Your eyes and hands in India · Est. 2019 · Replies within one working day

Private label kurtas from India: designs, prints and MOQ

A brand can build its own kurta line with Indian factories by supplying designs, choosing fabric and print, and agreeing minimums per style. Here is how the process works.

· 3 min read · Creston & Co

To make private label kurtas, you give an Indian factory your own designs, fabric choice, prints and labels, and it makes the line under your brand. You decide the styles and the factory makes them. Minimum order quantities are set per style, and often per colour and size, so they are the first thing to settle.

India is the natural source for this. Kurta pattern-making, hand and machine embroidery, block and screen printing and finishing all sit within the same supply base. The range of styles is in kurtas and ethnic wear for overseas buyers.

How does a private label kurta line start?

If you are looking for private label kurtas, start with a design pack. For each style, send a sketch or reference photograph, a size chart, the fabric and the construction details: neckline, sleeve, slit, length, buttons and lining. Add the print or embroidery artwork with positions and sizes. A full pack follows the contents in what goes into a garment tech pack.

The factory then makes a first sample, which you review and correct. Expect more than one round on a new style. Each stage is described in garment sampling stages.

Choosing fabric and prints

Cotton, rayon, linen blends and georgette are the usual choices. Your fabric decides the feel, the care instructions and the shrinkage you must plan for. Prints can be machine-made in the factory's own range, or you can supply your own design.

Own-design prints raise the question of copying. Make sure artwork you send is protected, and see the principles in protecting print designs in Surat. Hand work such as embroidery or block printing, covered in custom embroidery on garments, adds time and sets a smaller maximum for what a unit can make in a month. Plan the production calendar around it. Festival periods in India close many units for days, and an embroidered line can slip by weeks if you book late.

What are typical minimums?

Factories set minimums for good reasons. The cutting table, the line set-up and the print or dye run each have a fixed cost. Ask for the following figures in writing:

  • The minimum per style, and the minimum per colour inside a style.
  • How the quantity is split across sizes, and whether size ratios are fixed.
  • Whether the factory's own stock fabric or prints have a lower minimum than custom ones.
  • What happens to a custom fabric or print if you reorder, and whether the dye lot can be matched.

Labels, packing and compliance

Your own woven labels, care labels and hang tags are part of the private label. Care and fibre content labelling rules differ by market, as in garment care labelling rules for the US, UK and EU. Check them before you finalise the label artwork.

Colour consistency is also worth planning. A small colour run should not hold up the order, so agree early how many pieces make up each colour and how the dye lot will be matched on a reorder.

Next step

We find factories that fit your style and volume, check samples against your pack and supervise production and loading. Book a free sourcing review and bring your first designs.

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