FAQ

We work with both start‑ups and established brands to bring products to market, offering everything from product design and development, through supply‑chain and production consulting, to brand identity, e‑commerce, packaging, and marketing. We have cross‑functional teams of fashion designers, technical designers, product developers and production managers who collaborate closely with clients to develop garments that meet high standards of quality and resonate with target audiences. We also handle supply‑chain setup and management, craft brand identities and e-commerce websites, and provide packaging and direct‑to‑consumer marketing support.

Stateless is an agile team of fashion industry experts that can plug into your business in multiple ways. We operate as both a consultancy—advising on strategy—and a design agency—executing creative and technical work at a high level. We also own The Stateless Factory in China, which we use for select projects when it’s the right fit. Beyond that, we maintain a vetted global network of manufacturers and suppliers, allowing us to build supply chains tailored to each client’s product niche, budget, and target retail price.

For fashion startups, we typically recommend enrolling in our Launch Program, which guides new brands through three structured phases.

1. Discover & Define – We help you articulate your brand vision and strategy, perform market research, and outline your brand positioning and direction.

2. Design & Validate – Our team produces design sketches and detailed tech packs, develops your brand identity and messaging, and creates a website landing page.

3. Produce & Distribute – We handle material sourcing, sample development and fittings, bulk production management, content production, website development, custom packaging, and marketing support.

To get started, reach out us here to schedule an introductory call where we will learn about your vision and outline a proposal tailored to your needs.

Not at all. While many of our clients are entrepreneurs starting their first clothing line, we also assist established labels looking to revamp their operations and increase efficiencies. Our services extend to retailers’ private‑labels, uniforms, and special projects for non‑profits and global enterprises.

This is for two very important reasons:

1. Many factories (especially in the U.S.) claim that they are “full package” and able to assist with design, development, sourcing, etc. This is especially true due to the rising popularity of entrepreneurship in the industry and small batch, direct-to-consumer, e-commerce produced in the U.S. The standards to which these factories are able to provide these services can be quite amateur. Factories typically are not expert designers, merchandisers, product developers, nor do they have category-specific experts with years of formidable experience on staff. Large apparel companies keep all of these functions in-house and use factories for what they do best: cutting and sewing. You need some distance between your design/development team and the manufacturer so your team can evaluate the factory’s work and push back when it’s not been completed in due time, within tolerance, or up to standards. Stateless will do this for your company, and will liaise/advocate on your behalf to the manufacturer in highly technical factory language.

2. Agility. You want your styles properly developed so that you have the ability to switch manufacturers at any time due to scaling or business shifts. You might want to switch overseas to get better costs. Your manufacturer might disappoint you in the quality of their work, and you want to switch to a manufacturer more proficient in whatever category you are producing. There is a big difference between a knit factory, a children’s knit factory, a fur factory, a denim factory, an activewear factory, etc. PSA: the biggest red flag is if a factory claims to be able to produce anything and everything. If you are feeling “yessed” by a factory, and they are quick to take your line on, beware. A lot of less-professional factories will say “YES” to anything. This is especially true if they get the sense that you are not an expert in the industry. We’ve even heard of factories completely shuttering without notifying their clients and all of their work is lost.

It really takes four unique skill sets to bring product to market, and each set is completely different than the other. You need fashion design, technical design, product development, and production management. An expert fashion designer is typically not a seasoned technical designer. And a technical designer is not a production manager. These four roles should be filled with people who are experts in these areas and know how to work cross-functionally with one another. They should share common spreadsheets, templates, processes, etc. to seamlessly and efficiently bring beautiful/professional-looking product to market.

We price in three different ways:

Flat rate per style, hourly consulting, and monthly retainer based on the scope of the line. We are not an agent, and only act, consult, advise, project manage, in the best interest of our clients. Factories/vendors invoice our clients directly. This is valuable for two reasons:

1. You will be able to add reputable high-quality manufacturing partners to your list of vendors (most of the time not the type of factory you can just Google)

2. You are building good credit for your brand with reputable factories, which is necessary in building a professional/sustainable product supply chain.

A great product will not get you very far if you don’t communicate its value clearly and consistently through high quality photography, messaging, graphics etc. But more importantly, fashion is about selling a world and a story as much as it is about selling a product. Stateless has a branding division that works closely with the apparel team to ensure your line is built within a unique, memorable identity.

While most agencies offer their services to a wide range of businesses, our branding team has a sole focus on fashion. From lookbooks, to tags, to packaging, to ecommerce websites, we intimately understand the unique ways your apparel brand will need to be implemented in both the short and long term, and we help you conceptualize and build your brand accordingly. Our branding team builds your brand with the apparel team as part of a single vision and plan to ensure cohesion and efficiency.

A tech pack is a detailed specification document that tells the factory exactly how to make each garment. It typically includes detailed flat designs with call‑outs, a bill of materials (fabric and trims), and size and construction specifications. Detailed tech packs are necessary for each garment to ensure manufacturers know exactly how to execute your design. Without a comprehensive tech pack, factories may interpret your design inconsistently, leading to costly production errors and delays. Stateless technical designers utilize their decades of industry experience to create professional‑grade tech packs that save our clients time and money.