Introducing The Team Behind Your birdsnest Favourites
Here at birdsnest we are incredibly proud of the special, long standing partnerships we have created with so many talent makers from all around the world. Each supplier and manufacturer we work with has been hand selected for their craftsmanship and their cultural fit with birdsnest.
We currently stock around 250 brands and have nine exclusive bird brands that we design in-house. We are absolutely committed to ethical sourcing across all areas of our business. On each item page on our site you are able to find where this garment was made in the list of features and we are building on that information, providing more details as we gather them.
For the nine exclusive bird brand labels that we design in-house, we have a close relationship with the manufacturers and are able to have the greatest influence and transparency. Up to 50% of these styles are made in Australia, and the remainder are made either in China, particularly for knitwear, or India, chosen for their beautiful fabric printing and embroidery work.
As part of partnering with us, each supplier enters into an agreement with us that includes the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) base code of conduct which is founded on the conventions of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and is an internationally recognised code of labour practice. You can read more here on our impact page.
Come learn more about the people behind your favourite birdsnest styles.
JM Fashions - Australia
We have been working with Sydney based manufacturers JM Fashions/Wetseal since 2013, and over this time we can honestly say they have become family. Proudly 100% Australian family owned and operated, sister duo Sharon and Michelle, along with their husbands John and Jim, are the creative brains behind this talented operation.
We’re proud to say that our Australian made garments are all sourced, cut, graded and packed by this awesome team right in Australia. Wetseal work with 5 local makers within the Vietnamese community in Western Sydney. Design, pattern making and cutting is all managed in house, and then once sewn goods come back from the makers, the items are returned to the factory for labelling, packaging and shipment to us here in Cooma.
This small but mighty operation consists of 14 employees (youngest age 41 years) and we just love their skillmanship in soft drape, jersey styles as well as structured woven pieces.
C&D Morinda - China
Since 2013, we have been working with Allan and his talented team to offer you a wonderful range of true knitwear. This family business runs an extremely proficient knitting facility in Donnguan, China. Their knowledge about the yarn, knitting, finishing and packing is so extensive and we just love coming back from every visit to their factory with more technical knowledge under our belts.
Allan and his wife, Lisa, started their knitwear factory in 2002, almost 20 years ago. Since then, their son Erick and his wife, and Allan’s brother, Mike, have also joined the knitwear team which now employs 50 people (24 men, 26 women with the youngest worker 28 years old). And what a talented family team it is! Their craftsmanship shows in each of the beautiful true knitted garments they produce for us here at birdsnest. Using a variety of different fine and more chunky gauges, from different yarn combinations and blends, ranging from cotton, cashmere, wool, nylon and other blends, we are so grateful for the way they facilitate all of our new knitwear designs into such quality garments.
THE LABORATORY - China & India
With over 35 years of experience in the industry, we’re so grateful that Paul, Ben, Belle, Melissa and their team at The Laboratory have been solid partners with us for many years (since 1999). Their head office is based in Geelong, Victoria, and they represent an incredibly talented array of factories in both India and China. They have spent many years travelling and building long standing partnerships with their factories and the care and dedication shown to their team across the world shows in the quality of their work.
The Laboratory has been part of the birdsnest family from the very early days when we sold their wholesale brands on our website. Now, ‘The Lab’ works alongside our design team to develop styles specifically for the many Bird Brands we produce in house. We love them for their top quality denim and knitwear styles, as well as great value t-shirts and basics.
We are always impressed with their company values of loyalty and honesty, and their genuine care for everyone who plays a role in bringing their ideas and garments to life. Having collaborated with some of their suppliers and makers for over 25 years, it's obvious that the thing they value most are the people.
They now have an office in Geelong with 11 employees (9 women and 2 men), and our orders are produced in 3 of their factories in China employing a total of 157 (108 women, 49 men, youngest 20 years old), and 2 of their factories in India employing 97 people (25 women, 72 men, youngest 19 years old). The team at The laboratory are committed to always ensuring their code of conduct is being upheld with regular visits (before Covid this was a minimum 5 times per year) to each factory, and the partnerships they have with all of their factories are all extremely long term which is testament to value they put on their partnerships.
Dan Tuo Clothing - China
We first started working with Cindy and Mr Liu in 2013, and can honestly say that we don’t know what we would do without them in our supply chain! We’ve shared many dinners and cups of tea together over the years whilst soaking up all their wonderful knowledge, and we are always looking forward to our next catch up.
The pair's expertise within the manufacturing industry, and their wonderful caring and open communications has meant we have solved every issue we have faced together, always with mutual consideration for both of our businesses. We are always impressed by their beautiful attention to detail with the factory excelling in quality denim products and expert woven finished garments.
Based in Guangzhou, China, the factory employs 20 people (12 women, 8 men) with the youngest employee 20 years old.
Shaunitex - China
From our very first introduction, we instantly hit it off with Johnny, Candice and their incredibly talented team. Their head office is based in Shanghai, China (12 employees) and their factory is based in the beautiful Jiangsu province, around 350 km from Shanghai (employs 86 people: 76 women and 10 men). Johnny describes the town where the factory is located as a very peaceful place, with lakes, trees and many sorts of birds, quite contrasted to the bustling life in Shanghai.
A partnership built on common ground and growing since 2021, we are always impressed with their dedication to ethical trade, boasting accreditations of BSCI, WRAP and QIMA Ethical Audit Green Rating.
We love their attention to detail and use of quality fabrics and finishes in every piece they create. They offer great value wardrobe staples, particularly jersey and stretch t-shirts, and are always going above and beyond to ensure wonderful, friendly service.
WD Designs - China
We have been working with Deena and Winston from WD Designs since 2003. Whenever we get together you can be sure that there will be as much laughing as hard work! Our partnership is built on years of trust and a mutual respect for the processes and our customer. They create designs they call “fashion for bodies in the real world”, and always have their customer, the birdsnest girl, top of mind when making any decisions.
On top of their incredible talent and expert craftsmanship, we were instantly drawn to Deena and Winston’s genuine love and care of working together. They met by chance one afternoon in Sydney when Winston was a local maker creating designs for some of Australia’s most iconic brands and setting up his own retail store, whilst Deena was working in fashion sales development. They refer to themselves as Mr & Mrs Instant, and after hitting it off in that first meeting, they started a business together just 2 weeks later. That was 19 years ago!
They now have 10 employees in their Australian office, and 20 employees in their factory in Dongguan, China (9 women, 12 men with the youngest worker 21 years). Their specialties include soft, drape jersey styles as well as woven knits and more structured garments. They produce some of the loveliest, top quality garments that we are always so proud to share with you.
Mukul K Creations - India
We first met Mukul and his team in 2013 on our very first trip to India. Almost 10 years later, the partnership has grown into a beautifully personal friendship based on mutual trust, respect and support for each other. Our design team has enjoyed many trips to India, sharing many meals together with Mukul, Jasmeet and his team, and we’ve just recently welcomed Mukul back to our hometown of Cooma to be one of the very first guests at our newly restored heritage terrace houses, Nest Stays.
Mukul, Jasmeet and his team's ability for finely crafted embroidery, fabric printing and fine workmanship of our woven programmes is a true asset to our supply chain. We are always blown away by the fine craftsmanship found in India from the talented makers there! And we are in constant awe of the fine work done by our printers in Jodhpur. Our garment manufacturing is produced in a factory based in New Delhi which consists of 100 employees (85 men and 15 women). Mukul has had a partnership with this factory for many years and we are so grateful for the honest and transparent ways in which we work together.
Sabena Fashion Group - India
When you find a talented leather supplier you hold on tight and never let go. But when it comes to Adam and Shana and their team at Sabena, it’s not just the craftsmanship that has us holding on. Since 2013 we’ve been honoured to work alongside this caring team and are so proud of the exceptional quality pieces we’ve created together to complement our Bird Brand ranges.
They use only the finest and softest leathers to create our beautiful pieces and their experience in offshore production is an invaluable asset to our supply chain. We love learning new things from them and hearing them share their knowledge and dedication for what they do. Our orders are produced in a factory which is based in New Delhi and employs 100 people including 10 women and 4 interns (youngest age is 23 years old).
Winspiring Ideas - India
Whilst our partnership with Garima, Himanshu and their incredibly talented team in India is a fairly new one, it's one we are really excited to explore. With over two decades steeped in the fashion industry, we were drawn to their relentless pursuit of excellence, their love for clothes and of course, their stunning craftsmanship in print and embroidery.
The team doesn't just design and produce; they breathe life into ideas and we have had such fun working with and learning from them. Each member brings a unique flair, drawn from experiences working closely with some of India's most celebrated brands and retailers.
Winspiring Ideas works with two different makers in Rajasthan, employing 105 women and 310 men across the two factories. We were also drawn to their dedication to ethical practices and social responsibility. Their SEDEX-approved Woven factory in Bangalore and partnerships in Jaipur are testaments this dedication.
Orientique - India
We first met Lex and Tom over 10 years ago when we started wholesaling their brand Orientique. From stocking Orientique we knew that their specialties with makers in India were second to none.So when it was time to birth our 10th bird brand SeaBird we knew we had the perfect production partner.
Many of their factories they have worked with since the 1970’s and are now working with the sons and daughters of the original factory owners.
We are able to source an eclectic mix of the finest hand crafts, printing techniques, trims and beautiful fabrics including sustainable rayon, cotton dobbys and hand-woven yarn dye fabrics. Tom and Lex frequently visit their factories and have a team in India who have worked together for almost 20 years. It has been a pleasure to collaborate with them and for our seabird brand to be in such safe and talented hands.
Love, the birdsnest birds x
Beth
Born and raised on the beaches of Sydney, Beth gave it all up to move to the mountains where she now lives in a tiny house on Lake Jindabyne with her three ducks and partner. When Beth's not busy working on our Social Media channels, you'll find her snowboarding, hiking, swimming or napping.
