Pride of the city

Winnipeg factory is the backbone behind some cutting-edge clothes

By: Connie Tamoto Posted: 3:00 AM CDT Saturday, Oct. 8, 2016 Last Modified: 3:59 PM CST Thursday, Dec. 1, 2016

I have an affinity for featuring local designers, partly because I think Manitoba’s talented design community doesn’t get a lot of “mainstream” credit, and partly because of how it has thrived over the years.

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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 08/10/2016 (3597 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Winnipeg’s fashion scene has really grown over the past 15 years and I am proud to have spent the better part of that time writing about the talented designers who have made that scene what it is today.

PHIL HOSSACK / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS
Bobbins of thread sit at the ready. — PHIL HOSSACK / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Bobbins of thread sit at the ready.

But behind every great designer is a manufacturer who has helped take a design from prototype or sketch to reality. Enter the Winnipeg Stitch Factory — an apparel-manufacturing studio whose mission is to focus on producing made-in-Manitoba garments.

“We promote made-in-Winnipeg manufacturing and are now working to establish an ultra-efficient factory floor to decrease production time and invest in some automation in the process,” says owner Julie Land. “Ideally by investing in on-shore manufacturing, the complexity of logistics of duties and supply-chain management can be eliminated, turnaround times can be quick and pride can be taken in socially conscious clothing made right here in Winnipeg.”

Winnipeg Stitch Factory is behind the production of a number of local brands including Oak and Oak, Friday Knights, dEdiger Menswear and Sustain Luxury.

“We cut and sew everything here,” says Land. “There are a lot of talented designers in Winnipeg, and if one needs their prototype developed, we are here for them to help get the line up and running.”

Winnipeg Stitch Factory’s Notre Dame Avenue location is also open to the public and will work with designers to help them realize their fashion vision — no matter how big or small.

PHOTOS BY PHIL HOSSACK / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS
Harpreet Kaur works at a sewing machine at Winnipeg Stitch Factory where visions of local designers are turned into reality. — PHOTOS BY PHIL HOSSACK / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Harpreet Kaur works at a sewing machine at Winnipeg Stitch Factory where visions of local designers are turned into reality.

For Land, it comes down to being part of a fashion community dedicated to ensuring garments are ethically sourced and manufactured in Winnipeg

“More consumers are checking labels not only for fabric content and care instructions, but also for where it was made — especially since all the tragedy in Bangladesh, the deadliest disaster in the garment industry worldwide,” says Land, referring to the 2012 fire in Dhaka, where more than 100 people were killed in a garment factory fire.

So really, when you think about it, it is the perfect marriage — local designer, local manufacturer and, in many cases, locally sold. Think of it as the 100-mile diet for fashion.

For more information on the Winnipeg Stitch Factory or the services they offer for local designers looking to take their designs to market visit winnipegstitchfactory.ca.