Ever wonder what goes into making your own product? As an assistant project manager I’ve helped clients in all different stages of the process. Whether it be a handbag, dog bed or anything in between, designing and producing a new product involves a lot of work with a giant pay off. Below I outline each of those steps to help you get an idea just how much work it is.
1) The TEch Pack
When you have a solid idea of what your product will look like, it is time to make a tech pack. These can be based off of sketches you’ve done or they can come straight from your head to the computer.
Tech packs contain the exact measurements of each component of your product—whether that be the size of the snaps you’re using or amount of space between the notches on a strap, all of it needs to be measured to ensure production runs smoothly.
2) Sourcing
You’ve probably known what you what your product to be made of from the moment you came up with the idea. Sometimes our dream fabric and hardware either A.) isn't available in your specific color (yet!) or B.) is much more expensive than you thought it would be. Sourcing allows you to feel potential fabric options and see hardware finishes. Your hardware’s finish being gold, nickel, or brass may have a greater impact on your product’s design than you would think. Sometimes when sourcing you come across an even better material than you thought possible!
3) Pattern & Sample Making
Once you’ve decided on the fabrics, trims, and hardware for your product it’s time for the most exciting part of the process—the sample! When a sample is made, a pattern must be made as well. It’s the cookie cutter for your product. What once was just an idea in your head is now a tangible thing that you can hold in your hand!
Sometimes when a sample is made, some changes may need to be made to either the tech pack or the materials used to make the product and that’s okay!
4) Production
After the sample is approved, it’s time to start producing larger quantities to sell to your customers. This can often feel like the easiest step of the process because it’s all about the making and less about decisions.
5) Photography
You may have seen the recent blog post about product photography. This is the time to make your product the star of your brand. There are different approaches to capturing your product’s best angle and finding the one that works best for your brand may take some time and experimentation.
6) Branding
Developing your brand identity (logo, tagline, color palette) even before your product is made is important. It allows your customer to really understand the brand and its values so by the time your product is ready to hit the shelves, there is already a demand created.
7) Website & Social Media
Creating a website and various social media profiles for your brand is one of the easiest (and least expensive) tools to help you create buzz about your product. It allows you to directly interact with your customer base.
8) Hit the Shelves!
With the branding and production complete, it’s time to start selling. One of the many perks with making with Clutch Made is that you can also sell with us on our sister platform, Clutch Bags!
No matter what step of the process you are in making your own product, we’re here to work with you. Contact us today to see what other services we can offer you.
We’re the Factory You Can Talk to!