CB200

Regarding size changes. Totally understandable given the price of the garment that there would be more uniformity in measurements expected. While it can be disappointing, the manufacturing of products out of fabric will always have some variations between individual products and different product runs. There's lots of places for variation to enter into the production process . Some off the top of my head... the tension of the bolt of fabric, resting time variations between spreading of fabrics, cutting variance when cutting panels, seam allowance difference between operators, distortions through heat pressing during production, distortions of fabric while being sewn, final pressing differences...

With so many places for distortions, It's expected that there will be - some - variations in final production pieces. Each tech pack (blue print) for a product will have the tolerance listed as to what is acceptable for these differences. We don't know what the tolerance that would allow something to fall within spec for the pants.  I'd expect that it would be high, but sometimes "half grade" is considered acceptable. If the next size up is two inches bigger... half the grade would be an inch. One would think they would have a tighter tolerance, but who knows. 

Certainly steps should be done to eliminate as much variation as possible but there will always be some. Shifting production facilities over seas would certainly add to the challenge of maintaining product dimensions between items and production runs. Maybe it's a one off issue time will tell if QC becomes an issue. Getting measurements off an actual garment is the only way to be, somewhat, sure of what you're getting. On a pair of pricy pants- the seller should be happy to provide. 

1 hour ago, chris_n said:

The size discrepancy between colors is really odd and alarming tbh

Many fabrics need to relax after they are unrolled before you cut panel pieces. If it is not given sufficient time to relax before cutting there can be continued shrinkage of the fabric after a panel is cut. This results in the pane piece's dimensions being smaller than the pattern and a smaller final product would be the result. Variations in fit between products sewn from different "cuts" using the same patterns and markers can happen in this way, along with natural variations from being a hand made product with fabrics that may have some degree of stretch to them. 

A big Canadian yoga apparel brand has made a small investment in a small Canadian cycling apparel brand. The small brand  employs one of the original Veilance designers and was started by the ex CEO of Arcteryx. It will be interesting to see if there will be any cross fertilization design wise outside of Cycling.

2 hours ago, CARLOOA said:

 Additionally, I'd like to see Acronym incorporate polartec alpha, I like how well it functions for aerobic activities while retaining enough heat when cold.

Agree, unfortunately it's normally designed into more of an outer layer and max breathabilty gets mucked up by less than breathable face layers used to push it as outerwear. The newer iteration that doesn't need a face and backer might be an answer to this... but I've only seen ugly applications of it so far. Love to see some out the box thinking with this material.   

When i was in Copenhagen, Wood wood Museum had more tech leaning product than their other shop. Seemed a bit away from other shops but worth the short trip and close to some good coffee.

Here's a Dyneema based jacket jacket that's on the market now. http://nwalpine.com/store-1/eyebright-jacket 

I do wonder how crinkly the jacket would be... the packs I've felt with the fabric are fairly pretty stiff. Like the Tom Sachs / NASA vibe of the fabric in general. 

8 hours ago, conqueror said:

not veilance, but can anyone suggest a size in the beta SL for someone 6'1/175lb - presumably a M? they have almost zero distribution in australia so I'm gonna have to gamble and order from the states. apparently the cut has changed in the last year or so.

edit: no pit zips? fuck.

Medium should fit you. I'm same height with 15 more pounds and M fits fine in the SL I tried on.

You have to consider that most consumer brand have more than just end users as a customer. Wholesale accounts and international distributors are also customers. The MSRP needs to make sense relative to all types of customers and the discounts and terms offered at those different levels. 

It looks like you have your own brand. Take a look at your own costs and margins. Could you survive (let alone have money left over to market and acquire customers) if you had wholesale prices at 50% off your current prices plus a 5% discount for early booking and 10% commission to sales reps and gave retail accounts 30-90 day payment terms? 

I agree that direct to consumer offers the possibility to offer more value to customers as that model can capture all the margin of the final sale. It's not a model that will work for all brands and keeping prices viable at a wholesale level is important for many.  

A "water resistant jacket" is HS 6201.93.30 and 7%. A classification change in HS code can make a big difference in duties. I would guess that any jacket from the CO could be classified as "water resistant" due to it's DWR.

The 2in1 is also great but can't justify when you already own similar ACR pieces, for insulation I'm still not sold on synthetic. 

Warmth for weight it's pretty hard to beat quality down, but it's a pretty big category with "down" covering insulation from from low purity and fillpower duck to high purity treated goose down with 1000+ Fillpower. As far as synthetics, I think one of the most interesting synthetics right now is polartec Alpha. Originally designed for the US military and made to be more focused on temperature regulation than flat out warmth. Unfortunately, I've only seen it built into more outdoor outerwear styled pieces and not (yet) seen it used in more minimalist or urban pieces. It would make a pretty great pull-over or shirt. 

There was a small story comparing different fabric ability to support bacteria and the impact on smell posted the other day.

http://www.popsci.com/article/cotton-vs-polyester-which-gym-clothes-trap-most-body-odor

 

These are valid points, and points that should be made. However, coming as a first post from a no avatar member who joined on January 4th, 2014...welcome to sufu Isaora associated person

No connection to Isaora. Just have some industry knowledge and a perspective. My comments were directed at the possibility that working direct to consumer could help a small brand improve if they take advantage of the benefits. 

I do think that techwear is an interesting part of the apparel world. High quality construction, technial design, and materials are things big brands can invest and experiment with (Arcteryx, Nike, North Face and Under Amour for example) where small brands are going to need to be much leaner to work in the space.

Something like the Nike Fly knit is an example of a piece that is the result of investment in experimentation and hightech design thinking from a big brand that I have serious doubts that a small brand could replicate.

A few thoughts about a brand moving to be direct to consumer.

A brand that wholesales can be constrained by retailers willingness to take on new designs. If retailers don't adopt a new design it can simply die off; however, a consumer direct brand can offer whatever they want to put on the market. Outlier is an example of a brand that has taken advantage of a direct to consumer approach and offered experiment products without the need for a retailers "approval." This could help a brand innovate and iterate their offerings. 

Capturing more of the retail markup and eliminating sales reps commission would improve the profit margins for a brand. An improved profit margin could be used towards improving their offerings. This could be a good thing for the products. But it really depends on what they do with the increased margins.