Landed cost, honestly compared
Duty-free under EU EBA, 23% Polish VAT inside one DDP price, and a plain statement of when a Łódź workshop is the better choice.
Premium knitwear manufacturing for Polish brands — duty-free under Everything But Arms, Poland's 23% import VAT inside one landed price, labels in Polish as the Polish Language Act requires, and an honest landed-cost comparison against making at home.
Collective Studio makes cut-and-sew knitwear for Polish brands in Narayanganj, Bangladesh, from 100 pieces per style and colour, delivered DDP through Gdańsk in roughly 40–50 days plus transit, duty-free under Everything But Arms with Poland's 23% import VAT inside the quote. Labels are sewn in Polish, GOTS certificate RSC 9687 backs the GPSR file, and landed cost is the argument.
Or message the factory directly: WhatsApp +880 1980 055026 · hello@collectivestudioltd.com · Homaira replies within one business day.

We are a clothing manufacturer for Polish brands: a family-run cut-and-sew knitwear floor in Narayanganj, Bangladesh, with a brand office in Amsterdam, making t-shirts, polos, hoodies, sweatshirts, joggers, shorts, activewear and loungewear from 100 pieces per style and colour. Poland has a real garment industry of its own, Łódź above all, so a Polish founder is not asking whether a factory exists but whether the landed price from Bangladesh beats the one down the road. This page gives the numbers to make that comparison honestly.
The numbers: Bangladesh-made apparel enters the EU duty-free under Everything But Arms, and Poland charges import VAT at its basic rate of 23% (stawka podstawowa) on the customs value plus any duty. We ship DDP, so that VAT is inside the price you approve rather than a separate assessment at Gdańsk, and a VAT-registered importer normally recovers it on the periodic return. Ask your księgowy how you want the import VAT handled and tell us before we file the entry.
Where Poland wins: a re-cut of fifty pieces next week, a woven or tailored piece, or a range whose story is made in Poland. Where we win is knit at volume at low minimums: a 320 GSM hoodie or a 180 GSM tee cut and sewn to your pattern from a hundred pieces, GOTS organic cotton available under certificate RSC 9687, and a landed cost that includes the duty you do not pay and the VAT you do. Many Polish brands run exactly that split, and we will say plainly which pieces belong where.
Labelling: the Polish Language Act requires Polish in consumer trade, and Article 7a extends that to the naming of goods, warnings and information for consumers required by other regulations, and information about the properties of goods, which covers a fibre label. So labels for Poland are in Polish, sewn to your artwork, with other languages added if you sell across the Union. The General Product Safety Regulation adds the manufacturer's name and addresses on the product or packaging and an EU-established responsible operator, which a Polish company importing from us is.
Ports and timing: Gdańsk is the usual sea entry, with Gdynia beside it, and Warsaw Chopin the air entry. Gdańsk takes direct calls from Asia on the deep-water terminal, so the sea leg does not always need a western European transshipment; we confirm the transit for your port with the quote rather than print a figure. Our lead time is about 50 days from a confirmed order to handover, and the launch-date calculator counts back from your on-sale date.
What we do not make: denim, jackets and woven shirts, which our partner buying house sources as a separate order. If you are comparing producent odzieży options and finding mostly agents, ask for the factory's street address, its BKMEA membership and a live video call from the floor during a working shift. Ours is Plot-A-132, Road No. 02, BSCIC Industrial Area, Panchabati, Narayanganj 1420.
| Bangladesh (our floor) | China | Vietnam | Turkey | Portugal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Duty preference into Poland | Duty-free under Everything But Arms; single-transformation origin; kept three years after LDC graduation (verified 21 Sep 2026). Import VAT applies to every origin | No preference; the standard EU rate for the commodity code applies | EU–Vietnam trade agreement preferences apply only where its fabric-origin rules are met | EU–Turkey customs union: no duty on goods in free circulation | EU production: no import, no customs entry, no import-VAT event |
| Sea route to Poland | Via Suez to Gdańsk or Gdynia, with direct Asia calls at Gdańsk's deep-water terminal; we quote the transit for your port | Via Suez; a similar sea leg | Via Suez; a similar sea leg | Road and short-sea; days rather than weeks | Road; days |
| Where it tends to be strongest | Cotton knit basics at low minimums, GOTS organic, landed cost | Breadth of fabrics, trims and technical construction | Large woven, outerwear and sportswear programmes | Speed to market, denim and knit, mid-range cost | Premium made-in-EU positioning, small runs, highest unit cost |
| Choose it when | You want cut-and-sew knitwear from 100 pieces, duty-free, with the GPSR file built during production | You need materials or constructions a knit specialist cannot source | You are placing large woven or performance programmes | You need weeks, not months, and can carry a higher unit cost | The made-in-Europe label is central to the brand and price is secondary |
Duty-free under EU EBA, 23% Polish VAT inside one DDP price, and a plain statement of when a Łódź workshop is the better choice.
The Polish Language Act requires Polish on goods information for consumers; we sew Polish labels to your artwork, with other languages added for the rest of the Union.
Launch or test in the Polish market with 100 pieces per style, per colour, cut and sewn to your pattern.
GOTS certificate RSC 9687 supplies the fibre, chemistry and traceability evidence your GPSR technical file needs.
Last verified: 21 September 2026, against the official sources listed under Sources below.
Poland applies the EU's common rules: a garment cut and sewn on our floor enters duty-free under Everything But Arms on a single-transformation origin rule, and Regulation (EU) 2026/1395 keeps that access for three years after Bangladesh graduates from LDC status. The Polish part is the tax: podatki.gov.pl states the basic rate at 23% (in force since 1 January 2011), with the 8% and 5% reduced rates reserved for listed goods; clothing is not among them.
On 500 tees at a US$6.00 customs value, US$3,000 in total, that is US$690 of import VAT and no duty, inside our DDP price. A VAT-registered importer recovers it through the periodic return.
Confirm the live position for your commodity code with your broker before pricing a range; we will state it for your order in writing, and the landed-cost calculator runs the arithmetic for any quantity.
Last verified: 21 September 2026, against the official sources listed under Sources below.
Fibre composition follows Regulation (EU) No 1007/2011: every fibre by generic name and percentage in descending order on a durable, legible label. Article 16(3) lets each member state require its official language on garments sold there, and the Commission's Your Europe guidance puts it plainly: translate the label into all the official national languages where the product is made available to the consumer. Poland requires Polish: Article 7 of the Polish Language Act applies Polish to consumer trade on Polish territory, and Article 7a extends the obligation in particular to the naming of goods, to warnings and information for consumers required under other regulations, and to information about the properties of goods, so labels for Poland are in Polish. We sew labels to your artwork, in more languages if you sell across the Union. Country of origin is not required by that regulation, though the customs declaration states it and any origin claim you print must be true. The consolidated Act is published by the Sejm.
Since 13 December 2024 the General Product Safety Regulation (EU) 2023/988 requires an EU-established responsible economic operator, the manufacturer's name and postal and electronic address on the product or packaging, a risk analysis and technical documentation kept for ten years; a company importing from us in Poland is that operator, and GOTS certificate RSC 9687 supplies the fibre, chemistry and traceability evidence behind the file. REACH Annex XVII entry 43 bans azo dyes that release listed aromatic amines above 30 mg/kg in textiles worn against the skin, and EN 14682 governs cords and drawstrings on children's clothing; the GPSR guide walks through the file.
Looking ahead, the Commission plans the ESPR textile delegated act carrying the Digital Product Passport for apparel for adoption in late 2027 with at least 18 months' transition, so the passport is not a 2026 obligation.
We quote DDP, delivered duty paid, to any Polish address: freight, the customs entry at Gdańsk, Gdynia or Warsaw, the import VAT and delivery inside one landed price, with the commercial invoice, packing list and statement on origin sent to you before the goods move. We confirm the transit for your port with the quote; air freight into Warsaw Chopin is measured in days.
Bangladesh Standard Time is UTC+6 with no daylight saving, four to five hours ahead of Poland. Our floor works Sunday to Thursday, 09:00 to 18:00, so your morning overlaps our afternoon, and our Amsterdam office, in your time zone, covers the rest of the day for design conversations, samples and compliance paperwork, in English.
Last verified: 21 September 2026, against the official sources listed under Sources below.
Bangladesh is scheduled to graduate from UN Least Developed Country status on 24 November 2026. In February 2026 it asked for an extension; the UN Committee for Development Policy said one would be appropriate provided reforms continue, and in July 2026 the Economic and Social Council referred the request to the General Assembly (UN LDC portal). No General Assembly decision had been published when we checked on 21 September 2026, and the 2029 date in press reports is the requested date, not a decided one.
For a Polish order the consequence is bounded: Regulation (EU) 2026/1395 keeps Everything But Arms for three years after whichever graduation date lands, so duty-free access runs to at least the end of 2029 on the current timetable. Import VAT is unaffected by any of it. What follows that window depends on whether Bangladesh qualifies for GSP+, which is genuinely unresolved; our LDC graduation guide sets out the scenarios.



Collective Studio is up and coming. Very hard working people who want to please their customers and grow partnerships together. Homaira is very knowledgeable in the knit industry and always willing to learn more. We are looking to grow our business with them.
Talk to the factory directly: +880 1980 055021 · hello@collectivestudioltd.com
No, at present. Bangladesh-made apparel enters every EU member state duty-free under Everything But Arms, on a single-transformation origin rule that our cut-and-sew floor satisfies. Bangladesh is scheduled to graduate from LDC status on 24 November 2026 (an extension is requested and a UN decision pending), and Regulation (EU) 2026/1395 keeps EBA for three years after graduation, so to at least the end of 2029 on the current date. Verified 21 September 2026; we confirm the live position for every order.
Poland's basic VAT rate is 23%, charged at import on the customs value plus any duty; with zero duty that is 23% of the customs value, so US$690 on a US$3,000 order. We ship DDP so it is inside the price you approve, and a VAT-registered business recovers it on its periodic return. The 8% and 5% reduced rates apply to listed goods such as food and children's items, not to adult clothing.
Yes. The Polish Language Act requires Polish in consumer trade on Polish territory, and Article 7a applies that in particular to the naming of goods, to warnings and consumer information required by other regulations, and to information about the properties of goods, which is what a fibre label is. Regulation (EU) No 1007/2011 sets what the label must say. We sew the label in Polish to your artwork, adding other languages for the markets you also sell in.
For some pieces, yes, and we would rather say so. If you need fifty pieces re-cut next week, a woven or tailored garment, or a made-in-Poland story, a Łódź workshop serves you better. Where we are the better answer is knit at volume from a hundred pieces: tees, hoodies, joggers and activewear cut and sewn to your spec, GOTS organic cotton available, and a landed cost that includes the VAT and the duty you do not pay. Many Polish brands run that split.
One hundred pieces per style, per colour. For a Polish first range most brands land on three to five hundred pieces across two or three styles, enough to justify the GPSR compliance work once and reuse it on reorders. Splitting a hundred pieces across several colours triggers separate dye lots and prices accordingly, so one colour deep beats three shallow. Our free MOQ calculator models the split.
About ten days for sampling, forty to fifty days for production once the pre-production sample is signed off, then transit to Gdańsk or Gdynia by sea, sometimes on a direct Asia service, or to Warsaw Chopin by air in days; we confirm the figure for your port with the quote. We ship DDP, so the entry, the VAT and delivery are handled on our side. The launch-date calculator counts back from your on-sale date.
Trade and regulatory details on this page last verified 21 September 2026. Tariff and compliance terms change — ask us to confirm the current position for your order.
Whether it’s a large bulk or wholesale run or your first batch of 100, send a sketch, a reference, or a sentence. We’ll reply within one business day with fabric options and an indicative price.
Or message the factory directly: WhatsApp +880 1980 055026 · hello@collectivestudioltd.com · Homaira replies within one business day.