LAUNCH PHASE 04 | SAMPLE DEVELOPMENT & PRODUCTION |
SAMPLE DEVELOPMENT AND PRODUCTION MANAGEMENT

04

LAUNCH STEP

Sample Development & Production Management

Sample development and production are the stages where your styles are transformed into garments — and where precision matters most. This phase involves translating your tech packs into patterns, fit samples, revisions, and ultimately production‑ready garments. Every step builds on the one before it, and when even one step or sub-step is out of sequence, the entire process can derail.

Many new brands try to navigate this on their own and quickly discover how complex it truly is. We’ve worked with several clients who spent six months to a year — and over $10,000 — only to end up with poor‑fitting samples, incorrect tech packs, and no clear path forward.

We can't let that happen to you. Let's work together on this most exciting phase of the launch process!

Sample development and production require precision, technical fluency, and a deep understanding of how each component influences the next because if one step is out of order, the entire chain can fall apart. Factories simply don't have the time to guide new brands through the learning curve.

With more than three decades of New York fashion expertise, our founder orchestrates this complex process with seasoned judgment and an eye for detail that protects both your product and your investment.

You gain expert oversight, clear guidance, and a partner who ensures your development and production move forward smoothly, correctly, and without costly missteps.

Once we’ve placed you with your factory, our founder manages the entire sample development process on your behalf, serving as the liaison between you, our in‑house director of technical design, and your chosen factory. We oversee every step until all samples are fully approved.

Our founder works with you to determine the right production quantities for each style based on your selling strategy, inventory goals, and budget.

Once quantities are set, she places your production order with the same factory that developed your samples (or with a separate factory for an additional fee) and manages the entire process through completion.

This includes overseeing the production calendar, fielding factory questions, communicating delays or changes, resolving technical issues, ensuring quality control, advising on key decisions before they begin, and helping you coordinate the delivery of bulk fabric, trims, labels, and packaging.

You receive clear guidance at every step, turning a traditionally complex process into one that feels streamlined, transparent, and manageable.

SAMPLE DEVELOPMENT MANAGEMENT

Why You Need Us

Included in this Package

Sample Development & Production Portfolio

Remote video‑conference fit sessions are led by our Director of Technical Design and attended by our founder, with you—the designer or brand owner—actively participating.

Your first one‑hour fit session is included with your service, and before it begins, our founder equips you with a supply list and straightforward guidance so you feel fully prepared for a smooth and effective virtual fitting.

We consistently achieve approved samples in an average of two fit sessions, though two to four sessions is standard in the industry and ensures your garment is refined with accuracy, intention, and a professional level of detail before final approval.

FIT MODEL HIRING GUIDANCE

Our founder will help guide you to hire a professionally trained fit model through a trusted local modeling agency, allowing your samples to be assessed on‑body with expert accuracy. Their feedback is relayed directly to our technical designer to support precise, informed fit adjustments.

VIRTUAL FIT SESSION

PRODUCTION MANAGEMENT

LEARN AS YOU LAUNCH™

Additional Items to Budget • Sample Development

Our Learn as You Launch™ approach gives you a guided learning experience as your services are being completed, with our founder taking a complex process and breaking it down step-by-step so it becomes clear, manageable, and repeatable for future collection launches. You gain the understanding and confidence to handle the process yourself, while still having us available if you prefer that we manage future launches for you.

PRODUCTION ORDER WORKSHEET

The Production Order Worksheet is a streamlined, plug‑in tool that helps you turn approved samples into a clear, factory‑ready production plan. It guides you through unit quantities by style, color, and size; calculates costs and margins; outlines fabric, trim, and packaging needs; captures final fit and quality notes; and organizes lead times, delivery windows, and shipping details. This becomes your single source of truth for placing accurate bulk orders and managing production with confidence.

Affordable, Transparent, and Achievable

The sample development and production phase is traditionally the most expensive and time‑consuming part of launching an apparel collection, and many agencies and factories price it far beyond what emerging brands can reasonably invest. At Launch Your Collection (LYC), we’ve intentionally redesigned this stage to be affordable, profitable, and manageable—without sacrificing quality or your bottom line.

Industry pricing often tells a very different story:

Los Angeles, California factory example — Developing just two styles (including patterns, four sample rounds, two fittings, and two revisions) can cost $11,160 before production even begins.

St. Paul, Minnesota factory example — Developing six styles can reach an astonishing $108,700, and this does not include production! When our founder asked how a new brand could possibly afford this, the factory had no meaningful answer.

These examples highlight why so many designers feel priced out before they even start. LYC was built to solve that problem. Our model gives you expert guidance, transparent pricing, and a development process that supports your long‑term success, not one that drains your entire budget before you reach this very important stage.

PATTERNS & SAMPLES

The factory charges the client directly for a pattern fee for each style, typically $250–$450, along with a sample fee for creating your first prototype and any additional samples needed until approval, usually $200–$450 per round. Most styles require 2–4 sample rounds to reach a final approved version.

FIT COMMENTS

Our Director of Technical Design prepares highly detailed fit comments after each session, using her expertise to interpret every measurement, proportion, and construction detail and translate them into precise, factory‑ready instructions. This level of technical analysis is a specialized skill that minimizes unnecessary revisions and reduces the number of sample rounds needed to reach approval.

After each fit session, the physical samples must be shipped to our Director of Technical Design for full review. The client is responsible for the shipping costs to send the samples to her and to have them returned to you once the review is complete.

She then submits the finalized comments directly to your factory, requesting either a revision or a new sample as needed until the garment is fully approved. This fit‑comment service takes several hours, is billed separately at the time it occurs, and is priced at $300 per style.

SAMPLE FABRIC YARDAGE & TRIM

Our founder provides fabric yields for each style based on the factory’s guidance, along with clear direction on the sample yardage and trims you’ll need to order. You’ll know exactly what to purchase and in what quantities, helping you avoid over‑ or under‑buying and keeping this stage streamlined and efficient.

FIT MODEL & MODELING AGENCY FEE

Our founder will assist you in selecting and coordinating with a reputable local modeling agency to book a professionally trained fit model for your in‑person fit session, which you will typically attend at the agency.

Fit models are skilled in communicating how a garment should feel, move, and perform on the body, and they speak directly with our Director of Technical Design during the session to ensure every fit detail is accurately identified and addressed.

Modeling agencies generally require a two‑hour minimum plus a 20% agency fee, with standard rates averaging $480 per fit session, payable directly to the agency. The LYC fit session fee for our Director of Technical Design and our founder is $325 per session.

An artwork tech pack is an optional document used when adding graphics—such as screen printing, embroidery, patches, or heat‑transfer artwork—to your garments. It outlines all technical details the factory needs, including graphic placement, scale and dimensions, color specifications (such as Pantone or thread colors), application method, and any stitching or print requirements. This ensures your artwork is executed accurately and consistently in production. If you choose to add graphics to any of your designs, a separate artwork tech pack is required and will be quoted and billed at the time this service is needed, in the hundreds.

ARTWORK TECH PACK

Additional Items to Budget • Production

PRODUCTION COST PER UNIT

Production unit costs are provided after your samples are approved, but they can range from $6 to several hundred dollars per unit depending on the garment type, construction, and design complexity. In addition to the per‑unit cost, factories may charge for certain services that are sometimes included and sometimes billed separately. These can include grading, marker making, cutting fees, finishing fees, trim application, and minimum‑order surcharges. Not every factory charges for all of these items, but many will include some combination of them in either the unit cost or as separate line items. You’ll receive a clear breakdown so you understand exactly what is included before moving into production.

BULK FABRIC YARDAGE & TRIM

Our founder provides fabric yields for each style based on the factory’s guidance, along with clear direction on the sample yardage and trims you’ll need to order with your fabric and trim vendors. You’ll know exactly what to purchase and in what quantities, helping you avoid over‑ or under‑buying and keeping this stage streamlined and efficient.

HANGTAGS & LABELS

Once you move into production, each garment will require brand labels, care/content labels, and hangtags (optional). These are generally inexpensive when ordered in bulk: brand labels typically range from $0.15–$0.40 each, care/content labels from $0.05–$0.20 each, and hangtags from $0.10–$0.50 each for standard cardstock with basic stringing. We guide you through selecting the right options for your brand and helping you to coordinate delivery of all labels and hangtags to the factory before production begins.

cellophane & packaging

Post‑production packaging carries its own set of material costs. Each finished garment must be individually wrapped in cellophane/poly bags, which typically cost about $0.08–$0.15 per garment depending on size and material. Factories may supply these for a small fee, or you can provide your own. You’ll also need shipping materials such as cartons, tape, labels, and protective inserts for transporting your finished goods. If you choose to elevate your customer experience with a branded unoxing experience—custom mailers, tissue paper, stickers, thank‑you cards, or other elements—those items are ordered through the packaging vendor and priced based on your selections and quantities. These packaging and shipping expenses vary by brand and are typically paid directly to the factory or packaging supplier.

SAMPLE DEVELOPMENT:
It typically takes most factories
2-3 weeks for the first sample &
1-3 weeks for each additional sample, usually 2-4 rounds of samples are needed until sample approval, which is standard.