How to Make a Tech Pack for Your Clothing Brand (The Ultimate Guide)
A complete step-by-step guide to making a professional tech pack for your clothing brand. From flat sketches and BOMs to measurement specs and factory-ready formatting.
How to Make a Tech Pack for Your Clothing Brand (The Ultimate Guide)
Starting a clothing brand means navigating a long chain of decisions before a single stitch is sewn. But there is one document that sits at the centre of everything: the tech pack. Without it, your manufacturer is guessing. With a good one, your sample comes back right the first time — and every time after.
This guide walks you through exactly how to make a tech pack from scratch, what every section needs to include, the most common mistakes founders make, and how to do it significantly faster than the traditional way.
What Is a Tech Pack?
A tech pack — short for technical packet — is the complete specification document for a garment. It communicates every detail your factory needs to produce the item exactly as you designed it: the construction, the materials, the measurements, the colourways, the labels, and the packaging.
Think of it the way you would an architectural blueprint. A builder cannot construct a building from a sketch on a napkin, and a factory cannot reliably produce a garment from a reference photo and a message on WhatsApp. The tech pack is the contract between your vision and their machines.
Every professional brand — from emerging labels to luxury houses — works from tech packs. It is the industry standard, and there is no real substitute for it.
What Does a Tech Pack Include?
Before getting into how to make one, it helps to understand what a complete tech pack actually contains. A factory-ready tech pack has six core sections:
1. Technical drawings (flat sketches)
Front, back, and side views of the garment drawn in 2D. These are not fashion illustrations — they are precise, black-and-white technical drawings that show every seam, stitch line, pocket placement, zipper, and construction detail. They are the visual foundation of the entire document.
2. Bill of Materials (BOM)
A complete itemised list of every physical component needed to build the garment: main fabric, lining, interlining, thread, zippers, buttons, labels, hang tags, poly bags. Each item includes the supplier reference, colour code, quantity per unit, and unit of measure.
3. Measurement and grading specifications
A chart showing the exact measurements of the garment at your base size (typically a Medium or Size 2), plus the grading rules — how each measurement changes as the size goes up or down. This is what your factory uses to cut patterns and what your QC team uses to check samples.
4. Colourways and fabric placements
Callouts that define exactly which fabric, colour (using Pantone codes where possible), or print goes where on the garment. A colourway page also shows all available colourway options for a single style side by side.
5. Construction and trim details
Closeup callouts for anything that requires extra clarity: stitch type (e.g. flatlock, chain stitch, overlock), stitch density (stitches per inch), seam allowances, hardware finishes, zipper type, and any special techniques like bonding or taping.
6. Labelling and packaging
Instructions for where each label is placed (brand label, care label, size label, country of origin label), the label dimensions and artwork, and how the finished garment should be folded, tagged, bagged, and packed for shipping or delivery.
How to Make a Tech Pack: Step by Step
Step 1 — Create your flat technical drawings
Everything in your tech pack stems from the technical drawings. If you are comfortable in Adobe Illustrator, start there — it gives you the most precision and is what most professional designers use. If not, tools like CLO3D, Browzwear, or even a well-structured sketch scanned and cleaned up digitally can work at an early stage.
Your flat sketch needs to show:
Front and back views at minimum, side view for anything structural (outerwear, trousers)
All seam lines, not just the silhouette
Pocket placement, flap shapes, and openings
Zip and button positions
Any topstitching, contrast panels, or construction details
Collar, cuff, and hem construction
Keep it clean, black-and-white, and scaled proportionally. A sloppy sketch produces a sloppy sample.
If technical drawing is not your strength, this is one of the most valuable parts to outsource or use a platform like Specter OS where garment-specific templates with pre-built construction details are available from the start.
Step 2 — Build your Bill of Materials
The BOM is the most detail-intensive section and the one most brands underestimate. Every item that physically goes into the garment needs its own line.
The more specific you are here, the more accurate your cost quotes will be, and the less room there is for the factory to substitute cheaper alternatives without your knowledge.
Step 3 — Fill in your measurement specifications
Your measurement spec (also called a spec sheet) defines the physical dimensions of the garment at each size. This section alone determines whether your samples fit correctly.
For each measurement point — chest, waist, hip, front length, back length, sleeve length, armhole, neck opening, and so on — you list the base size measurement and then the grade rule (how many centimetres to add or subtract per size).
A few things that trip up early brands here:
Specify how measurements are taken. "Chest" is ambiguous — does it mean the half-chest measured across one side, or the full measurement? State it clearly every time.
Define your base size first. Build your entire spec around one size, grade from there, and never mix bases mid-document.
Include tolerances. A ±1cm tolerance on most body measurements and ±0.5cm on details is standard. Without tolerances, your QC has no benchmark to pass or fail against.
Step 4 — Add colourways and placement callouts
A colourway page shows all the colour or fabric options available for a given style. Each colourway gets a small sketch with fabric swatches or Pantone codes called out to the relevant panels.
If you have prints, graphics, or embroidery, placement callouts are critical. These show exactly where on the garment the artwork sits, measured from a fixed reference point (e.g. "logo centred, 8cm below collar seam on front"). Do not leave placement to the factory's judgement — they will not match what you imagined.
Step 5 — Add construction and trim callouts
This section is where you catch the details that drawings cannot fully convey. Common callouts include:
Stitch type at each seam (e.g. "side seam: 4-thread overlock, 5mm seam allowance")
Thread colour per stitch location (visible vs. hidden stitching may differ)
Hardware spec — zipper brand and gauge (our YKK zipper guide can help you navigate sizes and types), snap or rivet finish
Interlining placement and bond method for structured pieces
Any waterproofing, taping, or bonding instructions for technical outerwear
The garment-specific guides in this series go much deeper on construction callouts — the denim jacket tech pack guide covers one of the most construction-intensive garments in detail.
Step 6 — Add labelling and packaging instructions
The last section is easy to rush but painful to get wrong. Define:
Every label type, its dimensions, material (woven vs. printed), and exact placement with a measurement from a seam reference
Care instruction symbols and the required languages for your target markets (EU requires multiple languages; US requires English)
Folding method — show a diagram if the fold is specific to your brand
Garment bag spec (size, self-seal vs. open end, any print on the bag)
Carton pack spec if you need it — how many units per inner bag, per carton, carton dimensions, labelling requirements
Common Tech Pack Mistakes to Avoid
Sending incomplete drawings. If the back view is missing or the sleeve detail is unclear, the factory fills in the gaps themselves. You will not like the result.
Skipping the BOM entirely. A surprising number of early brands do this. Without a BOM, you cannot get an accurate quote, and you have no contractual basis if the factory substitutes a cheaper fabric.
Missing tolerances on the spec sheet. If you do not define what is acceptable, everything technically passes QC.
Using the wrong Pantone book. Specify whether your Pantone references are from the TPX (textile paper) or TCX (textile cotton) range. Factories work from TCX. Sending a TPG code from a graphic design project produces the wrong colour.
Version control chaos. If you are emailing tech pack PDFs back and forth and making changes across multiple versions, something will go wrong. Keeping tech packs in a centralised platform like Specter OS solves this — every revision is tracked, and your factory always has the current version.
Not updating the tech pack after sampling. Your tech pack is a living document. Every time a sample comes back and you request a change, that change needs to be recorded in the tech pack before the next sample is requested. If you only mark up a physical sample and send verbal feedback, your tech pack diverges from reality.
Tech Pack Format: What to Use
When you are starting out, many founders build tech packs in a combination of Adobe Illustrator (for drawings) and Excel or Google Sheets (for the BOM and measurement spec). This works, but it is slow, prone to errors as files multiply, and difficult to share cleanly with factories.
The more structured approach is a dedicated platform that keeps technical drawings, BOMs, measurement specs, and factory communication in one place. You can read more about why fashion brands outgrow spreadsheets and what a purpose-built operating system looks like in practice.
If you are producing garment-specific tech packs, the structure varies by category. The Specter OS blog has step-by-step guides for specific garment types:
Do You Need to Make It Yourself?
Not necessarily. Tech packs can be made by:
You, using a template-based platform or your own Illustrator/Excel setup
A freelance technical designer, typically charging €150–400 per tech pack depending on complexity
A done-for-you service, where you submit your design and receive a factory-ready document back
Specter OS offers a built-in done-for-you tech pack service. You submit your design — a sketch, an AI-generated image, a reference photo, or anything in between — and receive a complete, industry-standard tech pack within 3–7 business days, including two rounds of revisions. Pricing starts at €100 for simple styles and goes up to €250 for complex outerwear.
Find out how the tech pack service works →
Start Building Your Brand on a Solid Foundation
A well-made tech pack is not a bureaucratic formality — it is the document that protects your investment in every sample and production run. Brands that treat it seriously from the start have fewer sampling rounds, more accurate cost quotes, and far less to argue about when something goes wrong at the factory.
Whether you build it yourself or hand it off, Specter OS gives you both options in one place. Sign up for early access below.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a tech pack in fashion?
A tech pack is a detailed specification document that communicates every technical requirement of a garment to a manufacturer. It typically includes flat technical drawings, a Bill of Materials, measurement specifications, colourways, construction callouts, and labelling instructions.
How long does it take to make a tech pack?
For someone building their first tech pack manually, expect to spend 4–8 hours per style. With experience or a structured platform, this reduces to 1–3 hours. Complex outerwear or heavily detailed pieces take longer than simple basics.
How much does it cost to have a tech pack made?
Freelance technical designers typically charge €150–400 per tech pack. Specter OS's done-for-you service starts at €100 for simple styles and €250 for complex outerwear, with a 3–7 day turnaround.
Can I make a tech pack in Excel?
Yes — many brands start in Excel or Google Sheets for the BOM and measurement spec sections, paired with Illustrator for the drawings. It works but becomes difficult to manage as your style count grows and revisions accumulate.
Do I need a tech pack for every garment?
Yes. Every distinct style needs its own tech pack. Different colourways of the same style can share one tech pack with multiple colourway pages, but any change to construction or materials requires a separate document or a clearly versioned update.
What is the difference between a tech pack and a spec sheet?
A spec sheet usually refers specifically to the measurement specification section of a tech pack. A full tech pack is the complete document, of which the spec sheet is one component.
What software do fashion brands use to make tech packs?
Common tools include Adobe Illustrator (for technical drawings), Excel or Google Sheets (for BOM and measurement tables), and purpose-built platforms like Specter OS that consolidate everything in one place. CLO3D and Browzwear are used by brands that work in 3D.
How to Make a Tech Pack for Your Clothing Brand (The Ultimate Guide)
A complete step-by-step guide to making a professional tech pack for your clothing brand. From flat sketches and BOMs to measurement specs and factory-ready formatting.
How to Make a Tech Pack for Your Clothing Brand (The Ultimate Guide)
Starting a clothing brand means navigating a long chain of decisions before a single stitch is sewn. But there is one document that sits at the centre of everything: the tech pack. Without it, your manufacturer is guessing. With a good one, your sample comes back right the first time — and every time after.
This guide walks you through exactly how to make a tech pack from scratch, what every section needs to include, the most common mistakes founders make, and how to do it significantly faster than the traditional way.
What Is a Tech Pack?
A tech pack — short for technical packet — is the complete specification document for a garment. It communicates every detail your factory needs to produce the item exactly as you designed it: the construction, the materials, the measurements, the colourways, the labels, and the packaging.
Think of it the way you would an architectural blueprint. A builder cannot construct a building from a sketch on a napkin, and a factory cannot reliably produce a garment from a reference photo and a message on WhatsApp. The tech pack is the contract between your vision and their machines.
Every professional brand — from emerging labels to luxury houses — works from tech packs. It is the industry standard, and there is no real substitute for it.
What Does a Tech Pack Include?
Before getting into how to make one, it helps to understand what a complete tech pack actually contains. A factory-ready tech pack has six core sections:
1. Technical drawings (flat sketches)
Front, back, and side views of the garment drawn in 2D. These are not fashion illustrations — they are precise, black-and-white technical drawings that show every seam, stitch line, pocket placement, zipper, and construction detail. They are the visual foundation of the entire document.
2. Bill of Materials (BOM)
A complete itemised list of every physical component needed to build the garment: main fabric, lining, interlining, thread, zippers, buttons, labels, hang tags, poly bags. Each item includes the supplier reference, colour code, quantity per unit, and unit of measure.
3. Measurement and grading specifications
A chart showing the exact measurements of the garment at your base size (typically a Medium or Size 2), plus the grading rules — how each measurement changes as the size goes up or down. This is what your factory uses to cut patterns and what your QC team uses to check samples.
4. Colourways and fabric placements
Callouts that define exactly which fabric, colour (using Pantone codes where possible), or print goes where on the garment. A colourway page also shows all available colourway options for a single style side by side.
5. Construction and trim details
Closeup callouts for anything that requires extra clarity: stitch type (e.g. flatlock, chain stitch, overlock), stitch density (stitches per inch), seam allowances, hardware finishes, zipper type, and any special techniques like bonding or taping.
6. Labelling and packaging
Instructions for where each label is placed (brand label, care label, size label, country of origin label), the label dimensions and artwork, and how the finished garment should be folded, tagged, bagged, and packed for shipping or delivery.
How to Make a Tech Pack: Step by Step
Step 1 — Create your flat technical drawings
Everything in your tech pack stems from the technical drawings. If you are comfortable in Adobe Illustrator, start there — it gives you the most precision and is what most professional designers use. If not, tools like CLO3D, Browzwear, or even a well-structured sketch scanned and cleaned up digitally can work at an early stage.
Your flat sketch needs to show:
Front and back views at minimum, side view for anything structural (outerwear, trousers)
All seam lines, not just the silhouette
Pocket placement, flap shapes, and openings
Zip and button positions
Any topstitching, contrast panels, or construction details
Collar, cuff, and hem construction
Keep it clean, black-and-white, and scaled proportionally. A sloppy sketch produces a sloppy sample.
If technical drawing is not your strength, this is one of the most valuable parts to outsource or use a platform like Specter OS where garment-specific templates with pre-built construction details are available from the start.
Step 2 — Build your Bill of Materials
The BOM is the most detail-intensive section and the one most brands underestimate. Every item that physically goes into the garment needs its own line.
The more specific you are here, the more accurate your cost quotes will be, and the less room there is for the factory to substitute cheaper alternatives without your knowledge.
Step 3 — Fill in your measurement specifications
Your measurement spec (also called a spec sheet) defines the physical dimensions of the garment at each size. This section alone determines whether your samples fit correctly.
For each measurement point — chest, waist, hip, front length, back length, sleeve length, armhole, neck opening, and so on — you list the base size measurement and then the grade rule (how many centimetres to add or subtract per size).
A few things that trip up early brands here:
Specify how measurements are taken. "Chest" is ambiguous — does it mean the half-chest measured across one side, or the full measurement? State it clearly every time.
Define your base size first. Build your entire spec around one size, grade from there, and never mix bases mid-document.
Include tolerances. A ±1cm tolerance on most body measurements and ±0.5cm on details is standard. Without tolerances, your QC has no benchmark to pass or fail against.
Step 4 — Add colourways and placement callouts
A colourway page shows all the colour or fabric options available for a given style. Each colourway gets a small sketch with fabric swatches or Pantone codes called out to the relevant panels.
If you have prints, graphics, or embroidery, placement callouts are critical. These show exactly where on the garment the artwork sits, measured from a fixed reference point (e.g. "logo centred, 8cm below collar seam on front"). Do not leave placement to the factory's judgement — they will not match what you imagined.
Step 5 — Add construction and trim callouts
This section is where you catch the details that drawings cannot fully convey. Common callouts include:
Stitch type at each seam (e.g. "side seam: 4-thread overlock, 5mm seam allowance")
Thread colour per stitch location (visible vs. hidden stitching may differ)
Hardware spec — zipper brand and gauge (our YKK zipper guide can help you navigate sizes and types), snap or rivet finish
Interlining placement and bond method for structured pieces
Any waterproofing, taping, or bonding instructions for technical outerwear
The garment-specific guides in this series go much deeper on construction callouts — the denim jacket tech pack guide covers one of the most construction-intensive garments in detail.
Step 6 — Add labelling and packaging instructions
The last section is easy to rush but painful to get wrong. Define:
Every label type, its dimensions, material (woven vs. printed), and exact placement with a measurement from a seam reference
Care instruction symbols and the required languages for your target markets (EU requires multiple languages; US requires English)
Folding method — show a diagram if the fold is specific to your brand
Garment bag spec (size, self-seal vs. open end, any print on the bag)
Carton pack spec if you need it — how many units per inner bag, per carton, carton dimensions, labelling requirements
Common Tech Pack Mistakes to Avoid
Sending incomplete drawings. If the back view is missing or the sleeve detail is unclear, the factory fills in the gaps themselves. You will not like the result.
Skipping the BOM entirely. A surprising number of early brands do this. Without a BOM, you cannot get an accurate quote, and you have no contractual basis if the factory substitutes a cheaper fabric.
Missing tolerances on the spec sheet. If you do not define what is acceptable, everything technically passes QC.
Using the wrong Pantone book. Specify whether your Pantone references are from the TPX (textile paper) or TCX (textile cotton) range. Factories work from TCX. Sending a TPG code from a graphic design project produces the wrong colour.
Version control chaos. If you are emailing tech pack PDFs back and forth and making changes across multiple versions, something will go wrong. Keeping tech packs in a centralised platform like Specter OS solves this — every revision is tracked, and your factory always has the current version.
Not updating the tech pack after sampling. Your tech pack is a living document. Every time a sample comes back and you request a change, that change needs to be recorded in the tech pack before the next sample is requested. If you only mark up a physical sample and send verbal feedback, your tech pack diverges from reality.
Tech Pack Format: What to Use
When you are starting out, many founders build tech packs in a combination of Adobe Illustrator (for drawings) and Excel or Google Sheets (for the BOM and measurement spec). This works, but it is slow, prone to errors as files multiply, and difficult to share cleanly with factories.
The more structured approach is a dedicated platform that keeps technical drawings, BOMs, measurement specs, and factory communication in one place. You can read more about why fashion brands outgrow spreadsheets and what a purpose-built operating system looks like in practice.
If you are producing garment-specific tech packs, the structure varies by category. The Specter OS blog has step-by-step guides for specific garment types:
Do You Need to Make It Yourself?
Not necessarily. Tech packs can be made by:
You, using a template-based platform or your own Illustrator/Excel setup
A freelance technical designer, typically charging €150–400 per tech pack depending on complexity
A done-for-you service, where you submit your design and receive a factory-ready document back
Specter OS offers a built-in done-for-you tech pack service. You submit your design — a sketch, an AI-generated image, a reference photo, or anything in between — and receive a complete, industry-standard tech pack within 3–7 business days, including two rounds of revisions. Pricing starts at €100 for simple styles and goes up to €250 for complex outerwear.
Find out how the tech pack service works →
Start Building Your Brand on a Solid Foundation
A well-made tech pack is not a bureaucratic formality — it is the document that protects your investment in every sample and production run. Brands that treat it seriously from the start have fewer sampling rounds, more accurate cost quotes, and far less to argue about when something goes wrong at the factory.
Whether you build it yourself or hand it off, Specter OS gives you both options in one place. Sign up for early access below.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a tech pack in fashion?
A tech pack is a detailed specification document that communicates every technical requirement of a garment to a manufacturer. It typically includes flat technical drawings, a Bill of Materials, measurement specifications, colourways, construction callouts, and labelling instructions.
How long does it take to make a tech pack?
For someone building their first tech pack manually, expect to spend 4–8 hours per style. With experience or a structured platform, this reduces to 1–3 hours. Complex outerwear or heavily detailed pieces take longer than simple basics.
How much does it cost to have a tech pack made?
Freelance technical designers typically charge €150–400 per tech pack. Specter OS's done-for-you service starts at €100 for simple styles and €250 for complex outerwear, with a 3–7 day turnaround.
Can I make a tech pack in Excel?
Yes — many brands start in Excel or Google Sheets for the BOM and measurement spec sections, paired with Illustrator for the drawings. It works but becomes difficult to manage as your style count grows and revisions accumulate.
Do I need a tech pack for every garment?
Yes. Every distinct style needs its own tech pack. Different colourways of the same style can share one tech pack with multiple colourway pages, but any change to construction or materials requires a separate document or a clearly versioned update.
What is the difference between a tech pack and a spec sheet?
A spec sheet usually refers specifically to the measurement specification section of a tech pack. A full tech pack is the complete document, of which the spec sheet is one component.
What software do fashion brands use to make tech packs?
Common tools include Adobe Illustrator (for technical drawings), Excel or Google Sheets (for BOM and measurement tables), and purpose-built platforms like Specter OS that consolidate everything in one place. CLO3D and Browzwear are used by brands that work in 3D.
How to Make a Tech Pack for Your Clothing Brand (The Ultimate Guide)
A complete step-by-step guide to making a professional tech pack for your clothing brand. From flat sketches and BOMs to measurement specs and factory-ready formatting.
How to Make a Tech Pack for Your Clothing Brand (The Ultimate Guide)
Starting a clothing brand means navigating a long chain of decisions before a single stitch is sewn. But there is one document that sits at the centre of everything: the tech pack. Without it, your manufacturer is guessing. With a good one, your sample comes back right the first time — and every time after.
This guide walks you through exactly how to make a tech pack from scratch, what every section needs to include, the most common mistakes founders make, and how to do it significantly faster than the traditional way.
What Is a Tech Pack?
A tech pack — short for technical packet — is the complete specification document for a garment. It communicates every detail your factory needs to produce the item exactly as you designed it: the construction, the materials, the measurements, the colourways, the labels, and the packaging.
Think of it the way you would an architectural blueprint. A builder cannot construct a building from a sketch on a napkin, and a factory cannot reliably produce a garment from a reference photo and a message on WhatsApp. The tech pack is the contract between your vision and their machines.
Every professional brand — from emerging labels to luxury houses — works from tech packs. It is the industry standard, and there is no real substitute for it.
What Does a Tech Pack Include?
Before getting into how to make one, it helps to understand what a complete tech pack actually contains. A factory-ready tech pack has six core sections:
1. Technical drawings (flat sketches)
Front, back, and side views of the garment drawn in 2D. These are not fashion illustrations — they are precise, black-and-white technical drawings that show every seam, stitch line, pocket placement, zipper, and construction detail. They are the visual foundation of the entire document.
2. Bill of Materials (BOM)
A complete itemised list of every physical component needed to build the garment: main fabric, lining, interlining, thread, zippers, buttons, labels, hang tags, poly bags. Each item includes the supplier reference, colour code, quantity per unit, and unit of measure.
3. Measurement and grading specifications
A chart showing the exact measurements of the garment at your base size (typically a Medium or Size 2), plus the grading rules — how each measurement changes as the size goes up or down. This is what your factory uses to cut patterns and what your QC team uses to check samples.
4. Colourways and fabric placements
Callouts that define exactly which fabric, colour (using Pantone codes where possible), or print goes where on the garment. A colourway page also shows all available colourway options for a single style side by side.
5. Construction and trim details
Closeup callouts for anything that requires extra clarity: stitch type (e.g. flatlock, chain stitch, overlock), stitch density (stitches per inch), seam allowances, hardware finishes, zipper type, and any special techniques like bonding or taping.
6. Labelling and packaging
Instructions for where each label is placed (brand label, care label, size label, country of origin label), the label dimensions and artwork, and how the finished garment should be folded, tagged, bagged, and packed for shipping or delivery.
How to Make a Tech Pack: Step by Step
Step 1 — Create your flat technical drawings
Everything in your tech pack stems from the technical drawings. If you are comfortable in Adobe Illustrator, start there — it gives you the most precision and is what most professional designers use. If not, tools like CLO3D, Browzwear, or even a well-structured sketch scanned and cleaned up digitally can work at an early stage.
Your flat sketch needs to show:
Front and back views at minimum, side view for anything structural (outerwear, trousers)
All seam lines, not just the silhouette
Pocket placement, flap shapes, and openings
Zip and button positions
Any topstitching, contrast panels, or construction details
Collar, cuff, and hem construction
Keep it clean, black-and-white, and scaled proportionally. A sloppy sketch produces a sloppy sample.
If technical drawing is not your strength, this is one of the most valuable parts to outsource or use a platform like Specter OS where garment-specific templates with pre-built construction details are available from the start.
Step 2 — Build your Bill of Materials
The BOM is the most detail-intensive section and the one most brands underestimate. Every item that physically goes into the garment needs its own line.
The more specific you are here, the more accurate your cost quotes will be, and the less room there is for the factory to substitute cheaper alternatives without your knowledge.
Step 3 — Fill in your measurement specifications
Your measurement spec (also called a spec sheet) defines the physical dimensions of the garment at each size. This section alone determines whether your samples fit correctly.
For each measurement point — chest, waist, hip, front length, back length, sleeve length, armhole, neck opening, and so on — you list the base size measurement and then the grade rule (how many centimetres to add or subtract per size).
A few things that trip up early brands here:
Specify how measurements are taken. "Chest" is ambiguous — does it mean the half-chest measured across one side, or the full measurement? State it clearly every time.
Define your base size first. Build your entire spec around one size, grade from there, and never mix bases mid-document.
Include tolerances. A ±1cm tolerance on most body measurements and ±0.5cm on details is standard. Without tolerances, your QC has no benchmark to pass or fail against.
Step 4 — Add colourways and placement callouts
A colourway page shows all the colour or fabric options available for a given style. Each colourway gets a small sketch with fabric swatches or Pantone codes called out to the relevant panels.
If you have prints, graphics, or embroidery, placement callouts are critical. These show exactly where on the garment the artwork sits, measured from a fixed reference point (e.g. "logo centred, 8cm below collar seam on front"). Do not leave placement to the factory's judgement — they will not match what you imagined.
Step 5 — Add construction and trim callouts
This section is where you catch the details that drawings cannot fully convey. Common callouts include:
Stitch type at each seam (e.g. "side seam: 4-thread overlock, 5mm seam allowance")
Thread colour per stitch location (visible vs. hidden stitching may differ)
Hardware spec — zipper brand and gauge (our YKK zipper guide can help you navigate sizes and types), snap or rivet finish
Interlining placement and bond method for structured pieces
Any waterproofing, taping, or bonding instructions for technical outerwear
The garment-specific guides in this series go much deeper on construction callouts — the denim jacket tech pack guide covers one of the most construction-intensive garments in detail.
Step 6 — Add labelling and packaging instructions
The last section is easy to rush but painful to get wrong. Define:
Every label type, its dimensions, material (woven vs. printed), and exact placement with a measurement from a seam reference
Care instruction symbols and the required languages for your target markets (EU requires multiple languages; US requires English)
Folding method — show a diagram if the fold is specific to your brand
Garment bag spec (size, self-seal vs. open end, any print on the bag)
Carton pack spec if you need it — how many units per inner bag, per carton, carton dimensions, labelling requirements
Common Tech Pack Mistakes to Avoid
Sending incomplete drawings. If the back view is missing or the sleeve detail is unclear, the factory fills in the gaps themselves. You will not like the result.
Skipping the BOM entirely. A surprising number of early brands do this. Without a BOM, you cannot get an accurate quote, and you have no contractual basis if the factory substitutes a cheaper fabric.
Missing tolerances on the spec sheet. If you do not define what is acceptable, everything technically passes QC.
Using the wrong Pantone book. Specify whether your Pantone references are from the TPX (textile paper) or TCX (textile cotton) range. Factories work from TCX. Sending a TPG code from a graphic design project produces the wrong colour.
Version control chaos. If you are emailing tech pack PDFs back and forth and making changes across multiple versions, something will go wrong. Keeping tech packs in a centralised platform like Specter OS solves this — every revision is tracked, and your factory always has the current version.
Not updating the tech pack after sampling. Your tech pack is a living document. Every time a sample comes back and you request a change, that change needs to be recorded in the tech pack before the next sample is requested. If you only mark up a physical sample and send verbal feedback, your tech pack diverges from reality.
Tech Pack Format: What to Use
When you are starting out, many founders build tech packs in a combination of Adobe Illustrator (for drawings) and Excel or Google Sheets (for the BOM and measurement spec). This works, but it is slow, prone to errors as files multiply, and difficult to share cleanly with factories.
The more structured approach is a dedicated platform that keeps technical drawings, BOMs, measurement specs, and factory communication in one place. You can read more about why fashion brands outgrow spreadsheets and what a purpose-built operating system looks like in practice.
If you are producing garment-specific tech packs, the structure varies by category. The Specter OS blog has step-by-step guides for specific garment types:
Do You Need to Make It Yourself?
Not necessarily. Tech packs can be made by:
You, using a template-based platform or your own Illustrator/Excel setup
A freelance technical designer, typically charging €150–400 per tech pack depending on complexity
A done-for-you service, where you submit your design and receive a factory-ready document back
Specter OS offers a built-in done-for-you tech pack service. You submit your design — a sketch, an AI-generated image, a reference photo, or anything in between — and receive a complete, industry-standard tech pack within 3–7 business days, including two rounds of revisions. Pricing starts at €100 for simple styles and goes up to €250 for complex outerwear.
Find out how the tech pack service works →
Start Building Your Brand on a Solid Foundation
A well-made tech pack is not a bureaucratic formality — it is the document that protects your investment in every sample and production run. Brands that treat it seriously from the start have fewer sampling rounds, more accurate cost quotes, and far less to argue about when something goes wrong at the factory.
Whether you build it yourself or hand it off, Specter OS gives you both options in one place. Sign up for early access below.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a tech pack in fashion?
A tech pack is a detailed specification document that communicates every technical requirement of a garment to a manufacturer. It typically includes flat technical drawings, a Bill of Materials, measurement specifications, colourways, construction callouts, and labelling instructions.
How long does it take to make a tech pack?
For someone building their first tech pack manually, expect to spend 4–8 hours per style. With experience or a structured platform, this reduces to 1–3 hours. Complex outerwear or heavily detailed pieces take longer than simple basics.
How much does it cost to have a tech pack made?
Freelance technical designers typically charge €150–400 per tech pack. Specter OS's done-for-you service starts at €100 for simple styles and €250 for complex outerwear, with a 3–7 day turnaround.
Can I make a tech pack in Excel?
Yes — many brands start in Excel or Google Sheets for the BOM and measurement spec sections, paired with Illustrator for the drawings. It works but becomes difficult to manage as your style count grows and revisions accumulate.
Do I need a tech pack for every garment?
Yes. Every distinct style needs its own tech pack. Different colourways of the same style can share one tech pack with multiple colourway pages, but any change to construction or materials requires a separate document or a clearly versioned update.
What is the difference between a tech pack and a spec sheet?
A spec sheet usually refers specifically to the measurement specification section of a tech pack. A full tech pack is the complete document, of which the spec sheet is one component.
What software do fashion brands use to make tech packs?
Common tools include Adobe Illustrator (for technical drawings), Excel or Google Sheets (for BOM and measurement tables), and purpose-built platforms like Specter OS that consolidate everything in one place. CLO3D and Browzwear are used by brands that work in 3D.