Ethical Fashion Match Making with Xochil Herra Scheer
Industry Feature: Xochil The Chicago Pattern Maker
“Even if ethics and sustainability isn’t something the brand is actively marketing, I think being aware of issues and thinking about material types and usage, is important no matter what ... I feel a responsibility to share my knowledge and experience and help them make good choices.”
Hi, Xochil! It was a pleasure to meet you and a member of your team on our last visit to Chicago. As a patternmaker, you play such an important role in the fashion industry, often one that people don’t know much about. Can you share more about your work and its importance to the industry?
Thank you! As a pattern maker I am involved in most aspects of the product development process - assisting with sourcing and fabric selection, technical design and specifications, of course making the actual patterns, and then sewing prototypes, conducting fittings and making revisions until the garment is ready to be graded and go into production. It’s a job that many outside the industry don’t know about or fully understand -- but every brand goes through this process before bringing a product to market. How established the brand is and whether their technical and pattern team is in-house or hired as freelancer (like we are), determines some of the timing and other aspects, but it’s all the same process no matter the brand size.
Spending time and working with an experienced technical team during product development helps to establish proper garment fit and quality, and keep the brand organized to avoid potentially costly mistakes.
When did you discover your interest in fashion and how did you discover that you wanted to pursue it as a career?
I learned to sew my first doll clothes when I was 7 -- my grandma was really into art like painting and quilting and taught me how to sew by hand. I learned how to use a sewing machine when I was 9 from my summer daycare provider and 4-H leader. I was always interested in art of all kinds, and my dad had made and sold his own jewelry designs when I was very young, so I think early exposure helped steer my interests!
I enjoyed sewing and made or altered my own clothes, made costumes, and dresses for school dances, but I didn’t really know that fashion was a viable career path until I was in high school. I took the one sewing class my high school offered, and then enrolled at the local community college (MATC in Madison WI) to take continuing education classes in sewing and then pattern making. It gave me the chance to make custom patterns and learn how to fit different garments of various body types. I was by far the youngest in the class among mainly older and retired women. We got to choose our own projects but learned through doing instructor-led fittings on each other. Even with that background, I thought at first about doing costume design but thought getting a degree in fashion design would allow me more opportunities. In high school, I also took classes in tech ed -- architectural drafting and AutoCAD, and learned Adobe programs as Editor of my school yearbook.
In college, so many students, myself included, went for design, intending to be designers. However, I found out through my program that I really enjoyed drafting patterns and found myself to be more analytical in my design process, while also noticing many of my classmates did not enjoy the pattern-making classes as much. Thus, I discovered this would be a good niche for me to pursue!
After school, you stayed in Chicago. What did the first few years after graduation look like for you? And ultimately what led you to start your own company?
I had always wanted to move to Chicago, and that’s why I chose to attend college here. I had extended family in the area, and visited often as a child. I always felt inspired by the city, and despite the big size I felt like there was a strong presence of small businesses and community, and I was so excited to move here, and after college, to stay there and be a part of a growing fashion community.
After graduating from The Illinois Institute of Art Chicago, I found a job right away at a local boutique in the Old Town neighborhood, where I worked for 3 years doing tailoring and custom design projects, as well as their private label handbags and accessories. I enrolled in grad school part time for an entrepreneurship certificate program.
I did some freelance work here and there on the side, but it wasn’t until the end of 2009 when the economy tanked and the boutique I worked for closed. I found myself looking for new opportunities, and started interviewing for holiday jobs. I applied for a position as a sales associate, and was offered an assistant manager position. Cool, except I decided rather than take a job I wasn’t really passionate about, I would instead start my own business as a pattern maker, which was something I loved very much. Since I’d tested the waters by doing side projects, I decided this was the best time as any to just jump right in.
In this time, taking projects from local designers, I also did contract and part time work as a pattern maker for another boutique, and tailoring for styling clients through a personal branding company. I honed my skill set in technical design and pattern making, and built my clientele for product development services. I have always known I wanted to be an entrepreneur, but I think the circumstances and timing of things had me making that leap earlier on in my career than I may have otherwise, but I am really happy with the decision. In fact, I put this to the test when I worked for a larger product development company for a couple years (2012-14), and ultimately left because I wanted to continue working closely with small brands and have the ability to choose clients and projects that I’m passionate about.
“Even if ethics and sustainability aren’t something the brand is actively marketing, I think being aware of issues and thinking about material types and usage, is important no matter what ... I feel a responsibility to share my knowledge and experience and help them make good choices.”
When did you start to explore ethics and sustainability on the production side of the fashion industry? How did that shape your business?
I was thinking about this a lot to figure out where my interest started -- I didn’t really learn about this in school much because at the time it wasn’t as major part of the curriculum like it is today. Surely it was mentioned by some teachers, but not a main focal point. That said, I grew up in a working class family and my dad was a construction laborer, and belonged to a union. So I had that as a background, combined with working with small brands and starting my business during a bad economy, I wanted to be able to support my community, which meant producing locally in Chicago, in the Midwest, and definitely within the US. I learned a lot about the industry by reading and doing my own research, but learned even more through visiting factories personally and seeing the various work environments and conditions, and it sort of naturally evolved into an important part of my own business.
The thing about ethics is, once you start learning more and peeling back the onion… there’s no going back. Learning about the tragic disaster of Rana Plaza made the issue of ethical manufacturing even more important to me. In terms of how I applied that to my business -- of course my clients are ultimately deciding where to produce -- but I am a part of that process in making recommendations. I make sure to have conversations about production plans early in the process, and now that I’ve been talking about these issues on social media, at events, and including this messaging on my website, the types of clients I am attracting and working with share those values. I’ve since expanded my manufacturing relationships to include ethical fair trade facilities outside of the US; though I primarily work with domestic factories and have joined organizations such as AIBI in Chicago and SEAMS USA in order to forge new collaborations and to help my clients find great resources.
Even if ethics and sustainability isn’t something the brand is actively marketing, I think being aware of issues and thinking about material types and usage, is important no matter what. As someone who is hired to help guide brands in the right direction for their development, I feel a responsibility to share my knowledge and experience and help them make good choices.
Team behind LEV Apparel
Amazing entrepreneurs and seamstresses at WORK + SHELTER
“Placing more value on the work that goes into clothes without showing how long it takes or what steps are involved, makes it easy for consumers to forget the human element and shop based on price alone.”
You’ve done some work with local social enterprise partners and producers like WORK + SHELTER. Can you share more about how that collaboration, or others like it, came about?
Yes! I first met Theresa (CEO/Founder) during Fashion Revolution Week 2019 and she was on a panel. I had shared which events I planned to attend on Instagram, and one of my colleagues suggested that I connect with her. So I emailed Theresa not realizing I would see her that week, and ended up chatting briefly with her after the event. We set a coffee date the following week to talk about our businesses and possible ways we could collaborate. Over the summer, we got to work on our first project together which was for a baby wrap, which had a zip pocket and custom printed organic cotton fabric. The brand sold the wraps to raise money for donated doula services for disadvantaged women in Milwaukee who couldn’t otherwise afford those services. Having a brand that is also a social enterprise work with another social enterprise was such an amazing experience and made me feel great about the entire product and process.
Another client I was able to introduce to WORK + SHELTER is LEV Apparel. They design capsule wardrobe pieces empowering women through designing for different body types, as well as empowering women through ethical manufacturing as a core part of their business. Lev had been already working with another fair trade group but I knew they wanted to expand to have multiple production partnerships and made the introduction which has been another great success. We’re working on our 3rd or 4th product with them now.
I love that I can serve as a production “matchmaker” both for the brand and for the factory, and this is a major reason why I don’t just sell or share lists of factories without having an existing relationship with the client. I want to recommend my colleagues who I know do good work, and that means maintaining relationships with them too. I think collaboration is the key for lasting successful relationships, and when brands look at factories as partners (and not a line item on a cost sheet), they’re more likely to respect and value their work.
When a client or designer comes to you how do you share about the ethical part of your work? What does ethical fashion mean to you?
I mention my values on my website home page as well as on my social media profiles, so it’s definitely an immediate thing that I think helps me to attract brands who are like-minded (or strive to launch or make changes to their existing brand).
To me, ethical fashion means ethically produced -- working with factories who pay fair wages, have clean facilities and good working conditions, and those who strive to reduce waste. I also like using the term “slow fashion” to further speak to the development of apparel -- focusing on very intentional sourcing, spending time on improving fit and construction details, and being a part of a holistic process.
What do you think are the biggest challenges facing the fashion industry today? Is there anything you wish more people knew about?
I wish more people knew more about the process and all the people involved. I think more transparency and education for consumers from brands the better and will help to drive home the value differences between small and ethical brands and the big box or fast fashion counterparts. Placing more value on the work that goes into clothes without showing how long it takes or what steps are involved, makes it easy for consumers to forget the human element and shop based on price alone.
I think our current situation with COVID-19 will bring a lot of changes, and accelerate some movement that has already been happening with slow fashion brands. I think the idea of seasonality and producing huge collections is being challenged. There will be closures of some big and small brands alike, and it’s going to be a tough recovery.
“To me, ethical fashion means ethically produced — working with factories that pay fair wages, have clean facilities and good working conditions, and those who strive to reduce waste.”
What advice do you give to designers who are looking to build ethical and sustainable practices into their brands?
Give yourself time. I think it's ironic (and frustrating) when people sometimes try to rush the development process of a small or slow fashion brand. It takes time to select the right factory, go through fit revisions, carefully select your factory and work with them.
Educate yourself on the industry, and also about textiles. A lot of new designers haven’t even researched the basics of knit vs. woven or types of materials, and that education is well worth it and will help have better conversations with vendors and factories. People will take them more seriously if they show they’ve taken time to learn.
Think from A-Z. Consider the materials in the garment, the factory you work with, as well as the finishing details like eco-friendly packaging and other printed materials like hang tags or cards. It’s also important to remember that progress is better than perfection. As a new brand it can be daunting, and frankly expensive, to do all the things you want to do right from the beginning. Choose what’s most important, and make goals for yourself to improve or expand upon your values as you grow. But talk about it and make it known to your customers what your goals are, so they can support your growth and help you get there!
Running your own business can be a journey! What sort of challenges do you face? Does your focus on building ethical brands add any barriers?
A big one is feeling like I have to wear all the hats in the business. Definitely when I started, and I literally was, but even now that I have a small team, I’m still the face of the company, I do my own estimates, invoicing, and always am involved with various events, networking, and social media. Asking for help and delegating tasks is a challenge but necessary for my sanity as well as just running business more smoothly.
My goal is not to grow into a huge company, because I love the work I do (patterns and tech packs) -- the bigger you grow the more managing you do vs. doing the tasks yourself. So I find ways to balance my time between the work I love and the work I need to do in the background, without having to hire a huge team. Of course this means our capacity is limited, but it also means we get to work on projects we are passionate about, and with clients we love.
Other challenges on the client side are usually to do with educating new clients, which is why I want to know that they are doing some of this work outside of our working relationship. I love talking through things with them and advising on different issues, but it’s much easier when they come from a place where they’ve done some research too, or follow up on the books, websites or blog posts I share with them.
Sourcing can be a challenge for fabrics especially -- there is a ton of stuff out there, and sifting through it or finding something very specific can take a long time, particularly when it comes to certain fibers or even certifications that someone might be looking for.
I will turn down business because it doesn’t align with our values or capabilities - If someone is looking for something fast and cheap, we don’t want to work with them. Rushing a sample for an existing client because of a photoshoot opportunity or something we’re happy to figure out how to make it work, but a project that is entirely rushed from the start is a recipe for disaster. If a project sounds good but we just can’t fit it in, we usually refer them to a trusted colleague who can.
Threaded was built on the idea that Midwest is more than a flyover when it comes to a conscious approach to fashion. As the former Regional Director for The Fashion Group International of Chicago, you’ve been fairly involved in the fashion scene here. What do you wish more people knew about fashion in the Midwest and what do you love most about living and working here in Chicago?
The Midwest is very active in fashion! I think we have fewer “big names” who stay local, and unfortunately, there is a lack of centralized garment districts in many cities. However, I think we have a pretty tight-knit community and most are willing to help each other out, even if they might technically be your competition. I love that about the Midwest in general, that we are friendly and want to work towards the greater good of the industry. I also have become friends with many of my colleagues (including “competitors, other pattern makers) and with clients, and it makes me happy to do the work I do.
When you aren’t making products or working on your business, what can we find you doing? Are there any places in Chicago you love to spend your time?
Like many small businesses owners, work is my life. So a lot of my personal time is still spent attending industry events, seminars, trade shows, etc. and I enjoy meeting people and learning new things. But outside of that, I like spending time with family and friends, going out to eat or grabbing a coffee at a local spot. A few of my favorite spots in Chicago are Cafe Robey, Blue Sky Bakery, Ground Up Coffee & Bites, and Goddess and the Baker. I recently discovered, and fell in love with, Eleven Eleven, and went there to celebrate my wedding anniversary (11/11/11).
What are your thoughts on how designers and industry professionals can shift the industry to one we can all be proud to be a part of? How can we support you and your work?
A shift more towards transparency would benefit everyone. Talk about where your fabric came from, who made your clothes, and share your business goals and struggles just a little bit.
Being willing to help someone who is at the beginning of their career and mentor them. Share your knowledge with the next generation – I spend a lot of time talking to schools and young people and educating them about different jobs which support various aspects of the industry.
Shop small and support brands and stores in your community. I buy from my clients all the time, and I think the more we can create a circular economy even among local businesses, the better.
Referrals and connections are the best way to support me (outside of working with me!). I appreciate it so much when clients or colleagues refer their friends, and I do the same when I see an opportunity that might benefit someone else I know.