Contractor Relations....

If you’re a new apparel business owner I’m sure you’ve been there. You’re looking for contractors and what might you experience??

A few snubs. Unreturned calls. That “we can’t be bothered…you’re way too small for us..we have much more important customers “attitude.

Unfortunately it happens. But the end of the day all we want to do is get our lines off the ground. So we deal with it. We take it on the chin and work with people we may feel less than comfortable with.

It can be challenging and scary to invest dollars and time in this type of situation. So I put together a few tips to help you out along the way….

Tips for Working with Garment Contractors…

1. Be Your Own Publicist. Promote yourself to your contractors. Tell them about your growth plans and get them to believe in you. You want them to feel good about working with you the same way you want to feel good about working with them. If they believe you have a bright future and can eventually become a bigger account they could become a lot more accommodating.

2. Write it out. Show your professionalism. Give contractors written purchase orders and printed directions. Contractors don’t like indecisiveness…and if they do you better believe they are charging you for it. Show them you know exactly what you want and be clear on what you expect. You may be tempted to be overly benevolent if you’ve found a contractor you really like. Be respectful but never forget who’s the boss. It’s you…silly!

3. Do Your Due Diligence. If you’re a little green…some unscrupulous contractors may look at you like red meat. For that reason amongst others, see if you can find a referral, a reference or just look them up on the web. Do some due diligence before paying the real cost as well as the opportunity cost for working with the wrong company.

Finding good, compliant and reliable garment contractors can be a hard road. If you’re new to the industry that’s even more reason for you to start getting involved in the manufacturing community. Attend classes, go to trade shows, strike up conversations as you wait for your coffee at the fashion district Starbucks.

Start by running names by people. Although everyone may not be ready to give up the name of who they are directly working with…people are usually more than willing to give you a heads up if you’re thinking about working with the slimiest company in town.

Good luck….