Article
It depends on whether you want your own label in the neck. A relabelled first drop takes four to six weeks from artwork approval, so artwork approved in the first week of November lands between the end of November and the third week of December. Without your own labels, decoration and finishing only is usually two to three weeks.
Those are the honest numbers, and they count from artwork approval, not from your first email. Here is how to work back from the date you need stock in hand, what still fits before Christmas, and what is better left for a January drop.
Count back from the date you need the stock
Start with the day the garments need to be with you, not the day you want to start selling. If you are posting to customers, that day sits before the last Christmas posting dates. If you are selling at a market or a pop-up, it sits before the first one. Then take the lead time off it.
| Route | Lead time | Counted from |
|---|---|---|
| Your own woven label, care label and swing ticket | Four to six weeks | Artwork approval |
| Decoration and finishing only, no labels | Usually two to three weeks | Artwork approval |
| Woven labels | 10 to 14 working days, alongside production | Artwork approval |
| Branded packaging | 4 to 6 weeks, minimum 1,000 | Order |
| Reorders on approved artwork | The same as the first run | Artwork approval |
What has to happen before the clock starts
The lead time starts when you approve the artwork in writing. Before that, we prepare your artwork, issue visual proofs and confirm the label folds, tag sizes and print placement. If your logo needs rebuilding as a vector file, that happens first. If you want a sample in your hand before you commit, and on a first drop we would, that comes first too.
Brand launch orders are also paid in full before production, because we are buying stock and making your labels to order. None of this is slow, but all of it sits in front of the four to six weeks, so the sooner the artwork arrives, the more of November you keep.
What still works before Christmas
- A labelled drop with artwork approved early in November. Four to six weeks is tight, but realistic if the design is settled and you skip nothing.
- A smaller unlabelled drop of a design you are sure of. Decoration and finishing only is usually two to three weeks. On most blanks the supplier label stays in the neck. Native Spirit garments are made with no label in the neck at all, which makes them the cleaner choice for this route.
- Embroidered caps and beanies. Embroidery has no unit minimum, so headwear works at small quantities.
- A pre-order. Take orders in December for January delivery, and let the money in hand set the quantity.
What to leave until January
- Branded packaging. It is 1,000 minimum and made to order on 4 to 6 weeks, so if it is not already ordered it will not be here for a December launch.
- A second label placement, such as a woven label on the sleeve. It is a second label design, a second run of 100, and one more thing to approve.
- Anything you are still deciding. A brand name, a garment or a print colour changed after approval means new labels, a new set-up or a new proof, and the clock starts again.
“The lead time starts at artwork approval, not at your first email.”
Rushing costs more than it saves
The temptation in November is to skip the sample or approve a proof you are not sure about. The sample is the step that catches a weight that feels wrong or a print that sits too high, and a first drop with a mistake in it is a first drop you cannot sell at full price. If Christmas does not fit your order, we would rather tell you so when we quote than promise a date we cannot keep.
A January launch is not a lost season. It is quieter, the decisions get the time they need, and you launch with stock that is exactly what you meant it to be.
Where to go next
Every step from artwork to delivery is on how it works, and the minimums are set out in minimum order quantities explained. For winter pieces, look at the hoodies and the caps and beanies. When the artwork is ready, get your first drop quoted and we will give you the dates.
