meds filled and I began taking some items home in preparation, so our expectations mount for a homecomming Saturday at the latest.

12/1- I was hoping to say we have homecomming, but as I post this at 10:45 there is no determination yet. Heathers whites are at 3.0 and her platelettes and reds are comming up. After IV magnesium was administered the cramping stopped so it is simply a question of whether they are satisfied with her medication levels . If not today, then tomorrow. I will certainly update on Monday and then will likely go to weekly postings.

12/2-12/5 - HOME AT LAST! Released on Saturday. Have to see the docs 2X /week and went this AM to Philly where everything checks out as good as can be. Heather is slowly gaining energy and strength and is already letting me know where my housekeeping techniques have gone astray...a positive sign of no loss of acuity and sense of observation! I'll update weekly from here on in unless something crops up. Thanks all for your support!

12/20/05 - Well, things have progressed nicely. No complications whatsoever. Early weakness has been overcome with energy and good spirits. Heather is baking up a storm for the holidays, and back to household chores and working part time from the house. She must remain homebound for a few months. A chimerism test, to distinguish how much of her marrow is Lynns vs hers was taken last week and results take two weeks. Keep your fingers crossed!

01/06/06- Happy New Year! , and indeed it is. No complications, no signs of rejection. We had a chimerism test done, which measures the % of Lynns cells that have engrafted vs Heathers old cells. We were told that 60% at this point would be a good number, but 40% is not abnormal. Heathers came back at 100% fully engrafted. Another sign of her incredible super human metabolism! The danger of nasty GvH is past and only time will tell if a chronic symptom pops up, but at this point we can say the chance of her PML recurring is near zero. She has begun to work out and still is targeting the Dublin marathon, so further donations as defined above (in this color) would be most graciously accepted.

ChChChChChChanges

2005-10-07T16:50:00.000-04:00

What on earth is going on with Style Source? A complete new look, a new logo, expansion in overseas operations. You'd think the economy was going strong and expanding just like GW tells us it is. The reality is that times are tough. Energy increases have permeated every facet of our economy, causeing a waterfall of price increases and erosion of our supply chain. Margins are squeezing ever tighter, and apparel prices at retail are falling. Gloomy? Perhaps, but we see this point in time as a confirmation of our strategies for survival in the post 2005 world of apparel sourcing.

The pundits tell us that when business is down it is time to take the offensive. The natural defensive posturing with overhead reductions and cost controls only prolong the agony. It takes a concerted positive effort to gain when there seems to be no way to do so.

Our website has become an industry resource. We hope you find the changes we have made, and will continue to make, furthers your ability to research and understand the trade. We will continue to manufacture domestically, while adjusting to the fluxes in the supply chain. Yes, minimums for custom manufacturing are increasing, but we have managed to find suppliers who continue to work towards keeping them manageable.

Our new site offers you interactivity with us. We will be posting new blogs regularly. You may respond to our blogs and share your thoughts. We have added an email join list, so that we may contact you when we have something of import to communicate.

Let us know how we are doing!!

Your thoughts on the new website?

2005-10-07T08:24:00.000-04:00

Style Source is proud to announce the launch of our new website at www.style-source.com

What do you think?

Do you have any comments or suggestions for adjustments or new content?

To respond to this post, just click on the comments link at the bootom of this entry. We look forward to your input!