Many workshops and small kidswear brands discover they can sell more by producing for others than under their own name. Online shops, small store chains, marketplace sellers and concept stores increasingly want their own collections with their own label, without owning a workshop. For a manufacturer, private label brings larger and more predictable orders, but also responsibilities you need to understand before signing.
Who buys private label kidswear
Typical customers are:
- online children's stores wanting a better margin than they get on resold brands;
- sellers on eMAG and other marketplaces who need products of their own rather than the same items as ten other sellers;
- small store chains wanting a line of basics under their name;
- nurseries, clubs and event organisers wanting personalised collections.
Each type of customer has a different level of technical knowledge. A chain arrives with a tech pack and quality standards; a small online shop often arrives with a photo and an idea. In the second case, product development becomes part of the service you invoice.
Who does what: splitting responsibilities
Agree in writing from the start:
- Design and patterns: does the client supply them or do you develop them? Who owns them afterwards?
- Fabric: do you buy it or does the client supply it?
- Labels and packaging: who orders them and who is responsible for their content?
- Product compliance: who places the product on the market, and who keeps the technical documentation?
The last point is crucial for children's clothing. European rules, including the GPSR, set obligations for whoever places a product on the market under their name. Agree with the client and, where needed, a lawyer who takes on each obligation.
The approval process, step by step
A well-run private label project follows the same stages every time:
- Brief and tech pack: styles, sizes, colours, quantities and deadline.
- Fabric selection and, for special colours, a lab dip approved by the client.
- Prototype in the base size, with corrections.
- Pre-production sample, sewn in the actual fabric with the actual labels.
- Written approval of the pre-production sample.
- Bulk production, quality control and packing.
Never start bulk production without written approval of the pre-production sample. It is the reference document if disputes arise over colour, sizing or finish.
Minimums and pricing
The minimum you ask for depends on the fabric and on the production process. With stock fabric you can accept small runs of a few dozen pieces per colour. If the client wants their own colour, the minimum is set by the dye house. As a hypothetical example, with a minimum of 150 kg per colour and roughly 0.3 kg of fabric per kids' hoodie, a custom colour means around 500 hoodies in that colour, spread across sizes.
Private label prices are quoted per piece, delivered, with every stage included. Development (patterns, prototypes) is either invoiced separately or recovered over the first order, but say clearly which.
A product example for private label
For an autumn–winter line, a hoodie and jogger are ideal private label pieces: stable styles, easy to personalise with embroidery or print, and with repeat demand. We would start from 250 g sage green brushed 3-thread fleece in combed cotton and polyester with a brushed inside. At 250 gsm it is warm without being heavy for children, and sage green is a neutral shade that works for boys and girls alike. Heavier options are available across the 3-thread fleece family.
Clauses that protect you
- payment terms and a deposit for fabric, especially for special colours;
- accepted tolerances for colour, measurements and delivered quantity;
- ownership of patterns and the right to make similar styles for other clients;
- exclusivity, if requested, limited in time and to one product category;
- the procedure and deadline for quality claims.
The sage green fleece ships from stock in Afumați with no minimum, so you can make prototypes and pre-production samples straight away. For the client's own colours, the same construction is produced in the 220 card colours from 150 kg per colour, with a lab dip for special shades. Send us the specification in a quote request.
Frequently asked questions
Who is responsible for the safety of private label kidswear?
It depends on who places the product on the market and what the contract says. Usually the brand selling under its own name has significant obligations under European rules, but the manufacturer must deliver to specification and keep evidence of it. Set responsibilities out in writing with legal advice.
Can I make the same style for several clients?
If the pattern is yours and you haven't signed an exclusivity clause, usually yes, with different labels and colours. If the client developed and paid for the pattern, they may expect exclusivity. Settle pattern ownership in the contract before development starts.
Which documents should I get from the client before production?
A tech pack with measurements per size, quantities per colour and size, artwork for labels and packaging, written approval of the colour and the pre-production sample, and agreed payment terms. Without these, any later dispute becomes very hard to resolve.
