Boutique clothing manufacturing facility opens in Detroit

Sarah Lurtz and Sarah Lapinski, best-known as the duo behind fashion line Wound Menswear, have opened a small manufacturing facility in the Russell Industrial Center. The 800 square-foot space includes 13 sewing machines and a large cutting table, enough equipment to complete, as Lurtz describes it, "small-run production of a clothing line."

The duo, their business partner and one other employee staff Motor City Sewing, which is currently hard at work producing the next Wound line, comprised of 64 jackets, 64 pairs of pants and 32 shirts each of two styles. While still learning what the shop’s capacity is, Lurtz estimates that a small line such as Wound can be turned around in 4-6 weeks, "standard production time" for the industry, she says.

Services available to other designers from Motor City Sewing include pattern drafting, sample sewing, cutting, fabric and material sourcing and grading. Lurtz and Lapinski also offer consulting services to other designers to help get an idea off the ground and into production.

Lurtz says she and Lapinski were inspired to open Motor City Sewing after realizing there was a void in the market of a boutique-style quality clothing manufacturing facility in the Midwest region. She is proud that the care tags sewn in to each garment produced at Motor City Sewing will read, "Made in Detroit, USA."

Upcoming events at Motor City Sewing include a Sunday brunch open house on March 11 and a Wound launch party on March 30 followed by a trunk sale of the line on March 31.

Source: Sarah Lurtz, Motor City Sewing and Wound Menswear

Images courtesy Motor City Sewing