Who We Are

Clothier Design Source was established in 2006 as a resource to offer expertise in apparel design, soft good engineering, product development & manufacturing that enables private label brands to grow.   Located in St. Paul, Minnesota, our team of 35 plus skilled individuals produces sewn goods for a variety of companies large and small IN THE USA, UNDER OUR ROOF.  CDS is a leader and advocate for bringing apparel production back to the USA.

Why Choose CDS?

  • Development and manufacturing both under one roof - our design team understands manufacturing and our production team understands aesthetics.

  • Low minimums for clients who are just starting out - you can test a new product without having to commit to thousands of units.

  • Product and Development team who are experts in industry - our staff come from a variety of apparel and design backgrounds.

  • Sign a strict non-disclosure with all of our clients so everything that is shared is confidential.  You own your ideas.

No matter where you are in the process, we would be happy to start a conversation with you on how we can help bring your brand to life.

Our Work

  • Click here to hear from clients and see examples of our work 

What We Do

We have worked with brands from all over the country. Some of these brands are well established and have been around for years while others are just starting out. Our team has the ability to develop almost any type of sewn product including women’s, men’s, children’s and non-garment soft goods. Our specialties include athletic and high stretch apparel, medical and functional garments, technical and innovative products as well as children's wear.

The Team

Owner Mindy Martell held a variety of corporate positions in the apparel industry before starting her own company, offering design services to small brands and private label. Discouraged by the amount of waste in the industry - overstock, misused resources, squandered funds and extended timelines - Mindy developed a solution.   By offering small runs and high quality manufacturing in a methodical order, Clothier Design Source is eliminating tons of wasted inventory collecting dust or clearanced as seconds all MADE in USA.

Mindy developed “The 4 Steps of Apparel Design and Manufacturing.” that has revolutionized the development of garments, providing transparency and accessibility into the industry.

Her number one goal is to educate you to make good decisions and spend smartly.

CDS is broken out into two teams, Development and Production.  Both teams come with a wide range of backgrounds and experiences that bring a fresh perspective when approaching your designs.

Development Team

Within the development team there are several departments who all help make your vision come to life. 

Design Managers- Your go-to person that leads your design vision and manages your project through development

Designers- Create design boards and provides you with alternative options for how your design could be developed

Technical Designers- Build tech packets and technical drawings to ensure all the important details in your product are captured

Sourcing Managers- Find the perfect fabrics and trims for your project

Pattern Makers and Graders- Create patterns, perfects fit, and grades your design to all sizes

Prototype Sewers- Construct prototypes to work out all the kinks before moving to production

Production Team

 

CDS production team all help make sure your garments are produced at the highest level of quality.

Production Managers- Manage the production team and makes sure they hit client's deadlines

Marker Makers- Take the graded patterns and places them on a layout plan that uses the least amount of fabric possible.  

Sewers- In-house sewers that manufacture finished goods based off tech packets and direction from Project Managers

Quality Assurance Inspectors- Assure consistent quality of production by checking each garment before sending out to client

Packaging Specialists- Package garments per clients request

Shippers- Ship finished orders to clients

We offer 15 minute free consultations to see if our company is a right fit for yours.  Please reach out with any questions.