Garment Glossary

amfori is a global business association for open and sustainable trade. Its BSCI (Business Social Compliance Initiative) programme audits factories against a code of conduct covering workers' rights, pay, hours and health and safety.

The main production run of an order, made after every sample and component has been approved. Anything changed at bulk stage is usually expensive and slow, which is why sampling comes first.

Garments made from scratch: fabric is cut to your own patterns and sewn together, rather than decorating an existing blank garment. It gives full control over fit, fabric, colour and construction.

A logo or design stitched into the fabric with thread. Artwork is first 'digitised' into a stitch file. Embroidery is hard-wearing and suits polos, jackets, caps and workwear.

The first garments to come off the production line. They are checked against the approved sample before the rest of the bulk run carries on, so problems are caught early.

An early sample made to check how a garment fits and hangs on the body, and whether it works as intended. Measurements and construction are adjusted from it.

Scaling a pattern up and down to create each size in a range. A graded size chart sets the measurement change between every size.

A small swatch of fabric dyed to match a target colour, usually a Pantone reference, sent for approval before the bulk fabric is dyed. Several rounds may be needed to get an exact match.

The time from order confirmation to delivery. For bespoke garments it includes sampling and approvals as well as production and shipping, so it is longer than for decorated stock garments.

UK law requiring organisations with a turnover of £36 million or more to publish an annual statement on the steps they take to prevent slavery and human trafficking in their business and supply chains.

A fabric's ability to draw sweat away from the skin to the outer surface, where it evaporates, keeping the wearer dry. Common in performance polyester used for sportswear.

The smallest number of units a factory will make of a style or colour. Bespoke, cut and sew garments generally carry higher MOQs than decorated stock garments.

The agreed tolerance between the quantity ordered and the quantity delivered, because a production run rarely lands on an exact number. It is usually expressed as a percentage.

A standardised colour-matching system. Quoting a Pantone reference gives factories, dye houses and printers the same target colour.

Polyester fibre made from recycled plastic, typically PET drinks bottles, which are cleaned, broken down and re-spun into yarn. It performs in the same way as conventional polyester.

The final pre-production sample made with every approved fabric, trim and finish. Once signed off it becomes the reference standard that bulk production is checked against.

Garments delivered finished for sale: labelled, swing-tagged, barcoded and bagged, so they can go straight onto a shelf or into an online store's warehouse.

Printing ink through a fine mesh stencil onto fabric, with a separate screen for each colour. It gives strong, durable colour and is cost-effective on larger runs.

Supplier Ethical Data Exchange: a membership organisation and online platform that companies use to share and manage data on responsible sourcing, labour standards and ethical trade across their supply chains.

A set of samples made in a range of sizes to confirm that grading and measurements are correct across the whole size run, not just the sample size.

Sedex Members Ethical Trade Audit: a widely used social audit methodology covering labour standards, health and safety, environment and business ethics at a production site.

Ready-made blank garments bought from a wholesaler and then decorated, for example by printing or embroidery. They allow quick turnaround and low quantities, but the garment itself cannot be changed.

A test of a print, embroidery or other decoration on the actual production fabric, sent for approval of colour, size and placement before bulk decoration.

Dye-sublimation printing: a design is printed onto transfer paper with special inks, then heat-pressed so the ink turns to gas and bonds into polyester fibres. The print won't crack or peel and allows full-colour, all-over designs.

A card tag attached to a garment with a fastener, carrying branding, price, size, barcode or care information.

Short for technical package: the full specification of a garment that a factory builds from. It covers technical drawings, measurements and size chart, fabrics, trims, colours, construction details, labelling and packaging.

Every component of a garment other than the main fabric, such as zips, buttons, labels, drawcords, elastic, tapes and toggles.

Products made by one company and sold under another company's brand name. The manufacturer's name does not appear on the product.

The two main fabric constructions. Woven fabrics interlace threads at right angles and are stable, as in shirts and jacket shells. Knitted fabrics are made from interlocking loops and stretch, as in T-shirts, polos and sports jerseys.