How do your nappies get to you?

1. Samples are approved.
The first part of the manufacturing cycle is to get samples. We sometimes need to get more samples made as thing didn't turn out exactly as we had imagined. For example, sometimes the shrinkage on the fabric is different to the fabric we were using here in Australia to base the pattern on - so we need to adjust the pattern to account for the differing rates of shrinkage.

We also get the product wear tested on a variety of infants. We need skinny legs, chubby legs, tall infants, short infants, heavy wetters and light wetters. If more adjustments are required then we do so at this stage.
Hand dyed Mandy Macs
We also take into account feedback from customers. For example, we have made the "frill" bigger on our Hemp Onesize nappy due to the number of emails we received suggesting it.

Once we have approved the samples, we will negotiate a price & place an order.

2. Order is Placed.
Mrs Law, our manufacturer, is our "Woman in Hong Kong."

She grew up in Guangdong province, but now lives in Hong Kong where her office is located. She has over 15 years manufacturing experience. She owns a small manufacturing factory (by Chinese standards) that specialises in niche products. Intricate baby clothes for the French market, jumpers for the US market and now infants nappies for the Australian market.

Mrs Law has three children, a daughter who works in the family business, another daughter who is studying here in Melbourne, and a son who is only ten years old.

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Mrs Law bases herself in Hong Kong.
3. Fabric is milled.
Mrs Law's daughter Fanny then organisesfor the mill to produce the fabric - she isn't able to get it at the fabric markets because we use such specialised fabrics such as hemp, bamboo & athlete's polyester. Everything must be milled especially for us.

Fanny is based in Guangzhou but travels regularly between there and Hong Kong which is a couple of hours away by train. She had her first child late last year (he doesn't have a "Western" name yet).

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Fanny and her son.
4. Manufacturing Begins.
Finally we are able to start getting the nappies made. The nappies are made in a small factory in Guangzhou, China. Guangzhou city is a specialist in textile and garment production due to it's proximity to Hong Kong. Guangdong province has the highest minimum wage in mainland China.

We get our nappies manufactured here, not because it's cheap, but because of the experience and quality the province can offer.
Our Factory in Guangzhou.
As you can see - our factory is clean, well organised, and well lit. We had the factory inspected before we began manufacturing to ensure that it was safe, and well managed. As much as we would like to employ other mothers, sewing is not exclusively a woman's job in Guangzhou. The wages are so high that many, many men have entered the garment industry.

Nearly all the factory workers are migrants from economically disadvantaged provinces. They come to Guangzhou because the wages they are able to earn here are far higher than anything they can earn in rural China. They have their accomodation and meals provided and thus, are able to save nearly all their earnings, or remit it back to their families.

5. Shipping.
The nappies are then taken to the docks & Fanny will liaise with our shipping & customs agent - also a small, family run business - by providing all the necessary legal paperwork. The shipping agent then organises for shipping, they also organise import duties, taxes, other costs and GST. When all this has been arranged and paid for the nappies are delivered to us.

There is always a panic as we realise, yet again, that we live in a place far too small to store so many nappies and we organise to store them with various relatives before they start taking over our bedrooms!
Digging
6. Postage to you!
And so finally you get to place your order. It is processed here at our home/office/warehouse and posted, usually the next business day. Ty is our chief mail man as Amanda finds it difficult to get up to the post office with three children in tow.

We hope you have enjoyed learning about how your nappies get to you! So when you see that "Made in China" label on your Mandy Mac nappies, you know a bit about the people behind that label and can feel proud that you are supporting them.
Our Mailman!
Mandy Mac - one family business supporting other family businesses.