Heads Up, Ladies
May 25, 2018

The garment manufacturing industry has seen great changes in women’s athletic apparel. While old processes involved simply reducing men’s clothing sizes and changing colors to pink, manufacturers are now producing more women-focused products with unique qualities. 

Woman Jogging Outdoors in Athletic WearNowadays, there are specific design elements for women’s apparel which set it apart, like the form-fitting look, scoop in the neck and the higher waist.  Women are looking for clothes that look good, are comfortable and can be attributed to a certain lifestyle. 

Manufacturers have increased their use of tri-blends (a combination of cotton, polyester and rayon) to produce this apparel. This fabric is popular and has the flexibility to fulfill the garment wants and needs of female consumers. 

The technical aspects of producing clothing must also be taken into consideration to ensure designs are printed properly. Manufacturers are adapting by creating a balanced process where the lightweight material used to create the apparel is smooth, so inks and prints will appear clean.

Many of these changes signal that the apparel business is about listening and responding to the entire production channel, from what distributors and decorators say to what the end consumer wants. All of this feedback goes into the changing of apparel designs and evolution of final products. 

Garment manufacturers are doing more research than ever of the female consumer, and they are using their input and style preferences to drive innovations in their product lines. 

Read more in the SGIA Journal Winter 2018 Garment edition at: https://www.sgia.org/garment/journal/2018/sgia-journal-garment-edition-winter-2018

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