FAQ - Timelines

Creating a new product for your fashion brand is an exciting journey, but it’s also one that requires careful planning, and often takes longer than you may expect. The product development timeline is influenced by many factors, including your design process, materials sourcing, and production choices. Changes to any of these elements can have significant impacts, so understanding the timeline and potential variables is important to planning ahead.

AJG uses a comprehensive timeline tracker tool - you can find a version of this in our shop, as well as inside Fashion Founders Collective community. We track all the elements of your project, so you can see at a glance how each element affects the next.

A Typical Product Development Timeline

Building your brand’s timeline depends on many factors, some of which are not able to be determined until we begin the project - however, below is a typical timeline for our custom development projects. While each brand’s timeline can vary, here’s a general overview of the key stages involved in developing a product:

1. Idea Development (1-2 Months)
   This includes finalizing sketches, mood boards, and design inspiration, creating tech packs and print artworks. It’s where you decide on the creative direction for your product. Bringing as much information your your kickoff meeting as possible can help us expedite the design phase, but we want to make sure we gather all the details in advance to ensure your prototypes and fabric sourcing are successful.

2. Sourcing Fabrics & Trims:
   This step happens concurrently with the Idea Development phase. Finding the right materials can take time, especially if you’re sourcing sustainable or custom options. Delays can occur if specific fabrics or trims are out of stock, or if additional rounds of sourcing are required.

3. Sample Development (2-4 Months):
   Manufacturers create prototypes of your product based on the tech pack. Additional sample rounds may be needed for adjustments, which would increase the time required for this phase.

4. Profit Strategy:
   This step happens concurrently with the Sampling Phase. Once the samples are approved, AJG finalizes costing and negotiates the order placement with the factory.

5. Pre-Production (2-3 Months):
   Many factors can affect the length of the pre-production phase such as the materials availability, especially if you chose custom milled materials or custom dyed or printed fabrics, this can increase bulk material lead times. During this phase, pre-production samples and size set samples are reviewed by the team.

6. Production (1-2 Months):
   The actual production process can vary significantly depending on order size, complexity, and location (domestic vs. overseas).

7. Shipping & Delivery (1-2 Months):
   After production, your products are shipped to their final destination. The timeline depends on whether you choose air freight or sea freight.

In our experience, a totally custom product development timeline can take anywhere from 7-12 months, depending on complexity, number of samples, materials chosen, factory location, and production method. Every timeline is unique, which is why we work on a retainer model so that we can be there for your brand every step of the way.

How Design, Materials, and Changes Impact Timelines

Several factors can extend your product development timeline:

• Design Revisions: We work closely with you to refine your designs, and additional sketch reviews or print developments may require additional time

• Material Development: Unique or custom materials may have longer lead times, especially if they are sourced internationally, require custom milling, dyeing, or printing.

• Additional Sample Rounds: Sometimes, you may want to request additional sample rounds - This is a great way to feel confident in your product, but it will also extend the timeline. For example, if a second or third round of prototyping is needed, each could add around 3-4 weeks to the process.

• Factory Availability: Busy production schedules or holidays at your selected factory play a big role in how long your pre-production and production phases will take.

• Shipping Method: Choosing between air freight and sea freight can mean balancing priorities for your brand. While Air Freight is faster, typically 10-14 days, it can be quite expensive. Sea Freight can take anywhere from 30-65 days, depending on country of origin and port congestion, but can save your brand thousands of dollars.

AJG always builds extra time into your timeline for unexpected delays, especially if working overseas. We built our timeline tracker tool to ensure you are up to date on project status aat every step of the way, and we keep this updated regularly throughout the life of your project.

We work closely with brands to streamline their product development process. From sourcing the right materials to managing production and shipping, we’re here to help you stay on track and deliver exceptional products to your customers.

Looking for more details on how we can help? Book some time with us for a free 30-minute consultation.