The apparel and clothing industry plays a very important role in the Economy. There are various other businesses and crucial aspects that are related to it. Labelling is one of those aspects. Labelling is an important factor for the apparel industry, it is necessary in many ways. It provides useful information, guidelines as well as information regarding country of origin, etc.
What is Label?
A Label is a piece of fabric, paper, metal or any other material that is attached to a product. It provides certain information to the buyers. It helps in getting required information regarding particular merchandise easily.
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The clothing merchandise and textile products require some labelling. It helps the buyers to select appropriate products. Many high fashion brands usually design their labels in an amazing and attractive appearance. It works as a tool for brand recognition for customers.
Different types of labels are there for different apparel and fabric merchandise. Various labels work differently, it means it serves the common purpose of giving information to the customers as per the requirement, but it provides different information. For, example a care label provides information regarding the care to be taken for that particular garment, and a price label will provide the information regarding the price of that particular product.
A label is a very important part of a garment. It is something more than just a piece of fabric because it is the tool which directly draws the attention of people. It is the medium of direct communication with the customers. So, the label should be attractive enough, qualitative and informative.
Importance of Labels
- It provides information about the company or brand which made that garment.
- Label provides care instructions. It includes indicators such as – wash, clean, iron, bleach, steam, dry, etc. and other related information.
- The customer can get information regarding the country of origin for any particular product.
- People can compare the prices of various products with the help of price labels of different articles.
- Some labels carry information regarding culture and tradition, the people who made it and how they made that product, etc.
- The label can provide information regarding certain techniques that are used in that garment. For example, block print, organic dye, printing and painting techniques and its information, etc. So, people can read and know about particular things.
- Labels work as a tool for brand recognition and recall.
- The merchandise exported carries a label of country of origin.
- It is required as a part of the export policy in some countries as well as the buyer can come to know about it too.
- A properly placed attractive label can be helpful to draw the attention of customers. It can be a tool for customers to decide whether to buy a garment or not.
Styles of Label Fold
The labels can be folded in different ways and attached with the garment. There are various styles of label fold available which are:
Straight cut
It is also known as fuse cut. It is sewed on the garment from one side, two opposite sides or four sides. The sewing margin is required outside the design of the label. It is used for brand labels, mattress labels, bath textiles, bedding labels etc.
End fold
End fold is sewed from both the sides of labels (right and left side). One advantage of end fold is that the corners of the label are not exposed to the skin and it gives a softer effect. It is used for brand labels, home textile products, towel labels, etc.
Mitre fold
It is a fold with two 45 degrees angles at the bottom of the label. And the label hangs in an elegant appearance. This type of fold is very useful when the logo is long. It is used for brand labels, clothing labels, bedding labels etc.
Loop fold
It is the most commonly used label fold. It is typically used for neck labels for t-shirts, Kurti, etc garment. Loop fold is folded in the middle and sewn into the top seam of the garment. The advantage of the loop fold label is that both surfaces of the label can be used. The front surface is used for a brand name; logo, size etc. and the backside of the label can be used for care instructions, content, price, slogan etc.
Manhattan fold
It is mostly used for hem tags. There is an extra fold on the top of the label which covers the corners and gives a softer and cleaner effect. It is used for the brand label, curtains, table clothes etc.
Centre fold
It is the clothing label which folds in half. The front part of the label has company name and/or logo, and at the underside of the label the care and composition instructions are given, sometimes size of the garment is mentioned. It is used as a brand and care label, home textile labels, brand and size labels etc.
Die cut
It is a label that is cut with a cookie cutter to get the desired shape. The shape of the corners is in a rounded shape in opposed to a square shape.
Types of Fabric Choices for Labels
A label should be attractive enough as well as it should perform its function of the communicator. The label communicates with people; it gives information about the brand name, logo, price, care, composition, etc. So, the decision regarding fabric for the label should be taken properly.
There are various types of fabrics and other materials which are used as a label. Like – Satin, cotton, damask, and semi-damask, taffeta, etc. and sometimes leather is also used. Generally, leather is used as a brand label in denim at waistband. It includes the name and logo of the company.
The size label, care label, composition label, special label and sometimes price label are made of satin, cotton or damask material.
Damask garment label is the most common label used for clothing products. It is woven with slower, high density and finer yarns. So it is more durable with uniform weave. It is mostly used for high-end products because of its rich appearance and durability. It gives more clarity for text, design and finer images.
Satin clothing labels are soft, lustrous and shiny. It is less costly than damask and taffeta material. Generally, satin fabric is used for main label, size label, care label, price label and composition label.
Taffeta labels are commonly used for care label. It is less costly. It is woven with a plain weave base. It forms a tight structure and it is durable. It is similar to a damask label, but it does not have a rich appearance or the ability to carry fine details. But it can carry reasonably detailed designs, text and are very functional.
The labels can be in the form of woven, printed, embroidered or heat transfer form. The woven labels are commonly used in clothing and textile products; it gives a premium touch to the brand. The printed labels are mostly sewn in the garments and it carries information like brand name, logo, care instruction, fibre content, price, size, etc.
The embroidered labels are mostly used as a brand label and it can also include the logo of the company too. The heat press technique is generally used on t-shirts and sportswear. It is directly printed on the clothing so no friction is made. But, the colour of print may come off due to frequent use and washing.
Types of Labels
There is the availability of different types of labels which are used for garment and textile products. Labels are of great use for the wearer as well as for the company too. The right label at the correct position plays an important role. Companies have specific criteria for labelling. Some labels are attached at the time of manufacturing the product and others are sewn on when the garment is being finished.
Different labels serve different motives. Labels can be primarily divided into two parts, and further, they can be sub-divided into several parts. Which are as below:
Main Labels
The main label of garment/textile product or any other product means the label which defines the name of the company /brand name of the product and the logo of the company. Main labels can be divided into two parts. i.e.
Brand Label
A brand label is the main label which provides information regarding the name of the company/ brand for any particular product. It is one of the most important labels. The customers can get aware of the manufacturing company or the brand which produced the product.
A brand label includes the brand name of the company and/or the logo of the company. The customer can identify the brand of the garment from this label. A brand label is associated with the quality, durability and feel-good factor.
In today‟s competitive world, a brand label plays a very important role. People usually like to buy garments from well-known brands. It is an era of marketing and branding. It can pull more number of people to buy the product. So, an attractive brand label with the brand name and/or logo can be helpful to draw the attention of people. The customers know the brand and they buy the product. Hand tags are commonly used as a brand label.
Some clothing brand labels are – BIBA, Global Desi, Allen Solly, FabIndia, Globus, Pepe jeans etc.
Private Label
A private label denotes the garment products that are marketed by retailers and other members of the distribution channel. A private label is any brand that is owned by the retailers or distributors and is sold in their outlets. The private label is also known as in-store brands.
A brand that is not owned by the manufacturer or producer of the product, but it is owned by the retailer or distributor. The retailer/distributor gets the products made by the contract manufacturer under its label. It is also known as a store brand, own brand or retailer‟s brand.
Private labels are emerging nowadays. It is making its place in the current business market. Many well-known retailers own their private labels.
Many of the retailers like Reliance, Aditya Birla Group, Pantaloons, Shopper‟s Stop and other retailers have their own private labels. They are expanding their business through private labels to meet the specific needs and demands of customers and improve the profit earnings of their stores.
Private apparel label brands of Pantaloons are – Rangmanch, Ajile, Honey, Akkriti, Byford, RIG, Bare Denim, Lombard, etc.
Sub Labels
Care Labels
A care label is generally attached at the side seam of the garment. It contains instructions and warning regarding the care to be taken for the particular garment. Care of the garment should be taken particularly for washing, drying, ironing, bleaching, etc.
There is a variety of kinds of fabrics available like – cotton, silk, polyester, wool, muslin, lycra, nylon, chiffon, georgette, brocade, velvet, satin, linen and many more. All fabrics are of different characteristics and may require specific care and treatment.
The different characteristics and traits of fabric include – colour bleeding and fastening, shrinkage, colour fad, etc. So, the garment made from a particular fabric requires particular treatment and care. The care label contains specific instructions according to the need of the specific garment.
The clothing care label is one of the important parts of the garment. It can make a great difference.
The care label has some symbols for instructions for wash care, drying, ironing, bleaching etc. The wash care instructions include – wet wash or dry clean, wash in cold water, warm water or a particular temperature, etc.
The ironing instructions include the temperature, heat, steam ironing required or not etc. The bleaching instructions refer to whether bleach treatment is needed for the garment or not.
If proper care is taken for the garment it can last for a longer period. Some of the useful care symbol instructions are given below.
Size Label
Size label is attached with the garment to denote the specific size of the garment. Usually, ready-made garments are made of standard measurements. Size label is placed to indicate the specific size of that particular garment so that the customer can come to know about it.
The size can be defined in numbers like 30, 32, 34 etc. or it can be in specific size like S, M, L, etc. S refers to Small, M refers to Medium and L refers to Large. Generally, customers know about their size, so as per the size label of the garment one can decide and buy the garment as per her/his size.
The companies which are well known and have a famous brand name they usually follow standard measurements and size charts. Other local and small garment manufacturing companies may follow the standard measurements, yet the variations in the size of the garment are generally noticed.
Like the low priced garments available at small shops, street markets, etc. have garments with size labels but the size may not be as accurate and exact as the branded clothes. The branded company‟s garments and the high priced designer clothes are more accurate and particular in size.
Price Label
A price tag or label declares the price of the product. The price label can be in the form of a sticker, a hanging label, a twist tie or any other means. It is helpful to describe the price on the garment so that people can determine the price without consulting the staff of the store.
Generally, price label is attached with the garment as a hanging price tag. It is made of card or paper sheet. Sometimes, price label is made of fabric and attached with the garment in loop fold also. Hand tags are most commonly used as a price label in garments and textile products.
Composition Label
A composition label defines the mixture of fibres that create a fabric. It indicates the fabrication and composition percentage of any clothing or textile product. It indicates fabrications like – cotton, denim, polyester, nylon, viscose, etc. and the composition percentage like 95% cotton 5% spandex, 100% cotton, etc.
The buyer can get the information regarding the fabric from this label. Different fabrics have different combinations of fibres at the time of manufacturing. The composition label indicates the information regarding it.
Special Label
A special label is used to attract customers. It is used for value addition in clothing and textile products. Some example of special labels includes 100% cotton, 100% silk, 100% leather, organic dye, etc.
Flag Label
A flag label is small in size and it indicates the brand name or logo of the company. It is generally used at the side seam of bottom wear.