Custom Apparel Manufacturing FAQ

Manufacturing custom apparel — especially as a start-up clothing brand — is an involved process. There are many considerations and many questions you may have. Our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) can answer some basic and essential questions regarding custom apparel manufacturing and Stylus Apparel. Please make sure you check this page before contacting Stylus Apparel.

Click on any of the questions to quickly jump down to the answer.

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Apparel Manufacturing: Order Basics

What is your minimum order for your apparel manufacturing services?

Apparel manufacturing service minimums depend on what you are ordering.

Screen Printing	Garment Embroidery	Dye-Sublimation Printing		Cut and Sew Manufacturing	Woven Labels
		Blank Garments	Cut and Sew
36 pcs. per design	36 pcs. per design	24 pcs. per design	72 pcs. per design 12 pcs. per size	72 pcs. per design 12 pcs. per size	1000 pcs.

How do discounts work?

Stylus Apparel offers quantity discounts. That is — the more total garments you order, the less each individual garments will cost. If you are trying to order only 50 shirts, try increasing your quantity of shirts to 100, 250, or even 5,000. See the difference in price and price per piece!

Can I order a sample before ordering?

Stylus Apparel will produce a sample free of charge with any production order. However: free pre-production samples cannot be created until we have received the production order deposit.

If you would like a sample before putting in a production order, we can accommodate that request — but will have to charge for the sample.

While we can technically produce a finished sample for any garment, the cost of a sample can be prohibitively expensive in small orders. In small run orders, it is simply not cost effective to request a sample. If you want a sample no matter what, please be aware of the cost.

General sampling costs can be found on our Cut and Sew Sampling and Production page.

Apparel and Garments

Is your blank apparel catalog all you have?

The website does not list our complete selection of customizable apparel products. Stylus Apparel has partnered with several blank apparel suppliers – we have access to thousands of products. If you do not see what you want, please let us know.

Can I bring my own garments to Stylus for embroidery, screen printing, or other services?

Yes. However, please discuss Bring Your Own (BYO) with us first. There may be a conflict between your desired apparel style and your desired service (e.g., you cannot bring us a non-polyester t-shirt for dye-sublimation printing).

Artwork, Color, and Logos

Can you do precise color matching?

Precise color matching depends on the services you need. We can mix Pantone colors for inks in screen printing and dyes in sublimation. As for embroidery, since there is no way for us to “mix” threads, we are limited to the stock color selection provided by our thread suppliers.

What if I don’t have a design, artwork, or logo?

We do not offer artwork creation or artwork design services. We are not an artwork studio and we do not specialize in the creation of such artwork. For the best possible results, we strongly recommend pursuing someone with a specialty in art, design, and logo creation.

What if my artwork, design, or logo is not in production-ready format?

We do offer artwork conversion: that is, if your artwork or logo is not in digitized, production-ready format, we can convert the logo from non-standard format into standard production formats (e.g., DST for embroidery or vector-based logo for screen printing).

When you digitize my artwork or logo, who owns the digitized file?

Stylus Apparel retains copies to all files we have digitized. If you require your digitized artwork files, we will absolutely deliver them to you. Please let us know if you need your artwork files.

Custom Apparel Manufacturing Quote Process

Do you send proofs prior to apparel production?

You will always receive a proof of your order before it is put into production. We do not print, sublimate, embroider, or otherwise create anything without your express, written approval.

Please review your proofs carefully. Look over all the information listed within the proof, review the images carefully, and request changes with anything you are not happy with.

• If you need changes made to your items, please let us know upon receipt of your proof. We cannot be held responsible for mistakes and errors that occur if you have approved production without carefully reviewing your proof information.
• If you do not need changes to your proof, please reply to the e-mail and let us know you approve your proof for production. Remember, we cannot move forward with production until we have received written approval of a proof.

How long does it take to get back to me regarding a quote or other contact?

Simple services such as screen printing, embroidery labels are usually with in 24 hours (excluding weekends, holidays, and other closures). More complex inquiries like cut and sew manufacturing or dye-sublimation printing can take up to three days.

Apparel Manufacturing Order Timing

How long does it typically take to complete an order?

Order turnaround is impossible to precisely estimate without the details of a given project: turnaround times can depend on the services rendered and the complexity of the order. Standard screen printing and embroidery orders are 2 weeks; sublimation printing on blank garments are also 2 weeks. Anything cut and sew is 3-6 weeks. Also remember that shipping times are not included in the turnaround estimate for your order.

When does the clock start for my order turnaround time?

Your order turnaround time begins when payment has been processed. Please take this into consideration when calculating your in-hands date.

Here’s an example — let’s say you contact Stylus Apparel on the 1st of January for screenprinted garments. You need your garments on the 15th of January for an event. On the 1st of January, you begin the ordering process, and you let everyone know you need your goods on the 15th of January. After the order is initialized, however, you do not make a payment immediately — you wait until the 6th of January to make your payment. Unfortunately, at this point, we will need to either charge a rush fee, or we must deliver your goods with the standard two week turnaround for the 20th of January.

This is, again, because we do not begin processing your order until after you have submitted a payment.

How can I make sure my order is not delayed?

• Please make sure you are absolutely ready to order.
• Please make sure all the information you submit is correct and complete, especially payment information.
• Please be ready to respond to Stylus Apparel with any change requests, and approvals. We will contact you through the process of ordering custom apparel. Failure on your part to reply with approvals or change requests will result in a delay of your order: again, we will not print, sublimate, embroider, or create anything without your express, written approval.
• Please avoid unnecessary contact with Stylus Apparel. We are more than happy to give you an update on the status of your order! However, calling us with too much frequency can distract our employees and delay production.

Can you do rush orders?

For screen printing and embroidery, we can generally do rush orders. Please indicate that your job should be rushed when you are ordering. If you submit an order and then ask for it to be rushed, there is a chance our production schedule will not allow us to fulfill your order as requested.

• Please note: non-negotiable rush fees, calculated by the day, accompany all rush orders.
• Please also note: dye-sublimation printing, cut and sew manufacturing, and woven labels cannot be rushed.

Order Changes

What if I want to add additional garments after I have already placed an order?

It depends on the type of order and how much time has passed. Once the adjustment period has passed, we are unable to make quantity adjustments to your order.

• Screen Printing and Embroidery: You can add garments within THREE days of placing your order.
• Cut and Sew and Sublimation: You can add garments within FIVE days of placing your order.

What if I want to cancel my order?

Please contact us as soon as possible regarding cancellation. Refunds for cancelled orders are at the express discretion of Stylus Apparel and its employees. If we have already made significant progress on your order, cancellation may not be possible.

Payment

When is payment due?

• For orders over $1,000: A deposit of 50% is required before production begins. The balance of your order is required before we release your finished products to you.
• For orders under $1,000: Payment is due in full before production begins.

Please be aware that we do not begin production on an order until a deposit or a full payment has been completed. We additionally do not release finished goods under any circumstances without receiving payment in full.

What kind of payment will you accept?

Credit cards, debit cards, bank checks, money orders, and cash.

Can you (send me a proof, send me a sample, digitize my artwork, order my goods, etc.) before I make a deposit?

No. Stylus Apparel will not move forward with an order until we have received a deposit or a payment in full (depending on the full total of the order). It takes time to create proofs, samples, and digitize artwork. If we do these things prior to receiving payment, a client could decide to bring the proofs, digitized artwork, or other work we have done to another print shop without compensation. Our loss of money and time means we cannot serve our customers as effectively – and that’s a big problem!

Shipping

Can you give me a shipping cost estimate?

Shipping costs depend where you are located. Shipping costs within the continental USA are, on average, 30 cents per garment.

I am local to Linden, New Jersey — can I pick up my order in person?

Absolutely. Please let us know in advance if you plan to pick up your order.

After Receiving An Order

What should I do if there is an error or issue with my order?

Contact us immediately. Your complete satisfaction is of the utmost importance to us! Stylus Apparel is a professional apparel factory. We have several standards and procedures in place to assure our quality remains top-notch – nevertheless, we are human and mistakes sometimes happen. If there is an error, misprint, or issue with your order, we will work to correct mistakes, errors, or mishaps that have occurred. Again, your satisfaction is of supreme importance to Stylus Apparel.

Please note – we cannot be held responsible for any errors or misprints that occur with apparel you provide (BYO orders).

What should I do if I want to re-order?

Please contact us directly.

Will I pay the same amount on a re-order?

Generally, no. If you paid to have your logo digitized into DST format, or if you paid to have your artwork vectorized, or if you paid screen set-up fees — these fees will not be charged again when you re-order with Stylus Apparel.

Contacting Stylus Apparel & Other

How do you prefer to be contacted?

We unanimously prefer e-mail contact at Stylus Apparel. This is for several reasons. The most important reason that we prefer e-mail, by far: there is much less room for error. Phone calls are verbal and there is no record of a the contents of a phone call, only that a phone call occurred. With e-mail, both you and the employees of Stylus Apparel have the full power to review the entirety of a conversation. This is advantageous to both parties – both Stylus Apparel and you will benefit from written records. Please note, in some instances, we may require written contact. This is especially true in the case of artwork approvals.

Can I have a contact number?

If you have not placed a quote or requested an order, unfortunately the answer is no. We do not list our phone number on our website precisely because we cannot contact you to discuss your order, pricing, or anything else until we have some information as collected by our quotation request forms.

Please note: we can absolutely have discussions via phone once you have submitted a quotation form. However, you must, as your first step of contacting Stylus Apparel regarding a specific project, submit a quotation form.

How should I contact you for an update I have already placed?

Please use our Contact form. If your request is urgent (i.e., an emergency) please feel free to call us instead. Always have your order number ready when you are requesting a status update on your order.

Other Questions

What are your hours of operation?

Monday through Friday, 9 AM to 5 PM, Eastern Time.

Can we meet to discuss my project?

Yes! But before we can setup a meeting with one of our representatives, we will need you send us all information pertaining to your project for review.

Why do I have to register for Stylus Apparel?

Stylus Apparel is a wholesale manufacturer — we protect our brands. Because we are a wholesale manufacturer and we deal with brands, corporations, businesses, and organizations directly, it is of the utmost importance that we accept only serious business inquiries from serious business partners. This helps us achieve clientele goals more effectively.

Does Stylus Apparel share my personal information with anyone else?

Absolutely not. Your information will never be given, sold, or otherwise transmitted to a third party. We don’t like spam, either.

Can you e-mail me, contact me, or otherwise get in touch with me regarding a clothing piece I am interested in creating?

No. This is for one very big, very important reason: talking to you without first gathering the required information (i.e., through our quote forms) is wasteful of everyone’s time. If you’re interested in Cut and Sew Manufacturing, for instance, speaking with a representative before submitting your CAD, mock-up, and/or tech-pack is essentially pointless. We need a lot of information to answer any questions you may have.

What seems like a broad, easily-answered question to you may actually hinge on several factors, depending on the service you choose — just asking, “Can you do X on Y product for me” is not a question we can easily answer. Asking a broad question outside of its context — i.e., outside of the context of your particular piece and the garment manufacturing you choose — is basically meaningless.

We can answer, “Well, yes, but…” and list off 50-60 scenarios where it may not be possible. This results in you getting a lot of irrelevant information that is not useful to you, and results in us wasting time telling you this irrelevant information.

Or — we can gather the specific, relevant information about your product, your garment, and your project, and give you one answer hand-tailored to your piece, situation, and finances.

The latter is a much more efficient way to work, and the only way Stylus Apparel works.