Ethical Apparel Production: Choosing the Right Manufacturing Partner

If you’ve read my other posts, you already know that Free Body Apparel (formerly Chronic and Free) was built around lived experience. The goal has always been simple: to create comfortable, versatile clothing for people living with conditions that cause abdominal discomfort, swelling, and unpredictability. That mission doesn’t stop at design. It extends into how the clothing is made.

Ethical apparel production matters to me because care should exist at every step of the process—not just at the end when someone puts the clothes on.

I first learned about Direct to Source at a sourcing event in Las Vegas early last year. I spent time talking with one of the owners, Holli, and what stood out immediately was her sincerity. The conversation didn’t feel rehearsed or transactional. It felt grounded and honest, which went a long way for me at a moment when I was still learning what questions to ask.

It was also important to me that Direct to Source is an American-owned company. I served in the United States Navy, and service is deeply woven into my family. My husband, oldest child, son-in-law, and two nephews all serve as well. Responsibility, accountability, and integrity aren’t abstract values to me—they’re personal.

At the same time, production happens in an ethical factory in Guatemala, one that I’m welcome to visit at any point. I want to be transparent here: cost was part of that decision. Manufacturing there is more affordable than producing entirely in the United States, and at this stage, that reality mattered. If I’m able to change that in the future, I will. Ethical clothing manufacturing includes honesty, not pretending decisions are simple when they aren’t.

For me, ethical apparel production isn’t a label you claim—it’s something you have to back up. Direct to Source employs people full time and values longevity within their factory. When employees move on, it’s often toward growth: higher education, new opportunities, or their own business ventures. They receive higher wages, weekends off, and additional time around the holidays. Those details tell you a lot about a company’s priorities.

Another piece that mattered just as much: I didn’t come into this knowing what I was doing.

I didn’t have a background in apparel production. I came in with a personal need, a desire to help others like me, and a willingness to learn. Direct to Source offered guidance from the beginning. They helped create patterns and tech packs, sourced fabric, and walked me through samples and revisions. The process felt collaborative and steady, not overwhelming.

That support gave me space to learn the industry while continuing to move forward with the larger purpose behind Free Body Apparel.

The Chronic and Free line exists because of choices like this. Because of partnerships built on transparency and shared values. Because ethical apparel production should consider the people making the clothes just as much as the people wearing them.

For me, that alignment was essential—and it still is.