Manufacturing: Do-it-yourself vs. outsourcing

Tracey sent this question recently:

Why did you decide to hire seamstresses and manufacture Robeez yourself rather than look for a shoe/leather apparel manufacturer and have them made?

Good question! When I first started Robeez, the reason I decided to coordinate manufacturing myself was to save money. There were initial start-up costs and higher price per item associated with manufacturing companies. I knew that in order to make my home business profitable, I needed to operate on a lean budget. So I purchased a leather cutting machine and cut the leather pieces in my garage. I then compiled all the notions needed to make a pair of Robeez and sent the items to home-based seamstresses. I received the sewn shoes and I would then flip the shoes, clip the threads, and package them in bags. This process was certainly labour intensive but it was far more cost-effective.

As time went on, we chose to keep the Robeez manufacturing operation in Vancouver. There were a number of reasons that guided this decision: 1) Quality. In-house production means we can keep tabs on the quality of the product distributed. 2) Turnaround time. Shoes can quickly be produced as needs, within a matter of days if necessary. 3) Lead time. When production is outsourced there are often long leads times between order and delivery.4) New designs can be introduced to the market with very short lead times.

Tracey also had a few more questions: Also, did you have to patent the design? I am being told that patenting a design in the fashion business is not possible. Nor will a NDA hold water when looking for a manufacturer and presenting them with samples. Was this your experience? I received the same advice when I explored the subject with a patent lawyer.

What to do when you’re not the expert

I am not a seamstress either so I can relate to this comment! (I think the last time I took out my sewing machine, was to make the first pairs of Robeez.)

A question from Sophia: I’m looking at clothing created for children, but my problem is that I don’t sew. I’m having a difficult time finding someone that will sew what I’m looking for. Is there anyone you could recommend or at least a direction that I can go?

I faced this same challenge in the early years of Robeez. For the first few years, we followed a cottage industry production model. Here’s how it worked: I cut the leather pieces and prepared the notions. All the pieces were then delivered to a seamstress who worked from home. Seamstresses were paid on a per piece basis. The shoes were then returned to me and I reviewed the shoes and prepared them for packaging.

There are a number of places to find seamstresses:

• Visit a local drycleaner/alteration store for recommendations
• Place an ad in a local newspaper
• Poll friends and family for contacts
• Contact a local college or design school with a fashion program

This production model worked for a number of years. As time went on, Robeez grew quickly, and we decided to bring production in-house to manage volumes and quality. Today, Robeez has over 200 leather cutters, seamstresses, and quality control coordinators working in our production facility.

Can we build it?

The next post deals with regional vs. overseas manufacturing. Here’s an email I received recently:

We need more baby products with "made in Canada" and "made in USA” labels. My question for Robeez founder: How did you manage not to move offshore? Do you credit your success partly because your product was made in Canada? Did retailers care about it or not? What would you advise to business women who (or wants to) manufacture locally?

It is rare these days to turn over a label and read “made in Canada” or “made in USA.” Overseas manufacturing is definitely a reality in today’s marketplace.

I may sound like your mother but “if everyone jumped off a cliff, would you?” My mompreneur advice: don’t assume that because “everyone” is manufacturing offshore that this is the best option for your business, especially when you first start out. For Robeez, we have always maintained production of our shoes and booties in BC. Simply said, local manufacturing fit our business model and contributed to our success. We see a number of benefits to doing things this way:

• Quick turnaround – ordering products from overseas takes months of lead time to allow for production and shipping
• Quality control – maintaining a high level of quality is important to our customers
• Quantity control – minimum order quantities are often required in offshore manufacturing, by sewing shoes here we can make as many or as few as we need, quickly!

I believe you need to look at your business model and the product you want to create.
There are many products that are complex, using materials that require special machinery and fixtures to produce. In these situations, offshore manufacturing is a likely choice. But for simpler products like Robeez, we chose to keep manufacturing local.

Now for the second part of the question: Did retailers care about it or not? In Canada, there are a number of boutiques that cater specifically to locally made goods. To these retailers, our made in Canada label is extremely important. But for the vast majority of retailers, the label influences rather than drives purchase decisions.

I can say that I am extremely proud to know that Robeez provides local jobs and contributes to the BC economy. There are currently over 300 people employed at our head office in Burnaby.

So the moral of today’s message? Should mompreneurs manufacture their wares overseas? It depends. Carefully look at your budget. Consider the product you are making. Consider who will sell your product. What is their order cycle? Do they order six months in advance or place an order and expect delivery next week? All these factors will impact your ultimate decision.