Have you ever wondered what a "drop" is or what "tat" means?
Slow Fashion or Small Shops might have a few abbreviations or terms you're unfamiliar with - until you know, and then it explains a lot!
When I was first asked, "what's your TAT?" I started to describe what my tattoos, happy to share - but wondering what that had to do with sewing. I soon found out that TAT stands for Turn Around Time (the time it takes to for items to ship after they are ordered). This is important in Slow Fashion when items might not be made until you order. Sometimes this is because as a small shop, it's hard to invest the resources in a lot of inventory that may not be the right size or color for shoppers. Here at Sew BeYouTful we choose a couple of different ways to offer our Slow Fashion...
"Drops" - I still don't know what this term really means, but is a time when items can be purchased or ordered either on our website or in our VIP group: Sew BeYouTful Friends and Family. These might include pre-orders, made to order or ready to ship.
Pre-orders - We don't do these very often as they have the highest turn around time. It's usually when we ourselves are pre-ordering fabric (ordering fabric before it's actually been printed/shipped). When we pre-order fabric, it can sometimes take 2 months before the fabric is delivered to us. It's a slow process for sure and the hard part is that these fabrics often can't be re-ordered. As a small shop it's hard to keep our own turn around time down, while also gauging how popular a fabric will be. This adds the reason why some items may be so limited or have the TAT they do.
Made to order (MTO) - We offer this more often then anything, either in our VIP group or online markets. A sample is sewn for photo and listings. Items sold are usually size variations on that sample, and are made after they are ordered from fabrics we have on hand. We will always offer a turn around time as to when expect your items after they are ordered.
Ready to ship (RTS) - these may be offered on our website, online at markets, or in the local stores we partner with. These items are finished items and are ready to ship once they are ordered.
There is one more secret way of ordering, but you would need to be part of our VIP group and look for Wishful Wednesday posts. Sew BeYouTful Friends and Family
Other terms you may have heard:
OOAK (One of a Kind) - We do both one of a kind items and small (micro) batches, where a small amount are made that may differ in size and print placement.
GWM (Grow with me) - Grow with me clothing is designed to have the cuffs and waistband fold and unfold to extend the sizing of an item and "grow" with the child. We offer both grow with me sizing and sized items.
We want to heard what other terms have you heard that you didn't know at first! Or what other things about Slow Fashion or Small Shops you want to know more about. What would you add to this list?
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