Industry Spotlight: Textile Consultant Talks Fabric and Everything You Need to Know About Getting It

Image from Michelle Roberts

Sourcing fabric for collections is a pain. The majority of fabric options in the metro-Detroit area are very limited in yardage (and maximized in price), and sourcing fabric outside of Michigan is a job within itself. Enter Michelle Roberts from Technical Textile Solutions. She is a local textile material consultant who loves to help local designers and brands, and it doesn't even matter the size of the company -- she does it all. Read on to learn all about fabric sourcing, and how Michelle could help you.

DGG: Tell us about yourself, Michelle.

Michelle Roberts: I am a mother, wife, daughter, and friend who loves helping people follow their dreams and achieve their goals in the fashion industry. I live in Grosse Pointe Park with my husband and two daughters. I like to snowboard in the winter, and play outside in the summer. I like music of all kinds, and smoking BBQ is my thing.  I am originally from North Carolina, but have lived in Michigan for 10 years, and I absolutely LOVE Detroit.

DGG: Tell us about Technical Textiles Solutions and what you do as a textile material consultant.

MR: Technical Textile Solutions is a textile and apparel consulting company. We specialize in helping entrepreneurs and brands develop, source, and test materials for their product lines. We have packages to fit any budget – from affordable packages that give our customers the knowledge and tools to do the work themselves, to completely done-for-them development and sourcing solutions that allow them to be creative while we take care of the behind-the-scenes sourcing. 

We provide communication templates for designers to use when communicating with suppliers so they get exactly what they need with less miscommunication.

The apparel industry is global. As designers and brands grow, they inevitably have to purchase more and more materials, and I am blessed to be able to help brands grow by helping them partner with the right global suppliers to ensure success. 

I also train clients to develop, source, and test material themselves from sources they never dreamed of working with before. I love teaching and sharing my knowledge and seeing designers' save money because they worked with me makes me feel great. Almost as great as when I had my two daughters… almost.

DGG: What’s the process of sourcing fabric?

MR: First, as the designer you have to know what your must-haves are. What are the hand-feel characteristics, the weight, the drape, and the aesthetics that you need for your garment? That drives everything else. Once you know that, you narrow down the construction, content, width, finishes, etc., that the fabric needs to have to support those aesthetic requirements.

This technical translation is where most designers could use some help; otherwise, they can waste a lot of money pursuing fabrics that won’t support the design vision. Material costs make up at least 50% of the cost of a garment, so a couple of lots of incorrect fabric can eat up a designers start up capital pretty quickly.

At this point, you need to create a target Fabric Data Sheet, or FDS, so you can communicate those aesthetic requirements in a more technical way. After you have those details nailed down, your search for fabrics begins. At this point, you need to have an understanding of your sales, targets or goals for the first six months to a year, so that you know how much fabric you can purchase. The number of units you can sell in the first six months to a year, coupled with knowing the number of yards needed per unit will give you a good estimate of how much fabric you need across all colorways.

Once you have communicated your fabric needs to your suppliers, samples start to come in. At this point, you’ll see a range of samples coming in at different price points, and from there you narrow down to a couple that you want to see in sample-yardage form. After three weeks to a month, those samples come in. From there, you choose your final fabric, negotiate prices, and start production. 

Once the fabric sourcing part is complete, you switch gears and begin color matching the fabric you chose by initiating lab dips to match your color standards.

DGG: What are your top tips for designers who are looking to source fabric for a collection?

MR:

     1)    Know the fabric characteristics that you can’t live without, and also know the characteristics that would be nice to have, but that aren’t absolutely necessary. That way, as fabrics come in, you are able to source the fabric and move on. If you don’t know when the fabric is right, you’ll fool yourself into thinking that the search for the perfect fabric is a necessity. And that ongoing search for the perfect fabric is the best way to waste thousands of dollars quick. 

    2)    Maximize base fabric use in your designs. Think about ways to use the same base fabric in different pieces within the collection so you can increase the amount of each fabric used. Using a higher volume of fewer fabrics will always make the most sense economically, and you can do it in a way that is not obvious, redundant, or uninspired.

     3)   Don’t be afraid to get help. Feeling comfortable with global sourcing will increase the odds of getting what you need at the right price, but we don’t come out of the womb knowing how to communicate with suppliers. Get training and education so you can feel as confident in communicating with fabric suppliers as you are in designing your collection.

    4)    Don’t be afraid to partner with other designers when you are starting out. Find a base fabric that several designers like, pool your volumes together to purchase the greige goods, and then each designer can color-match their quantity using their own signature colors, patterns, or finishes.  This way, you get the benefit of using a base fabric that you can purchase over and over again straight from the manufacturer, but each designer uses their own color standards or print patterns to really make that base fabric their own unique material

DGG: What is a fabric jobber? Are they necessary to have to get materials from textile companies?

MR: A fabric jobber now refers to a company that buys excess fabric from brands, suppliers, or vendors, and resells the fabric at a higher rate to the general public. Fabric minimums from a jobber are usually as low as one yard, but you usually cannot reorder the exact fabric again once it is gone. Even if you can reorder the fabric again, don’t expect the color to match from lot to lot.

A fabric jobber is good to use for small limited-edition collections where you don’t plan on running the same fabric for more than one order or run. You can also use a jobber to find a base fabric that you like, and then work to source a similar fabric direct with a manufacture. 

DGG: What tips do you have for designers who source fabric directly from a textile company?

MR: Give yourself plenty of time to develop, and over communicate what you need. Again, don’t be afraid to get training assistance to help you communicate the right things at the right time to help guarantee success.

DGG: What does your office look like?

MR: I have a home office with my client’s fabric in it, but since I do most of my work online, my office is really mobile. I have recently worked in Starbucks, airport bars in Thailand and Korea, and in a state park in Florida. All in a day’s work

DGG: Describe your style.

MR: As a mother, wife, and entrepreneur, I don’t have as much personal time as I used to, so my style reflects that. I need effortless pieces that are structured, yet comfortable, with interesting fabric texture and earthy tones. Think Elie Tahari. A DVF dress is always a choice that makes itself on most days, as far as I’m concerned. Throw in a few business attire staples from J. Crew, and I’m ready to go.

DGG: What is your favorite article of clothing and why?

MR: A wide black belt. Accentuating the waist is key, and always a good idea.

DGG: How do you take your coffee?

MR: Black, 99% of the time. I love the taste of coffee. If I want to put something in it, I’ll go for heavy cream, no sugar.

DGG: Silk or Satin?

MR: Silk, all day.

DGG: Donna Karan fabric or Marc Jacobs fabric?

MR: Donna Karan.