Contemporary Cotton Shirt in Metallic Thread with Tonal Embroidery

Contemporary Cotton Shirt in Metallic Thread with Tonal Embroidery

A University Athletic Department approached us to develop a contemporary cotton shirt around a single idea: tonal embroidery, executed in metallic thread. The capsule was destined for Ukraine and needed contemporary finishing that reads designer on the rail while staying repeatable in bulk. This case study records the brief, the specification and the delivery.

The challenge

• The previous factory could not hold consistency across sizes
• Unit costs were too high for a boutique price point
• Fabric hand feel changed between production runs

What we specified

How it was built

1. Reference garments and moodboards were translated into a measurement spec, not just photos.
2. Metallic Thread was confirmed with lab dips and a hand-feel approval before grading.
3. The cotton shirt was prototyped on the fit model, then revised twice before pre-production.
4. Tonal Embroidery was applied in a controlled process to keep every piece consistent.
5. Bulk ran with in-line inspection; a photo report was shared before shipment.

Result

• 1,500 pieces delivered inside the 10-week window.
• Unit cost held within 2.0% of the approved quotation.
• The a University Athletic Department launched on schedule and reordered the same specification next season.

What we would repeat

Lock the colour standard before grading; every downstream approval depends on it.

Planning a similar capsule?

Tell us the quantity, target price and delivery window, and we will build a customisation programme around those three numbers.