Perfection is optional. Clarity is not.

I’ve reviewed tech packs that look like agency-grade presentations, I’ve made a few tech packs that could make those agencies rethink their pricing… and tech packs that were clearly built at midnight the night before a factory deadline. And here’s what years of production have taught me:

The beautifully designed tech packs don’t automatically lead to better samples. The clear ones do.

Where Tech Packs Actually Go Off Track

Every designer has learned to build a tech pack in their own way: from school templates, from YouTube, from a previous job, or simply from survival mode. And factories? They’re receiving hundreds of documents every month, all formatted differently, all using slightly different terminology, all assuming the “obvious” is obvious to both sides.

Spoiler: it’s typically not.

I’ve been on calls explaining things like what “relaxed fit” means to this designer specifically, or why “vintage wash” needs more than one reference photo. None of this is because the designer did something wrong, it’s because the tech pack wasn’t speaking the same language as the factory. “Wash” in the previous sentence could refer to a fabric being washed pre or post construction — can you tell me from this what the final decision was?

The problem isn’t lack of detail. The problem is lack of alignment.

What Factories Truly Need From You

Factories aren’t judging you on formatting or branding. They don’t need a 20-page document with your logo on every slide. They need to understand what you want made, without stopping to interpret your intention.

They’re asking themselves:

• What is this garment supposed to look like?
• How does it fit, and how are the measurements taken? Did someone make a pattern that matches this fit?
• What materials and trims are required? Is there hardware? If so, who is responsible for sourcing?
• How is this thing constructed?
• What’s acceptable seam tolerance, and what’s not?

When they can answer those questions easily, things move fast. When they can’t, production slows down. Which means your delivery dates start slipping from day 1.

The Essentials That Actually Matter in a Tech Pack

Let’s simplify this. A good tech pack isn’t long… it’s clear. These are the pieces that truly move your garment from idea → sample:

Your factory needs:

• Flat sketches with clear callouts
• A complete measurement spec (with exact points of measure)
  • For the sake of everyone involved use an easy reference chart, starting with the alphabet is a great place to begin
• Fabric and trim details (weight, stretch, color references, supplier info if applicable)
• Construction details (seams, stitch types, finishing, allowances)
• Reference images that visually match your intention

That’s the core of production communication. Everything else is optional.

The Expensive Cost of Being Vague

Here’s the part most designers don’t realize until sample round three: ambiguity is expensive.

Every unclear detail becomes a question. Every question becomes a delay. Every delay becomes a misalignment…. which becomes another sample.

Independent designers don’t have unlimited time or budgets. Clarity is your leverage.

If a detail is still undecided, say so. If something is unconventional, explain it. If you like a specific stitch or finish, name it. Unsaid decisions get made for you, and you may not like the result.

Your Pre-Factory Checklist

Before you send anything off, walk through these questions and be brutally honest with yourself:

• Could someone who has never seen this garment understand exactly what it should look like?
• Are all measurements clearly labeled with specific points of measure?
• Have you fully described fabrics and trims (composition, weight, stretch, color)?
• Are construction details explicit rather than assumed?
• Have you added reference images anywhere words might fall short?
• Is there a clear way for the factory to reach you and get answers quickly?

If you can say yes across the board, your tech pack is ready — even if it’s not “perfect.”

The Real Bottom Line

I’ve seen flawless tech packs lead to bad samples, and basic one-page documents produce exactly what a designer imagined. The difference was never the design or the formatting.

It was clarity.

Your tech pack isn’t a portfolio piece. It’s a communication tool — a translation of your creative vision into factory language. The goal is to eliminate guesswork so your team can actually bring your design to life.

Perfection is not the requirement. Precision and clarity are. Get those right, and everything downstream gets easier.

Studio Systems by Oceo Luxe:

Studio Systems is opening in phases, and Founding Members get access first, at the lowest rate it will ever be offered.

If you know this kind of support would change your workflow, now is the time.

Join as a Founding Member.

Structure does not limit creativity, it protects it.