What is Lead Time in Garments
Lead time is the total time from when a buyer places an order to when the goods are delivered. It includes everything from raw material booking to shipping. In the garment industry, lead time is often 90 to 120 days, and reducing it gives the factory a competitive edge because buyers value faster turnaround.
How to Calculate Lead Time
Lead time equals delivery date minus order date. Break it down into sub-stages: raw material booking, fabric production, cutting, sewing, finishing, and shipping. For example, 30 plus 30 plus 5 plus 40 plus 15 plus 10 equals 130 days.
Practical Example 1 — Basic T-Shirt
An order for 20,000 basic T-shirts has stages: fabric booking 25 days, fabric in-house 35 days, cutting 3 days, sewing 18 days, finishing 5 days, shipping 7 days. Total 93 days. Reducing fabric booking from 25 to 15 days saves 10 days of lead time.
Practical Example 2 — Denim Jeans
Denim has longer lead time due to washing. Fabric booking 30 days, in-house 40 days, cutting 4 days, sewing 22 days, washing 10 days, finishing 6 days, shipping 8 days. Total 120 days.
Practical Example 3 — Fast Fashion
A fast-fashion buyer wants a 45-day lead time. The factory must use greige fabric already in stock, cut in 2 days, sew in 15 days, finish in 4 days, and air-freight. This is only possible with strong planning.
Practical Example 4 — Lead Time Reduction
A factory cuts lead time from 100 to 80 days by pre-booking fabric, running parallel cutting and sewing, and finishing in 4 days instead of 6. Buyers respond by placing 20 percent more orders.
Why Lead Time Matters
Faster lead time wins more orders, allows smaller order quantities, reduces inventory in the supply chain, and lets the buyer respond to fashion trends. Factories with shorter lead time can charge premium prices.
Key Factors That Increase Lead Time
Late fabric booking, fabric production delays, slow sample approvals, poor planning, rework, machine breakdown, absenteeism, and shipping congestion. Each stage adds risk.
How to Reduce Lead Time
Pre-book fabric based on forecast. Approve samples faster with a digital system. Run cutting and sewing in parallel where possible. Reduce sewing lead time with better line balancing. Reduce finishing time with parallel stations. Use air freight for urgent orders. Build a strong relationship with fabric suppliers.
Common Mistakes
Many factories quote a short lead time to win the order, then miss it. Others assume the buyer will allow buffer, which is no longer true in fast fashion. Some reduce lead time by cutting quality checks, which causes rework later. Reducing lead time must not compromise quality.
Measuring and Tracking
Track lead time per order and per stage. Compare planned vs actual at every stage. Identify the top 3 delays each month. Use a digital tracker or ERP. Review lead time in the monthly management meeting.
When to Use It
Lead time is reviewed for every order, every quarter, and every season. It is central to merchandising, planning, and capacity management. IE teams support lead time reduction by improving process times and reducing variability.