[00:00] Introduction
Welcome back to The Good, The Bad & The Ugly of Building the Brand. I’m Bhavna Rishi, and today we’re going somewhere that I genuinely love — the product development process. This is where the magic happens, where an idea in a sketchbook starts becoming a real, tangible thing that someone will eventually hold in their hands, wear on their body, and decide whether to keep or return. But it’s also where things go wrong most often, most expensively, and most preventably.
Over more than 20 years managing product development for collections at the V&A Museum, the British Museum, Chatsworth House, and brands inspired by icons like David Bowie and Jimi Hendrix, I’ve navigated every stage of this process dozens of times. I want to share what I know so that your journey from sketch to sample is as efficient and successful as possible.
“Product development is where the magic happens — and where things go wrong most often, most expensively, and most preventably. Knowing the process gives you back control.”
[04:30] The Complete Timeline: What to Expect
The first thing I tell every founder I work with is this: product development always takes longer than you think it will. Always. Build that expectation into your timeline from day one and you’ll save yourself an enormous amount of stress and potentially some very costly rushed decisions.
A realistic product development timeline for a fashion brand, from initial concept to production-ready sample, is typically 12 to 20 weeks. That includes the concept and design stage, tech pack creation, manufacturer briefing, first sample production, review and revisions, fit sample, final approval, and then the production sample that signs off the run. If you’re working with overseas manufacturers, add time for shipping samples back and forth. If you’re developing multiple products simultaneously, add complexity. And if you’re new to the process, add a buffer for the learning curve — because you will encounter things you didn’t anticipate, and that’s completely normal.
[08:00] What a Tech Pack Is and Why It Is Non-Negotiable
A tech pack is the technical document that communicates everything a manufacturer needs to know about your product. It is the single most important document in your product development process, and I am consistently surprised by how many founders either don’t have one or are working from something so incomplete it creates more problems than it solves.
A proper tech pack includes your design sketches — front, back, and detail views — along with your construction specifications, your measurements and size grading, your fabric specifications including weight, content, and finish, your colour references using Pantone or physical swatches, your trim and hardware specifications, your labelling requirements, and your quality standards. When I was producing merchandise for the V&A, every product had a comprehensive tech pack before it went to any manufacturer. It eliminated ambiguity, shortened the sampling process, and gave us a clear reference point for quality control. When a manufacturer tells you they don’t need a tech pack — that they’ll “figure it out from the sketch” — what they’re really telling you is that you’ll spend more rounds of sampling correcting things that should have been specified correctly from the start.
[13:00] How to Brief a Manufacturer So They Deliver What You Want
A tech pack is necessary but not sufficient. How you communicate that tech pack to your manufacturer matters enormously. I always recommend an introductory call or meeting before a manufacturer begins work on a first sample — not an email exchange, an actual conversation. In that conversation you walk through the tech pack together, you confirm that they understand your specifications, and you identify anything that needs clarification before work begins.
During my time working on licensed collections, I developed a habit of always confirming instructions in writing immediately after any verbal conversation. It sounds administrative, but it has saved me and the brands I’ve worked with from misunderstandings too many times to count. A brief email that says “confirming our conversation today — the colourway for this piece should reference Pantone 19-4052 and the fabric weight is 200gsm — please confirm your understanding” takes two minutes and eliminates a major source of production error.
“Confirming instructions in writing immediately after any verbal conversation takes two minutes and has saved me from costly misunderstandings more times than I can count.”
[17:30] Understanding the Sampling Process
There are typically three stages of sampling in a professional product development process, and understanding what each one is for helps you evaluate what you receive and give useful feedback.
The first sample — sometimes called the proto sample — is about establishing whether the manufacturer has understood your design intent. At this stage you are looking at construction, silhouette, and general interpretation. You are not expecting perfection; you are expecting a genuine attempt at your specification and a basis for detailed feedback. The fit sample is the second stage, and this is where you evaluate how the garment sits on the body, how the sizing translates, and whether the proportions work. This is the stage where you involve a fit model if at all possible, because what looks right on a hanger can be completely different on a body. The production sample — also called the pre-production sample or PP sample — is the final approval before your full production run begins. This sample should be indistinguishable from what you will receive in your order. If it isn’t, you do not approve it. Full stop.
[22:00] How Many Rounds to Expect and Budget For
Most founders budget for one round of sampling and are then blindsided when the process takes two or three. I want to normalise this: two to three rounds of sampling is completely standard for a well-managed product development process. It is not a sign that something has gone wrong — it is a sign that you are doing the work properly and not cutting corners.
What I always tell clients is: budget for three rounds of sampling financially and emotionally. If you get to an approved sample in two rounds, celebrate — you’re ahead. But if you’ve only budgeted for one round and you’re staring at a second sample that still needs work, you will feel pressure to approve something that isn’t right, and that pressure is where costly compromises happen. The cost of an additional sample round is always lower than the cost of producing 500 units of a product you cannot sell.
[26:00] Fabric Sourcing, Colour Matching, and Print Techniques
I want to spend a moment on the elements within product development that often get treated as secondary but can make or break your product. Fabric sourcing — specifically, finding fabric that performs at the quality level your brand requires and at a price that allows your margins to work — is a skill in itself. I’ve spent years building relationships with fabric suppliers, understanding what different weights and compositions do in different garments, and knowing how to evaluate quality from a swatch.
Colour matching is one of the most technically demanding aspects of product development and one of the most common sources of disappointment. The colour you see on your screen is almost never the colour you’ll get from a dye process without explicit Pantone referencing and physical colour approval. Always, always work from physical references approved against your chosen fabric. And on print techniques — whether you’re working with digital print, screen print, embroidery, or transfer — understand the specific limitations and strengths of each method for your product type before you commit. Each technique has a range in which it excels and a range in which it disappoints, and knowing that range saves you from expensive mistakes.
[30:00] The Role of a Production Manager
As your brand grows and the complexity of your product range increases, there will come a point where managing product development alongside everything else you’re doing becomes genuinely unsustainable. A production manager — whether in-house, freelance, or provided through a consultancy like BuildTheDreamBrand — brings dedicated expertise to the process. They manage manufacturer relationships, chase samples, coordinate approvals, and ensure your production timeline stays on track.
For smaller brands at the early stages, you may not need a dedicated production manager. But you do need someone who takes ownership of the process with the same rigour that a professional production manager would bring. Whether that’s you, a trusted team member, or an external consultant, the process needs someone who is systematically tracking every stage and not letting things slip.
[33:00] Key Takeaways
Build a longer timeline than you think you need. Product development always takes longer than the optimistic estimate. Plan for 16 to 20 weeks and treat anything shorter as a bonus.
A comprehensive tech pack is non-negotiable. It is the foundation of every successful manufacturer relationship and every efficient sampling process.
Understand the three stages of sampling and what each one is for. Do not approve a production sample that doesn’t meet your standard, regardless of the timeline pressure you feel.
Budget for two to three rounds of sampling from the beginning. The cost of additional sample rounds is always lower than the cost of full production on a product that misses the mark.
Fabric, colour, and print decisions are as important as design decisions. Give them the attention and precision they deserve.
[34:00] Action Step
If you have a product concept you’re working on right now, spend 30 minutes this week sketching out what a tech pack for that product would need to include. Even a rough list — fabric, measurements, colour references, trims, labels — gives you a foundation to build from and tells you immediately what information you still need to gather before you can approach a manufacturer.
Ready to Take the Next Step?
If you are building a fashion brand and want expert guidance, book a free discovery call with Bhavna.