Who owns the artwork, patterns and samples when a style is developed?

Ownership, exclusivity and what the contract covers

Ownership, exclusivity and confidentiality are commercial terms rather than production details, so they are set out in the contract and confirmed with your order rather than assumed from a conversation.

In practice this means agreeing three things before development starts: what happens to your artwork and patterns, whether the style is exclusive to your brand, and whether confidentiality applies to the designs you send. Each of these is written into the agreement so both sides are working from the same version.

It also helps to separate the physical from the intellectual. Samples and size sets you approve are kept as the production reference, which is what makes a reorder consistent, while the treatment of the design files themselves is a contractual matter.

Because these points vary by project and by market, we do not state a general rule here. Raise them at the first conversation and they are confirmed in the contract, along with the specification, the timeline and the payment schedule.