Quality T-shirts in Vietnam

FYI Howie, "GAP" is opening an outlet in Dist 1 soon (Oct). They be having some great "T"s I'm sure, along with a great price tag to match.

http://www.vir.com.vn/news/coverage/us- … etnam.html

Than again there's adidas:


http://www.adidas.com/vn/homepage.asp

Howie
Not sure what you'd like to have exactly, but if you are talking about heavyweight T-shirts, like 'Beefy T shirt', Champion,.. I have not seen them here yet.

For good, no-brand T shirts, I normally buy them in Tesco or dept stores in Bangkok. You may try one of the bigger hypermarkets, like Metro here?


I have bought a couple of good quality polos in Saigon Square and am really happy with the quality. Try stall number 79. They have 2 types of quality: the thin and the thick ones. Ask for the thicker quality which costs a bit more.

http://www.vietnam720.com/travel-tips/saigon-square/

Also bought a couple of N ike T shirts in dept stores recently (Vincom or Diamond, don't remember which). same good quality as you find in the US, but price is higher (of course).

PS: Note to the forum admin. I type the word: N I K E (in one word) above, the posting comes up with the following text (' I am a stupid SPAMMER')!!!!

Hello guys,

Good to see you on here again.  How is Vietnam treating you fellas?

Budman, I absolutely agree with you about the quality of Gap and its soon-to-be hefty price tag, considering the fact that Vietnam taxes the hell out of imported garments.

Anatta, unless something had changed since I was last involved with garment manufacturing, brand name clothes here are knock-offs or rejects from the manufacturers.  Good quality pieces, if you are fortunate enough to get a hold of them, are usually stolen or smuggled out of the manufacturers' warehouses.  These are the reasons that I do not shop for clothes here.

I was hoping to learn that a manufacturer had put one-and-one together and produce quality T-shirts, in the likes of American Apparel or Alstyle, with its own label and more reasonable price range.  After all, they are not that hard to make and there is a big enough market for them here. 

I guess we will have to wait and see.  But, I will definitely give those places a look, maybe I will find something there.

Thanks,
Howie

Hi Howie, I'm in the same boat as you (And I suspect a lot of others). The choices are finding a reasonable fit and hope it lasts more than two washes or paying the super high prices for the "quality" brands here.
I'm mixing it up between the two at the moment and can't say I've found a good one yet either. I tend to buy in HK when I visit there and hope they last a bit longer.
Also means I get some of the latest styles. AS the "quality" shops here tend to be selling last seasons stuff if your lucky.

Hi guys,

Before we go further, let's define a GOOD QUALITY T-SHIRT first.  To me:

1) It is made of 100% cotton fabric, held together with cotton threads.  It can be dyed to any color of the rainbow.
2) It is tubularly-made, meaning no side seams.  It is easily screen-printed upon.
3) Its shoulders and back neckline are binded.  It has a tape, usually of stronger fabric, running underneath from the top of one sleeve to the other, through the back of the neck covering up those sewing seams.
4) Its hem lines, on the two sleeves and body, are not rolled or twisted.
5) Regardless of the weight of the fabric, if purchased direct from the manufacturers, a blank T-shirt should never ever costs more than $4 USDs.

If you guys find ones that have all the forementioned qualities here and within that price range, then we are on to something.  BTW, manufacturers usually require that we buy their T-shirts in ratios.  For example, 1 S, 2 M, 2 L and 1 XL.  That all depends on the manufacturers and their size ranges.

Hope this clear up some of the misunderstanding around a good quality T-shirt and we will be able to search better.

Howie

Hi Howie,

Wow! dude you're looking for tubular? i dont know anyone who makes them anymore because tubular fabric is more expensive. The fact tubular product (and Santoni -seamless garments that are made out of machines and not the conventional cut and sew process) cost and arm and a leg and with the economy worldwide in the toilet pretty hard to find.

I haven't seen many blanks on here at the department stores but the one's Guess carried are good quality although pricey.

From what you're saying although not seamless your best bet is Billabong, their fabric's are more heavier and Pil a lot less than everybody else. Cheers.

P.S if you go for tubular fabric screen printing is not easy;-) because you will have to print it in garment form and not (cut panel form). It will also mean your placement options for the print will be limited due to the difficulty in fitting the screen.

Hello Sir Alex,

How are you, man?  How is work?

For the women's T-shirts, yes I fully understand the absence of tubular fabric.  But, for the men's, I think there is still a hugh demand for this type of fabric.  I am not saying entirely seamless like some of the higher end athletic garments.  I am talking about the absence of the two side seams. The collar and sleeves must still be sewn on and the lower sleeves and body must still be hemmed up.

Please tell me there are some here, Sir Alex.  BTW, do you guys buy any of your fabric here, or are they still coming from all over the world?

Howie

Hi Howie,

I am good, Thank you. Hope you're too. I am sure there is a lot of tubular fabric production (especially for briefs) but i haven't seen any sold here and we are unfortunately not making for anyone either.

We buy synthetic fabric from a mill here but rest all (knits and wovens) from China. Good luck mate, let me know if you find anything. Cheers

GAP in HCMC...where where? That's sounds cool..BUDman_1
(Made in VN or Cambodia) I bought some Tees back in Canada with that Tag.

Sir Alex,

A couple years ago, I learned that there were a knit manufacturer in Nha Trang.  But, the distance and my lack of interest kept me from checking this company out.  I wonder if you do any work or have any business in Nha Trang?  If you do, I can follow up on this lead and you can check this manufacturer out. 

For me, it might take awhile before I get there.

Howie

Hi Howie,

Nothing there for us at the moment and we are on a vendor rationalization phase meaning we are not looking to add anyone unless they bring substantial value to the table. Would be nice if there is opportunity there as Nha Trang's supposed to be nice and haven't been there myself. I am sure you will find a few factories there.

Arshard

Hello Arshard,

A fiber manufacturer gave me this lead, telling me that this was one of the better jersey manufacturers in Vietnam.  But man, Nha Trang was way too far off of my track; and the last time I checked out a Vietnamese jersey manufacturing company, its jersey had 70% shrinkage.

But, maybe, one of these days...  I will muster enough courage to go out there and tour the city and this company as well.  Hopefully, it will be better.  I will keep you posted.

Howie

If it's jersey then Global dying is the best mill around, PAcific
Textiles are opening one towards the end of the year ($200m) investment that should blow everyone away. Will be fantastic when Pacific starts as they are big boys in China and effin brilliant mill to work with.

honeyclotte wrote:

GAP in HCMC...where where? That's sounds cool..BUDman_1
(Made in VN or Cambodia) I bought some Tees back in Canada with that Tag.

No idea where they are made, but Gap store is currently in Vinacom center in D1.

They will have goods made in Cambodia, China, Sri Lanka India. It will be like any other GAP store maybe a tad smaller and slightly lower retail.They are opening one in Poland too this year.

Sir Alex,

I think it is time that Vietnam needs one of those guys, to illustrate how T-shirts should be made and distributed.  It has been over 10 years; and no progress is made on that front whatsoever. 

The T-shirt is the easiest piece of garment to put together and its profit, once properly made and distributed, is quite handsome (quantity based).  Did I miss anything here?  Have I been away from the industry too long?  Why haven't these guys been able to recognize that?

T-shirts with the 2 side seams and made of polyester blends, regardless of the percentage, aren't suited for this climate.  They look cheap; and they just make this hot and humid weather hotter and more humid.  Lots of times, I could not help but feel sympathetic toward a local who wears a 100% polyester jersey around.  Despite its good look and famous logo, the poor guy must be burning inside.  Please fill me in, Sir Alex.   

Howie

Dude, factories here know how to make a good tee or they will not survive making for Ni ke, ANF . What we need is better financing options as borrowing costs an arm and a leg. Hope all's well.

@Wild-1 & Sir Alex is all that, thought you guys and maybe others would be interested in this link:

http://www.vir.com.vn/news/top-news/gar … t-fit.html

Thanks bud!

Hello gang and especially you Sir Alex,

I have just returned from a childhood friend's wedding in Ha Noi. It was a great visit, got to meet some very interesting folks there. But the 2 that stuck out the most were my friend's sister-in-law and her uncle, the former is currently working as a production manager for one of Ha Noi's premier garment factories and the later is a high ranking official of Vinatex.

When they learned of my US garment backgrounds, they treated me like royalty.  I later learned that the sister-in-law is looking to start her own garment manufacturing company and the uncle was looking to improve his company's share of the US market and, if necessary, provide supports to his niece's new company.

During my days in garment manufacturing, this was the kind of opportunity that I used to dream of.  I believed that with the right leadership and proper equipments, a north Vietnamese garment manufacturer can out perform its southern counterpart, for labor is cheaper, the north has better access to the trade ministry (quotas), and its proximity to the Hai Phong port could easily cut a week off of the overall turnaround time.  But, I never had an opportunity like this to put my theory into action: these people were difficult to access, they were too conservative and too proud.  We just simply did not see eye-to-eye on issues and ideas.

Now, with the two that I had just mentioned, although it is a little late but, that opportunity is here.  They can easily provide me with the supports that I will need to verify my beliefs and test out my theory.  What do you guys think?  Vinatex is Vietnam's biggest garment manufacturing association; it spreads throughout the country, but mostly made up of members in north Vietnam?  It is state-owned; yes, difficult to deal with but, if properly handled, the resources are there?  Last but not least, Vietnam's system is what it is, we can't just sit there and complain? 

Please let me know what you fellas think.

Regards,
Howie

Yo, Hanoi factories are notoriously difficult to work with as they are not customer focused. Having said that we work with a great bunch there and we stick to one group so we have a meaningful relationship. Your lead sounds promising but unless you have brands knocking on your door not much you can do.

Right now the apparel market is very soft and lots of capacity available. This year last time factories were booked until April so that is why they are all going after businesses. If you have contacts with brands then you should give it a try but get clarity on finance charges etc as Hanoi factories tend to charge a bit more than their Southern counterparts. The product quality itself and the detail in the manufacturing i have found is exceptional. We are actually contemplating whether it makes sense to open an office there or not as we are moving more and more production to Hanoi.Good luck.On other hand if you're not doing anything with them put them onto us and we will be happy to see whether we can place any business. I can inbox you my e-mail.

I am going to HUE to see a factory Friday am and back same day, any of you guys based there? Cheers