From inquiry to delivery: how a custom order works
This is the whole process in one page — eight stages, what you send at each one, what comes back, what it costs, how long it takes and what has to be true before the next stage can start. It is the same sequence whether you are ordering a pilot run of an existing style or developing a new structure from a drawing.
- Standard MOQ
- 300 pcs per style per color
- Quotation validity
- 15 days from issue
- Sample
- USD 80–250 · 3-7 days existing style · 7-10 days new structure
- Production
- 15-30 days light customization · 20-45 days heavy customization
- Payment
- 30% deposit / 70% before shipment · 50/50 on heavy customization
- After delivery
- Inspect and report within 7-15 days of receipt
Getting to an approved sample
Everything before the deposit exists to remove ambiguity. A product that is fully specified and physically approved is what makes the rest of the schedule predictable.
1. Inquiry and feasibility review
The first reply is a feasibility read, not a price list. We tell you whether this is a product we build, which parts are straightforward, which parts need a decision from you, and what is still missing before a number means anything. If we ask for your target retail or ex-works price, it is so we can work back from it to the fabric, hardware and structure that fit that price band — not to test your budget. The same goes for quantity and target market: every number we ask for has a reason, and we will say what it is.
- You send
- Product photo, drawing, reference link or sample; intended use; quantity per style and color; target market; your dates.
- You get back
- A written feasibility read: whether we make it, the open questions, and the list of what we still need.
- Typical time
- Reply within one business day.
- Stage closes when
- You confirm the direction and we move to specification.
2. Specification and quotation
The specification is what turns a photo into a manufacturable product, and the price cannot be fixed before it is. If your information is incomplete we can still give an initial reference price so you can check feasibility — it is marked as an estimate, and it is not the number we will hold you to. The formal quotation is issued once size, materials, structure, logo process, quantity per style and color, accessories, packaging and trade terms are settled. A formal quotation from us states the product and item number, specification, materials, logo process, packaging, quantity, unit price, sample fee, tooling and plate charges, MOQ, sample and production lead times, payment terms, trade terms and validity. Quotations are valid for 15 days; after that, fabric, hardware, labor, exchange rate or freight movement may require reconfirmation.
- You send
- Answers to the open specification questions, your logo file in AI, PDF, EPS or SVG, and packaging requirements.
- You get back
- A formal quotation with every commercial and technical line stated, valid 15 days.
- Typical time
- Same or next business day once the specification is settled.
- Stage closes when
- You accept the quotation and confirm the sample scope.
3. Sampling
Sampling starts when the sample fee and the development scope are confirmed. The fee is USD 80–250 per sample by structural complexity, and it covers pattern work, materials, sewing and one round of structural revision requested by you. Tooling for metal logos or zipper pulls (USD 50–150 each, one-time), printing and embroidery plates, special material purchases and third-party testing are quoted separately. Before the sample ships it is checked in-house against the written specification — dimensions, structure, fabric color, logo, hardware and zippers, stitch density, function, appearance and packaging — and photographed. Courier is charged at cost, around USD 100–150 to the United States or Europe, or you can give us your own DHL, FedEx or UPS account. Duties in your country are yours.
- You send
- Sample fee, logo files, any nominated fabric or hardware, and the courier account if you use your own.
- You get back
- The physical sample, in-house inspection photos or video, and the courier name, tracking number and dispatch date.
- Typical time
- 3-7 days for an existing style, 7-10 days for a new structure, plus courier transit.
- Stage closes when
- The sample is in your hands and you have reviewed it against the specification.
4. Sample approval and the golden sample
Approve the sample in writing, or send revision comments. Who pays for a remake follows one rule: if the sample does not match what you already confirmed, we correct and remake it at our cost; if you change the design, color, material, size, structure, logo or packaging, the remake carries a new sample fee. Changes requested after final approval require re-evaluating price, lead time, materials already purchased and whether a new sample is needed. On approval the sample becomes the sealed reference — the golden sample. Production and final inspection are judged against it plus the spec sheet, logo placement file, material and color records, packaging requirements and the written revision log. We keep one sealed sample at the factory and you can hold a matching one.
- You send
- Written approval, or your revision comments against the specification.
- You get back
- A sealed golden sample and the complete reference record that production and inspection are judged against.
- Typical time
- Set by your review; the sample fee covers one structural revision round.
- Stage closes when
- You approve the final sample in writing.
From order confirmation to delivered goods
Once the sample is sealed the work becomes execution: schedule, materials, inspection and freight. The decisions are already made, and the reference the factory is judged against is the sample you approved.
5. Order confirmation, PI and deposit
We issue the Proforma Invoice: final price, quantity per style and color, lead time, payment terms, trade terms and the factory schedule for your order. Standard custom orders are 30% deposit and 70% before shipment; heavily customized orders, or orders needing large purchases of special material, are 50/50. The production clock does not start on the deposit alone. Five things have to be complete: the final sample approved, specification and materials confirmed, the PI confirmed, the deposit received, and the production and logo files released. Anything outstanding moves the delivery date, which is why we chase the last file rather than wait quietly. Once the deposit has arrived we buy materials immediately, so a cancellation after that point cannot refund what has already been spent on materials, labor, tooling, packaging, plates, finished units or supplier cancellation charges.
- You send
- Confirmed PI and the deposit, plus the production-ready logo and artwork files.
- You get back
- A confirmed production slot and a delivery date calculated from the actual schedule.
- Typical time
- Starts on the day the last of the five conditions is met.
- Stage closes when
- All five conditions are complete and the order enters the production schedule.
6. Production
Materials are purchased against the confirmed specification — face fabric, lining, padding, reinforcement, zippers, webbing, buckles, hardware, logo materials, hang tags, care labels and packaging — and production starts after the pre-production check and first-piece approval. Standard custom orders run 15-30 days and heavily customized orders 20-45 days. Large orders, many styles and colors, special materials, new tooling and peak season are scheduled individually and confirmed on the PI. You get photo or video updates at the milestones that actually tell you something: material arrival, fabric color confirmation, cutting, logo application, sewing and assembly, semi-finished inspection, final inspection, packing and loading.
- You send
- Nothing, unless a decision comes up. Late changes to quantity, color, material, logo or packaging require reconfirming price, lead time and delivery date.
- You get back
- Milestone photo or video updates through the run.
- Typical time
- 15-30 days light customization, 20-45 days heavy customization.
- Stage closes when
- Production finishes and the goods move to final inspection.
7. Inspection and balance payment
Quality control is a sequence, not a single check at the end: incoming material inspection, pre-production confirmation, first-piece approval, in-line checks during sewing, semi-finished inspection, finished-goods inspection, packaging checks and a 100% final inspection before packing. You receive the QC report with photos. Load and pull strength, zipper function, seam strength, hardware, drop and transport-packaging tests are run in-house; formal third-party reports are commissioned to the standard you name, with method, sample count, acceptance criteria and cost agreed before testing. You are welcome to appoint SGS, Intertek, Bureau Veritas, TUV or your own inspector — we schedule the visit and prepare goods, documents, the golden sample and inspection space; the inspection fee and travel are on your account. The balance falls due once the goods pass.
- You send
- Your inspection booking if you use a third party, and the balance payment once the goods pass.
- You get back
- The QC report with photos, plus the third-party report if one was commissioned.
- Typical time
- Inspection is scheduled around the finish date; dispatch follows the balance.
- Stage closes when
- The goods pass inspection and the balance is received.
8. Shipping, documents and delivery
We quote EXW, FOB, CFR, CIF, DAP and DDP under Incoterms 2020, or hand the cartons to your own forwarder. Full containers normally load FOB Ningbo, LCL can start from Yiwu, and air freight leaves Shanghai Pudong or Hangzhou Xiaoshan. To book, we need your delivery address or nearest port, whether you want port-to-port or door-to-door, and your forwarder if you have one; we supply the carton count, carton dimensions, gross and net weight, total CBM, pickup address and the expected dispatch date, so you can price the freight independently. Amazon sellers get FNSKU and ASIN labels and suffocation warnings applied in the factory and FBA-compliant cartons, priced as a separate line. Details of the terms are in our Incoterms and landed-cost guide.
- You send
- Delivery address or port, clearance arrangement, forwarder details and any document list your broker needs.
- You get back
- Commercial invoice, packing list, export declaration, bill of lading or air waybill, cargo and loading photos, shipping marks, and a certificate of origin on request.
- Typical time
- Booking and inland trucking add roughly 5-7 days after the goods are ready.
- Stage closes when
- The shipment is dispatched and the documents are with you.
The paper trail
Every stage produces a document, and together they are the record of what was agreed. If a question comes up later — on a reorder, a claim or a customs query — the answer is in one of these.
| Stage | Document | What it fixes |
|---|---|---|
| Inquiry | Your RFQ and our feasibility reply | What is being made and what is still open |
| Quotation | Formal quotation | Price, MOQ, lead times, payment and trade terms, validity |
| Specification | Spec sheet and logo placement file | Dimensions, materials, hardware, decoration position and size |
| Sampling | Sample invoice and inspection photos | What the sample fee covers and what is quoted separately |
| Approval | Golden sample record | The physical standard production is judged against |
| Order | Proforma Invoice | The commercial contract for that order |
| Production | Milestone photos and video | Evidence the run matches the approved sample |
| Inspection | QC report, third-party report if commissioned | Whether the lot is released or held |
| Shipment | Commercial invoice, packing list, export declaration, bill of lading or air waybill, loading photos, certificate of origin on request | Customs clearance and proof of what shipped |
Working backwards from a shelf date
Production lead time is only one term in the equation, and the mistake we see most often is planning with that number alone.
The honest arithmetic runs: sampling, plus your review time, plus order confirmation, plus material lead time, plus the production queue, plus production, plus booking and inland trucking, plus transit. As an indication only, sea transit is about 15-20 days to the US West Coast, 30-35 days to the US East Coast, 30-40 days to the main European ports and 20-25 days to Australia; air freight is about 5-8 days and express 3-7 days. Those are the forwarder's reference figures rather than a commitment, and the booked sailing decides.
Two seasonal blocks sit on top of that and neither is negotiable: peak shipping from August to October, and the Chinese New Year shutdown, which runs from ten days before the official holiday to ten days after it. If your dates cross either one, say so in the first message and we will plan the whole chain around it rather than discovering it at the deposit.
What moves the date
- A specification question left open, or artwork that arrives after the deposit
- A revision round after final sample approval
- Custom dye lots, nominated fabrics or tooled hardware with their own minimums and lead times
- Packaging, which follows its own supplier's MOQ, price and sampling time and is often the late item
- Third-party testing or inspection scheduled after production rather than alongside it
What we will not promise
Before the schedule is actually checked we will not confirm a shipping date, and around the Chinese New Year window we do not estimate delivery dates at all. We also do not claim that every product carries every certification, that one test report covers every product, or that a material is compliant in your market before the report exists. What we will do is check the live production schedule against your quantity and specification and give you a date you can plan around.
What to send for a useful first quotation
Send as much of this as you have. Missing items do not stop us quoting — they just mean the first number is an estimate rather than a commitment.
- Product photo, drawing, reference link or a physical sample, and what the product is for
- Dimensions, or the pet size and weight the bag has to carry
- Outer fabric, lining and padding preferences, and any zipper, webbing, buckle or hardware requirement
- Colors, with Pantone references if you have them
- Logo file in AI, PDF, EPS or SVG, with the position and size you want
- Quantity per style and per color
- Packaging requirement, including retail box or Amazon FBA labelling
- Target market and any compliance or test report you need for it
- Your dates, and the delivery address or nearest port
- Whether you already have a freight forwarder in China
New brands often start below the standard quantity: for start-up and first-time labels a pilot run of an existing style begins at 100 pcs per style per color, one color per run. New structures are always developed at the standard quantity.
After delivery, and the second order
Inspect the goods within 7-15 days of receipt and report any quantity, packaging, appearance or workmanship issue with the PI number, the item number, the affected quantity, batch information and clear photos or video. Confirmed manufacturing defects are resolved by replacement units or parts, rework, replenishment on your next order or a credit, as agreed with you. Transport damage, storage, misuse, unauthorized modification and outcomes of a design you approved in writing are assessed separately.
Reorders are where the golden sample earns its keep. The approved sample, material lots, Pantone references, hardware suppliers and the pre-production sheet are all recorded against your order, and the second batch is produced and inspected against that same record — which is why a repeat order does not restart at stage one. If you change anything, it re-enters the process at the stage the change touches, usually specification or sampling.
Process questions buyers ask
How soon after my first email do I get a price?
Can I skip the sample and go straight to production?
Is the sample fee refundable?
When exactly does the production clock start?
Can I change the order after paying the deposit?
Who arranges the shipping?
Start at stage one
Send the product, the quantity per style and color and your target market. You get a feasibility reply within one business day, and a formal quotation as soon as the specification is settled.