What Are the Logistics Advantages of DDP for Fabric Shipping?
If you’ve been importing fabric from China for any length of time, you know that shipping is where good deals go to die. You negotiate a great price per meter, you approve the samples, you wait for production. Then comes the shipping conversation. Suddenly there are port charges, customs clearance fees, duty payments, and a […]
What Is the Future of Smart Fabrics in Knitted Garments?
I remember a conversation I had about three years ago with a young designer from a sportswear brand in Berlin. She was showing me a concept she was working on—a knitted shirt that could measure your heart rate and body temperature, and send the data to your phone. I was skeptical. I’ve been in textiles […]
How to Ensure Your Woven Fabric Passes US Customs Clearance
I remember a call I got from a client in Los Angeles about four years ago. He was frantic. A container of woven fabric we had shipped to him was sitting at the Long Beach port. It had been there for three weeks. Customs had flagged it for inspection. The paperwork was incomplete. The fiber […]
Why the “Touch and Feel” Test Still Matters in a Digital World
I remember a conversation I had with a buyer from a fast-growing online fashion brand about five years ago. He was proud of his operation. Everything was digital. He sourced through online platforms, approved fabrics based on photos and videos, and sold exclusively through his website. He told me that the "touch and feel" test […]
How to Use TikTok to Discover Trending Fabric Styles in 2026
I’ll be honest with you. Twenty years ago, when I started in this business, I figured out what fabrics to make by going to trade shows in Paris, Milan, and New York. I’d walk the floors, see what the big mills were showing, and come back to China to replicate it. That was the old […]
What Is Fleece Fabric? Is It Considered Knitted or Woven?
I remember a conversation with a client from a sportswear brand in the US about ten years ago. He was launching a new line of hoodies and wanted to use fleece. But he was confused. He had been talking to different suppliers, and some were calling it a knit, others were calling it a woven. […]
How to Negotiate Better Payment Terms for Bulk Knitted Fabric
I remember a negotiation I had about six years ago with a buyer from a large American sportswear brand. He wanted 50,000 meters of a custom-knit performance fabric. The price was agreed. The quality was set. Then we got to payment terms. He wanted 90 days after delivery. I wanted 30% deposit and balance before […]
Why Your Buyer in Europe Cares About Your Fabric’s Carbon Footprint
I remember a meeting I had in Amsterdam about three years ago with a buyer from a large European fashion retailer. We had been working together for years, and I thought I knew what mattered to him: quality, reliability, price. We sat down to discuss a new collection, and I started with my usual pitch […]
How to Source Stretchy Woven Fabric for Comfortable Office Wear
I remember a conversation with a buyer from a corporate wear brand in London about seven years ago. She was frustrated. Her company made uniforms for a large bank, and the feedback from the employees was always the same: the trousers looked great but felt terrible. The woven fabric had no give. When the bankers […]
What Are the Advantages of Working with a One-Stop Garment Factory?
I remember a conversation I had with a buyer from a mid-sized fashion brand in the UK about five years ago. She was exhausted. She was managing seven different suppliers just to produce one collection. One factory for the woven fabric. Another for the knit fabric. A third for the printing. A fourth for the […]