CPSIA compliance for children’s apparel means testing and certifying every style sold to kids 12 and under. Three federal requirements apply: total lead content, restricted phthalates in accessible plastic components, and, for sleepwear specifically, flammability performance. A general restricted substances check applies across an entire product line, regardless of age…
The EU Digital Product Passport is a digital record, linked to a scannable identifier on the product, that discloses a garment’s materials, origin, and environmental footprint. It comes from the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), which entered into force in July 2024. For fashion brands specifically, the Digital Product…
PLM and ERP integration connects product lifecycle management with enterprise resource planning systems, ensuring that product data like styles, BOMs, and costs flow automatically into financial, inventory, and order management records. This means a fabric change approved in PLM will update the cost sheet in ERP without any manual entry.…
A multi-material BOM is a bill of materials that tracks several unrelated material categories in one style record, such as leather, metal hardware, lining fabric, and trims, each with its own supplier, spec, and cost. For example, handbags, jewelry, belts, and small leather goods almost always need this structure, because…
Swimwear PLM software is product lifecycle management software configured for the specific development needs of swim and resort wear: print placement across cut pieces, stretch fabric performance specs, and multi-layer construction like linings and shelf bras. Generic apparel PLM handles styles, BOMs, and approvals well enough. However, swimwear adds problems…
A restricted substances list (RSL) sets maximum allowed limits, or outright bans, on specific chemicals in finished apparel and footwear. Brands use a restricted substances list to confirm that fabric, trims, dyes, and coatings do not contain substances linked to health or environmental harm. In other words, it is the…
Landed cost is the total cost to get one unit of product from the factory to your warehouse door. It includes the product price, freight, insurance, customs duty, and clearance fees. In other words, it is the real cost of the garment, not just the price your factory quotes. For…
Approximately 80% of apparel brands globally work with a cut and sew manufacturer (Cosmo Sourcing, 2025). However, most founders enter their first factory relationship without a clear picture of how the model works. The result is missed deadlines, unexpected costs, and quality problems that upfront knowledge would have prevented. Cut…
Apparel product testing is the process of sending fabric and garment samples to an accredited laboratory before approving bulk production. Labs measure colorfastness, shrinkage, seam strength, fiber content, and chemical safety against standardized protocols. Brands that skip this step routinely face retailer chargebacks, mass returns, and compliance violations that cost…
How to Run a Fit Session: Fit Comments, Approvals & Common Fit Issues
A fit session is a working meeting where a designer or technical designer evaluates a physical sample on a fit model against the spec sheet. The team then records what needs to change before the next round of sampling. In other words, it is the single checkpoint where a garment…
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