DS Textile Solutions Limited

Bespoke Training and Consultancy 

INTRODUCTION 

DS Textile Solutions was established in 2016 by Deborah Shulton (BSc Hons Textile Technology CText ATI). The company was created primarily to create and deliver bespoke Fabric Appreciation Workshops to apparel buying and design teams. Having worked as a fabric specialist in retail for over 25 years followed by 5 years working in education it became clear to Deborah that there was a gap in the market for Fabric Appreciation Workshops that were aimed specifically to the commercial requirements of buying and design teams in contrast to some of the more in depth technical courses that were already on offer at a number of academic institutions.

As well as offering Fabric Training Workshops Deborah continues to work with a number of retailers on a consultancy basis covering Menswear, Ladieswear and Homeware, with setting up fabric buying procedures; helping with interpreting test reports and helping with initiating and progressing fabric developments. Continuing her work within retail buying departments means that Deborah stays in touch with the day to day requirements of buying and design teams in terms of the fabric knowledge and understanding that they need.

FABRIC APPRECIATION WORKSHOPS

 Being able to use and understand correct textile terms when dealing with garment suppliers and fabric mills is something that many buying and design teams need help with. Attending a Fabric Appreciation workshop will not only help your teams do this, it will also help them to understand how the choice of raw materials; yarns and the construction of a fabric can have an impact on the price; handle; aesthetics and technical performance of that fabric. This knowledge has been shown to help staff carry out their roles with more confidence and efficiency when communicating requirements and negotiating fabric prices with suppliers and mills.

FABRIC BUYING PROCEDURES

Whether your company is buying a few hundred meters of fabric or thousands of meters of fabric, it’s critical that fabric technical requirements are communicated clearly and concisely at the start of a contract to avoid any issues with bulk fabric. DS Textile Solutions can help you to create simple to follow, robust procedures to communicate your requirements to suppliers and safeguard your performance standards. 

INTERPRETING FABRIC TEST REPORTS

 Are your fabrics performing to your customers’ requirements? Do your buying teams know what tests to ask for and which tests are critical for customer satisfaction in wearing and washing? DS Textile Solutions is able to help your teams prioritise which testing is most relevant for which end use and what standards are most applicable for which products. 

FABRIC DEVELOPMENTS

 Do your design / buying teams get frustrated that they are unable to get the fabric developments they want from the mills they use. DS Textile Solutions can help your teams translate their aesthetic fabric requirements into technical terms that fabric mills will be able to translate into bespoke fabric developments that meet your requirements both aesthetically and technically.