The whole team, not a piece
You don't rent a single skill. You get the full bench — design, technical, sourcing, production, brand, and marketing — coordinated as one, for less than the cost of a single senior hire.
Our Story
Thirty years taught me where brands stumble. Haute Coulture exists so yours doesn't.
I'm Bret Schnitker. I've spent my career in the business of making clothes — and much of it watching good ideas get lost in the distance between a sketch and a shelf. Here's why that matters for you.
No-obligation consultation. We personally reply within one business day.
The Problem I Saw
Great product rarely fails for lack of talent. It fails in the gaps.
Across more than thirty years and seventy countries, I kept seeing the same quiet heartbreak. A designer with a genuinely beautiful idea, undone by a tech pack the factory couldn't build from. The right manufacturer found a season too late — or at a price that silently erased the margin. A launch that slipped, missed its window, and took the year's momentum with it.
None of these were failures of creativity. They were the small, expensive missteps that live between disciplines — the places no single freelancer, factory, or agency was watching. And the people who could have caught them were scattered across a dozen specialists no emerging brand could afford to hire all at once.
The talent was never the problem. The gaps were.
Why I Can Help
I've made the trip enough times to know the road.
I didn't learn this from a deck. I've stood on the floor of more than a thousand factories, in seventy countries, beside the artisans who actually make our clothes and the executives who have to sell them.
I built Stars Design Group to handle the entire journey — design, development, sourcing, production, and delivery — which means I've seen where every handoff can break, and learned how to keep it from breaking. That experience isn't here to impress you. It's here because it's the difference between guessing and knowing. And when it's your money and your season on the line, knowing is everything.
— Bret Schnitker
Founder & CEO, Stars Design Group
30+
Years in Apparel
70
Countries
1,000+
Factories Visited
67
Factory Network
What This Means For You
A team that's already made the mistakes — so you don't have to.
That's why we built Haute Coulture Consulting. My partner in it, Emily Lane, and a senior team who've each spent decades in this industry, are here to do one thing: close the gaps that sink good brands.
Judgment, not guesswork
We'll tell you the truth about what your idea actually needs, and catch the costly problems before they happen — because we've seen them before, many times over.
Beside you to the shelf
You bring the vision. We stay next to you from first sketch to final shelf, helping you sidestep the missteps that quietly drain a budget and a season.
Leadership
The people you'll work with.
Bret Schnitker
Chief Executive Officer
Founder and CEO of Stars Design Group, Bret has spent more than 30 years across every facet of the apparel sector — doing business in 70 countries and visiting over 1,000 factories. He helps brands and retailers solve garment and production challenges regardless of category or country, and co-hosts the Clothing Coulture podcast.
Emily Lane
Chief Strategy Officer
A serial entrepreneur with 25 years in business development, Emily shapes the strategy, brand thinking, and marketing that turn good product into real businesses. Her work has a track record of moving companies toward viability, profitability, and market leadership. She co-hosts Clothing Coulture.
Creative & Marketing Bench
Senior specialists across branding, creative, and product innovation.
John Sullivan — Creative Director
25+ years leading creative teams; specializes in branding & identity, packaging, product innovation, and advertising for global, national, and local clients.
Tracy Sullivan — Creative Director
Award-winning creative director specializing in branding & identity, packaging, video storytelling, web & social design, and publishing.
The Podcast
Clothing Coulture — where clothing culture meets couture.
Hosted by Bret and Emily, Clothing Coulture is where we think out loud with the innovators and disruptors moving the industry forward — on design, sourcing, innovation, and ethical manufacturing. If you want to know how we see the business before you ever pick up the phone, start here.
Questions
About FAQ
Who is behind Haute Coulture Consulting?
Haute Coulture Consulting is a division of Stars Design Group, a 30+ year global apparel design and production house based in Saint Louis, led by founder and CEO Bret Schnitker.
What makes Stars Design Group different from a freelancer or agency?
A full senior team across design, technical, sourcing, production, branding, and marketing — plus a vetted network of 67 factories worldwide — available as one coordinated partner, for less than the cost of a single executive hire.
Let's Talk
Tell us where you are. We'll help you avoid the missteps.
The next step is a conversation with two senior experts who've walked this road for decades.
Book a Consultation →No-obligation consultation · We personally reply within one business day.