The cloth is Tanzanian. So is the sewing.
Khanga & Kitenge
Khanga and kitenge are cut differently from anything else we make, because the print decides the pattern rather than the other way round. A panel has to land in the right place on the body, and a careless cut wastes the cloth and the meaning at the same time.
- Type
- Woven
- Minimum order
- Depends on the route
- Lead time
- 7 – 10 days
- Colourways
- 8+ stock colours
Kitenge shirts and short sets, dresses and wrap skirts, staff uniforms in a house print, and matched sets for weddings, send-offs and corporate culture days. Bring your own cloth by the bolt, or tell us the print you want and we will source it.
Panel placement is planned at pattern stage, not improvised at the cutting table. On a khanga the border and the jina — the Swahili proverb printed along the edge — are positioned deliberately, because on this cloth the writing is the point.
This is the work Tanzanian brands ask us for most and importers ask us for least, which tells you something about who the cloth is for. It is also the only category where the fabric usually arrives with the customer rather than from our shelf.
Specification
- Garments
- Shirts, short sets, dresses, wrap skirts, staff uniforms, event sets
- Fabric
- Your own khanga or kitenge, or sourced to your print reference
- Panel placement
- Planned at pattern stage. Borders and jina positioned deliberately
- Cloth supply
- Customer supplied by the bolt, or sourced by us
- Detailing
- Contrast trim, piping and lining in plain cotton
- Sizes
- XS – 3XL, men's and women's cuts
Build your spec
Pick colourways and sizes — we'll carry it into your quote.
Colourways
1 of 8 selected
Indigo
Collar size breakdown
Steppers move in sixes — garments are packed and priced by the dozen.
Indigo
Illustration, not a photograph
Ordering routes
- Custom design on stock fabric7 – 10 days
- Custom fabric or colourQuoted per job
Add quantities and we will show you which routes are open.
Nothing is ordered yet. How ordering works
Custom colours dyed to your Pantone reference at production quantities. Colour is confirmed at sampling stage.
How to order khanga & kitenge.
The minimum and the lead time both depend on the route. Pick the row that matches your brief.
Custom design on stock fabric
- Minimum
- Low
- Lead time
- 7 – 10 days
Your own design, cut from fabric we already hold. Same low quantity barrier, a little longer to make.
Custom fabric or colour
- Minimum
- 2,000 pieces
- Lead time
- Quoted per job
We source the fabric, trims and accessories for you. That is a production run of its own, which is where the 2,000 piece minimum comes from.
Woven, not knitted
This garment is woven. Fabric is sourced per order to the weight and colour the job needs, so it is specified and quoted with the enquiry rather than picked off a list.
Decoration options
- Contrast trim
- Woven labels
- Embroidery
- Plain-cotton lining
- DTF
All decoration is done in house, which is why a printed or embroidered garment does not add a week to your lead time.
Typically ordered by
- Tanzanian clothing brands
- Hotel and lodge staff dress
- Weddings and send-offs
- Corporate culture days
- Diaspora and export retail
Related families
What buyers ask
about khanga & kitenge.
There is no single number, because it depends on the fabric. If we are cutting from fabric and a colour we already hold, the minimum is low and the job moves in two to three days. If you want your own design on that stock fabric, the minimum is still low and it takes seven to ten days. It is only when we source fabric, trims and accessories specially for you that the minimum becomes 2,000 pieces, because that is a production run of its own. Sublimation has no minimum at all.
No. A couple of hundred is a normal order on stock fabric, and most of our work looks like that. The 2,000 piece figure people worry about applies only to custom fabric or a custom colour, where we are buying in material specially. Tell us the quantity and the look you want and we will tell you which route it fits.
Two to three days on stock fabric in a stock colour. Seven to ten days for your own design cut from that stock fabric. Where we are sourcing fabric or a custom colour, the lead time is quoted with the job, because it depends on what the material is and where it comes from. Sublimation is also quoted per job.
Screen printing, embroidery, DTF (direct to film) and sublimation, all in the same building as the cutting and sewing. That matters for your lead time, because a decorated garment never has to travel out to a third party and back. You can mix methods on one garment: an embroidered chest mark with a printed back is a common and sensible combination.
Yes, and this is one of the cases where we are sourcing fabric specially, so the 2,000 piece minimum applies. We match against your Pantone or brand guideline references and record them against your account, so a repeat order in a year is built from the same inputs. Exact dye matching is confirmed at sampling stage.
None. You can order one piece or a thousand. What changes with quantity is the unit price, not whether we will take the job. Sublimation suits full-colour designs, marathon and sports jerseys, and anything where the print covers the whole garment.
Quote khanga & kitenge
Ready to price
your run?
Tell us the quantity, the colourways and the decoration and we will come back with a unit price and a lead time. There is no single minimum — it depends on whether we are cutting stock fabric or sourcing new fabric for you.
Or call +255 651 100 500 · Monday – Friday, 08:00 – 17:00 EAT