Be A Designer, Gallarate. Private label on ready-made garments.
Private label done right, for your brand.
Ready-made, high-quality garments, customised with your brand’s graphics, labels and packaging. It’s the quickest and most cost-effective way to launch or test a capsule collection before producing from scratch.
12 years in the Made in Italy supply chainOver 200 people supported in launching their brandTrustpilot 4.2/5, every review is 5 stars
In brief.
Be A Designer is a design studio in Gallarate (Varese) that has spent 12 years helping emerging designers and brands create their collections. With private label, a brand starts from existing quality garments, such as ready-made T-shirts and hoodies, and personalises them with DTG or DTF printing, embroidery, labels and packaging of its own brand, without developing the garment from scratch. It is the lower-budget alternative to Made in Italy production: the indicative minimum is about 50 pieces per style, and a T-shirt costs about €8–25 each on a batch of 100.
Service details Private label
- Who
- Be A Designer, Gallarate (VA)
- What
- Ready-made garments customised with your brand: printing, embroidery, labels and packaging
- Leaders
- T-shirts, hoodies and other ready-made garments, European or non-European
- Minimums
- Around 50 items per style, around 10 per size
- Lead times
- Shorter than production from scratch: they are determined by graphics, labels and prints
- Who it's for
- Anyone who wants to launch or test a capsule on a tight budget
The right garment, then your brand.
With private label, the garment already exists: what makes it your own is choosing the right garment and personalising it. That’s where you decide whether the brand looks like a brand or a catalogue.
The right garment
We work with you to select staple items that are high-quality in terms of fabric, fit and price, from suppliers we’ve been working with for some time. First the capsule collection, then the catalogue.
Printing and embroidery
DTG or DTF printing of your designs is usually included in the price of the private-label T-shirt. Embroidery costs an additional €5–6 per item, with a one-off set-up fee of €25–60.
Labels and packaging
Industrially produced brand labels, costing €0.15–0.20 each for around a thousand of them, plus the composition and care labels required by law. Then there are the tags and packaging, which are just as important as the garment itself.
Private label or production from scratch.
These are two different approaches in terms of budget, timeframe and positioning. Private label is useful for getting started or testing the market; production from scratch is for creating a product that is uniquely yours. In our first call, we’ll decide together where to start.
Private label
High-quality ready-made garments, customised with your brand’s graphics, labels and packaging. Lower cost per item and no need to develop patterns: the quickest way to test a capsule collection.
From scratch, Made in Italy
A bespoke design, involving the selection of fabrics, finishes and small components, with prototyping and production carried out in workshops within 30 km of Gallarate. For a product that is uniquely yours and commands a higher retail price.
The two paths can also be combined: some garments in private label, and the ones that set the brand apart produced from scratch. When the capsule sells, the same team takes you towards Made in Italy production.
Made in Italy, when you're ready.
With private label, the base garment may come from Europe or beyond, which is why we do not present it as Made in Italy. When the brand is ready to take the leap, production from scratch happens in workshops within 30 km of Gallarate: a short supply chain, chosen for sustainability and to oversee prototypes and production in person.
Be A Designer doesn’t just handle production. We only undertake pure contract manufacturing for VAT-registered individuals and established companies. Those starting from scratch go through the full programme: it’s the safest way to avoid spending money on production before knowing what to sell, to whom and at what price.
When you move into production from scratch, prototyping and production go hand in hand: we go to the workshop; we don’t send emails.
From idea to product, in six stages.
The complete Be A Designer programme, in the private label version. If you already have your graphics and capsule collections ready, we’ll start from the stage you need.
Strategy
Who the brand is for, who it competes with, and the price at which it stands up.
Capsules
Which items, how many styles and which colours: a carefully curated capsule collection, not a catalogue.
Basic items
We choose with you the right ready-made garments for quality, fit and price.
Customisation
Graphics, DTG or DTF printing, embroidery, labels and packaging for your brand.
Production
Personalisation across the whole capsule, followed step by step.
Launch
Content, e-commerce and distribution: a brand only sells when people know it exists.
Why Be A Designer and not just any manufacturer.
| Generic manufacturer | Be A Designer | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting point | A catalogue and your logo. | Strategy and capsule collections: we choose the right garments for your target audience and your price point. |
| Suppliers | You go looking for them on your own, often on the other side of the world. | Carefully selected suppliers with whom we have been working for some time, and production monitored every step of the way. |
| Originality | The same item as hundreds of other brands. | Co-created graphics, labels and packaging: the garment becomes instantly recognisable. |
| Quantity | High minimums, or one garment at a time on demand with minimal margins. | Carefully curated capsule collections of around 50 pieces per design. |
| After | You get the goods; the rest is your problem. | Content, e-commerce and launch. And once the capsule collection is selling well, the move to ‘Made in Italy’. |
How much private label costs.
These are indicative prices per item. The exact quote depends on the garment chosen, the quantity and the type of print or embroidery.
| Item | Approximate cost | What drives it |
|---|---|---|
| T-shirts, batch of 100 | €8–25 per item | Fabric and weight; in the private label range, DTG or DTF printing is usually included |
| Sweatshirt: plain top + print, 50–100 pieces | €20–35 each | Choice of base garment, design and printing technique |
| Sweatshirt: basic style + print, 500+ items | €12–18 each | The unit cost falls as the quantity increases |
| Embroidery | +5–6 € each | Plus a one-off installation fee of €25–60, depending on size and complexity |
| Brand labels | €0.15–0.20 each | Manufactured on an industrial scale, in a batch of around 1,000 items |
| Other ready-made garments | subject to a quotation | Item, quantity and customisation |
The recommended minimum order is around 50 items per design, i.e. around 10 per size. The retail price is usually set at 3–4 times the cost: a sweatshirt costing €25 sells for €75–100.
Frequently asked questions.
A private label is a garment produced by an external supplier and sold under the brand name of the party commissioning it. In the fashion industry, this involves taking ready-made garments and making them your own through graphics, prints, embroidery, labels and packaging. Be A Designer uses this as a quick and cost-effective way to launch or test a capsule collection, without having to develop the garment from scratch.
A realistic figure is around 50 items per design, i.e. around 10 items per size, but the minimum order quantity depends on the garment and the type of customisation. Be A Designer works on capsule collections, so the minimum order quantity is based on the collection as a whole rather than on individual garments.
As a guide, a T-shirt costs €8–25 per item for a batch of 100, and in the private label range, DTG or DTF printing is usually included. A basic hoodie with a print costs €20–35 per item for orders of 50–100 pieces, falling to €12–18 for orders of over 500. Embroidery adds €5–6 per item plus a one-off set-up fee of €25–60; brand labels cost €0.15–0.20 each.
It depends on budget, timing and positioning. Private label costs less and lets you test the market quickly, because the garment already exists; Made in Italy production from scratch, in workshops within 30 km of Gallarate, creates a product that is yours alone and supports a higher retail price. You can start with private label and move to production from scratch once the capsule sells: the same team supports you in both phases.
No. In private label, the base garment may be of European or non-European origin, so it must not be marketed as ‘Made in Italy’. With Be A Designer, ‘Made in Italy’ means production from scratch, in workshops within 30 km of Gallarate, with the selection of fabrics, finishes and trims taking place before the prototype is created.
With print-on-demand, you print one garment at a time onto a generic blank – the same one used by thousands of other sellers – with very low margins. With private label, you produce a capsule collection featuring your own graphics, labels and packaging: the cost per item falls and the product becomes recognisable. Be A Designer helps you make this transition, starting with brand positioning.
Not only. Be A Designer is a design studio: it doesn't just put a logo on a garment, but supports the brand from strategy to garment selection, from customisation to launch, with suppliers it has worked with for a long time. That's the difference between an anonymous private label and a brand that has something to say.
No. Be A Designer does not offer white-label services for teams, events or merchandise. It works with fashion brands on capsule collections, using a co-creation process for graphics, labels and prints.
What else do we do for brands?
Let's talk about your private label capsule.
A free consultation to help you decide whether to start with a private label or build your product from scratch, and to discuss the timeframe and budget involved. No obligation.
Or write to [email protected]
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