First Order From China What To Expect

Most first orders go wrong in the same five places. None of them are about the product.

One. The quotation does not say what is included

A bedding quote can be read two ways when it does not state the packing, the labelling, the carton or the Incoterm. The gap does not appear until you are comparing two quotes that are not actually for the same thing, or until the invoice arrives with charges you did not expect.

• Ask for the price to be broken down: product, packing, labelling, inland freight, and the Incoterm it is quoted on.
• Ask what is excluded. A supplier who cannot list exclusions has not thought about it.

Two. The sample and the production run are not the same thing

A sample is usually made by hand, on a sample line, with the best operator. Production is made on a line with a target. The difference can be a fabric substitution, a different thread, or a slightly different colour — none of which is visible in a photo.

• Ask for a golden sample: a sealed sample signed by both sides that production is measured against.
• Ask when the sample will be made on the actual production line.

Three. Nobody agreed what "correct" means

If the agreed standard is a visual check, a two-centimetre dimensional error passes. If the agreed standard is a measurement, it fails. Both are reasonable; only one will be applied at the destination.

• Put the measurement tolerances, the colour tolerance and the packing format in the order.
• Agree who inspects, when, and what happens if the result is marginal.

Four. The documents are not ready when the goods are

Goods sitting at the port because a certificate of origin is being chased is a cost with no upside. It usually happens because the supplier outsourced the document work and did not say so.

• List the documents you need, and ask who prepares each one, before the order is placed.
• Ask whether the supplier issues them itself. The answer changes your risk.

Five. The first order is sized as a test but priced as a volume order

This is the most common disappointment. A supplier who quoted on 20,000 pieces cannot match that price on 2,000, and pretending otherwise delays the conversation by three weeks.

• Prices are volumes. Say what you are actually ordering first, then ask for the price.
• If you intend to scale, say so — it changes what a supplier is willing to do on a small first order.

Where we sit

We would rather have the awkward conversation before the order than the difficult one after. Tell us it is a first order and what you expect the second one to look like, and the quotation will reflect that.

If you want to start with a small test order, say so. We will tell you what price that supports.