How can we find a suitable knitwear manufacturer to work with?
Let’s see our order is in which lattice or level

knitwear manufactuer kinds

There is an obvious contrast between the fist lattice and the forth lattice. It is easy to distinguish.
The fist lattice’s order is high unit price and high-quantity. These orders are usually only for chain brands or well-known brands. All manufacturers would like to acquire these orders, but only Large manufacturers or powerful manufacturers can acquire it. As the payment period of these orders is relatively long.
The second lattice’s order is high unit price and low-quantity. These orders are usually for designer’s brands or newly fashion company. They know the difficulties of the factory and the unit price is slightly higher. The orders are low-quantity as they are not sure about the market and the customer group is not stable. These orders are suit for smaller manufacturers.
The third lattice’s order is deceptive. People who cross line and enter knit sweater retailing and try to build a brand with a lower price. Or they want to make more profit, they will find different manufacturers on and on instead of have a long term cooperation with a manufacturer.
The forth lattice’s order has more orders in the market. The quantity is between 500 to 2000 or more. The factory is also willing to cooperate even the unit price is low. Especially in the season off, even it is the cost price, the factory is also willing to cooperate in order to maintain their manufacturing’s operation. It is very hard to produce more than 3000 pieces knit sweater per style in the domestic because the cost increase quickly and the appreciation of RMB exchange rate. So the international order which is more than 3000 pieces per style is transferred to Southeast Asia.
It’s important to distinguish our orders are in which lattice according to the above four quadrants. Let’s see distribution map about knit sweater manufacturers in China.
The distribution of sweater factories in China
The first area: Pearl River Delta
1.Dongguan area: Mainly Dalang town and Changping Town. The main advantage is that the international yarn trading center is here.
Dalang town’s manufacturers is the forth lattice. The international orders are mainly cheap chain brands or wholesalers’ orders in Europe and America. The domestic orders are mainly from Guangzhou and Tongxiang. Brands’ orders in Guangzhou are produced from Dalang. Thousands of knitwear manfaucturers are in Dalang.
The advantages: huge production and fast delivery
The disadvantages: low-quality
2.Chanping Town has inherited foreign trade orders of Hong Kong knitwear companies more than 20 years ago. There management and quality talent are inherited the Hong Kong foreign trade order system. On the one hand they cooperate with Hong Kong foreign company and produce for them. The domestic orders are mainly from Nanyou in Shenzhen and Hangzhou, and also from brand companies in Shenzhen.
Mainly is the first lattice and the second lattice. Many factories here and high capacity of production.
The advantages: high-quality and sincerity
The disadvantages: high unit price
3.Zhuhai: Mainly Xiangzhou and Doumen like Dalang and Chanping. Mainly factories left over from Hong Kong before many years. The quality is worse than Chanping, but better than Dalang. Many factories have point of division in Chanping and Dalang because Zhuhai is far away from the production chain. And the price is lower than Chanping, but higher than Dalang. Mainly are foreign orders.
4.Zhongshan: Many dyeing factories and sweater factories are decreasing year by year. And it only has a few of large factories, small factories have no advantage.
5.Shantou:like Dalang, but its capacity of production is disadvantage. They have advantages in chunky gauge, hand knits,crochet. Cheap and low-quality.
The second area: Yangtze River Delta
6. Shanghai: Many international well-known brands have offices or foreign firms in Shanghai. The fist lattice and the forth lattices’ orders are here. They produced in Suzhou and Nantong.
7.Suzhou and Nantong: High-quality and many Japanese brands’ orders are produced here. Affected by the international economic downturn, many orders are transferred. At present, the number of factories in these two regions is decreasing. High-quality but the capacity of production is decreasing.
8.Tongxiang: It has Puyuan Market which is the largest wholesaler market in there. Low unit price and high quantity. It has many the forth lattice’s orders. Many factories that used to make foreign trade orders also accepte domestic orders.
The advantages: Enough capacity of production for the domestic market and supply chain system is completed.
The disadvantages: The quality is not so good as Changping.
9.Hangzhou women’s clothing and Nanyou in Shenzhen wholesale market are the first echelon of women’s clothing in China. It has more domestic orders, the second lattice’s orders and foreign trade orders. Impacted by the development of e-commerce industry, producing factories are decreasing. Most are trade company, design company and E-commerce company.
Other areas: They have the benefit of raw material like Qinghe and Inner Mongolia area. Relatively the capacity of production, the supply chain, craftsmanship developing and application are having a greater disadvantage than the Pearl River Delta and the Yangtze River Delta.
How to find the suitable knitwear manufacturers?
high unit price and more quantities. These orders can choose in the Pearl River Delta and the Yangtze River Delta. We need to analyze again in combination with specific conditions.
high unit price and less quantities. These orders can choice in Suhang area and Changping.
low unit price and less quantities. Try every manufacturer that you can find and compare.
low unit price and more quantities. These orders can choose around Tongxiang and Dalang because of fast delivery. Can also choose Zhuhai and Zhongshan as they have a high-quality. But you need to considered Shanghai and Chanping if you are strict with quality.

Next: How should designers choose yarn for knitwear collections