Most sourcing failures are visible before the first order — they simply are not looked for. This checklist is the one we recommend to buyers evaluating any factory, including us.

1. Confirm it is a factory, not a trading company

Ask for a video walkthrough of the production floor showing casting, setting, polishing and QC areas in one continuous shot. A trading company cannot produce this because the floor is not theirs. Ask how many setters and polishers they employ and what their monthly capacity is — the numbers should reconcile with their claimed lead times.

2. Request the certification relationships

Which grading labs do they actually work with, and can they show recent certificates with their company name on the report? A factory that grades through IGI or GRA will have a stack of recent reports available.

3. Order one sample before bulk

Never place a bulk order based on catalogue photography alone. Order a single sample, then examine: stone security under a loupe, prong symmetry, polish inside the shank, plating coverage at the edges, and whether the stone grade matches the specification sheet.

4. Test communication before you pay

Send a technically specific question — for example, the tolerance on your calibrated melee, or the alloy composition of their 14K white gold. A capable export factory answers precisely. A trading intermediary answers vaguely or asks the factory and then relays a partial answer.

5. Inspect the paperwork trail

Ask to see a redacted copy of a recent commercial invoice, packing list and material declaration. If they cannot produce a material declaration for lab grown material, expect customs friction.

Red flag	What it usually means
Cannot show production video	Trading company or outsourced production
No named merchandiser for your account	You will chase status updates forever
Price far below market with no explanation	Lower grade stones, hollow settings or plated base metal
Refuses a sample order	Catalogue images are not their own
No written approval sheet before production	Grade and dimension drift on bulk
Vague answers on lead time	Your order will be deprioritised behind bigger clients

6. Insist on an approval sheet

Before bulk production, both sides should sign a one-page approval sheet: stone grade with tolerances, metal and purity, plating thickness, dimensions, weight, packing and lead time. Every dispute we have ever seen between a buyer and a factory traced back to a missing or vague approval sheet.

7. Start with a mixed trial order

A trial order of 50–100 pieces across several designs tells you more than any questionnaire: it reveals how they pack, how they label, how consistent the grading is, and how accurate their lead-time estimate was. Scale only after the trial arrives as specified.

What to put in your purchase specification

Before you place a wholesale order, write the specification down and make the factory confirm it in writing. Every dispute we see between a buyer and a supplier traces back to a vague or missing specification sheet. The following items are the ones that actually cause problems when they are left open:

Item	What to state
Stone grade	Colour and clarity range, plus the tolerance you will accept against the approved master sample (±1 grade is standard)
Metal and purity	Exact karat or silver fineness, alloy type, and whether white gold is nickel-free
Plating	Type (rhodium, 18K gold) and thickness in microns — a thin flash plating wears through in months
Dimensions	Band width, stone measurement, chain length, and the weight tolerance per piece
Setting method	Prong, bezel, channel or pavé — this single choice can double labour cost
Packing	Poly bag, box, pouch, tag, barcode label, and how many pieces per carton
Documents	Which certificates, and whether you need a material declaration or assay report

MOQ, lead time and payment terms

Our standard terms across the catalogue are straightforward, and they are the same terms we quote in writing rather than adjusting per enquiry:

MOQ — 10 pieces per design for stock specifications, 50 pieces for mixed-design lots. Custom development starts from 30 pieces per style in 925 silver and 10 pieces in gold.
Tiered pricing — list price to 49 pieces, about 8% off from 50 pieces, about 14% off from 200 pieces, and negotiated pricing above 500 pieces with reserved production capacity.
Lead time — 7–15 days for stock designs, 10–20 days for custom or certified production runs. Add 3–7 days for express transit to Europe and North America.
Payment — 30% deposit with the balance before shipment, by T/T, PayPal, Western Union or Alibaba Trade Assurance.
Samples — single samples ship at list price and the cost is credited against your first order above 200 pieces.
Quality guarantee — 30-day return window on stock items, and a written remanufacture-or-credit commitment if a parcel falls outside the approved tolerances.

Quality control: what happens before your parcel leaves

Buyers who have been burned before usually want to know exactly what inspection was performed. This is our standard sequence on every wholesale order, whether it is 20 pieces or 2,000:

Incoming stone grading. Every parcel is checked for colour, clarity and measurement against the order sheet before it enters the setting line. Rejected stones are pulled, not downgraded and used anyway.
In-process inspection. Setters check prong security, stone alignment and surface finish at each station rather than at the end of the line.
Final QC under 10× magnification. Polish, plating thickness, clasp and hinge function, and hallmark accuracy are verified piece by piece.
Cleaning, photographing, packing. Pieces are cleaned, photographed against your PO number, and packed in individual poly bags inside export cartons.
Document preparation. Commercial invoice, packing list, certificate copies and — where required — a material declaration stating that the stones are laboratory-grown.

You receive the photographs and the packing list before the parcel ships, so you can flag anything before it leaves rather than after it arrives.

Frequently asked questions

Can I mix metals and stone grades in one order?

Yes. You can combine 925 sterling silver, 10K, 14K and 18K gold in the same production run, and specify different colour and clarity grades per line. Every combination is confirmed on a single approval sheet before production starts, so there is no ambiguity about which line is which.

How consistent is grading across repeat orders?

Repeat orders are graded against the master sample kept on file under your account, which is why buyers who reorder regularly see far less variation than buyers who switch suppliers each season. Tolerances are written into the approval sheet, so a reorder cannot drift without your written agreement.

Do you provide photography for my online store?

Every catalogued design has front, three-quarter and macro imagery in sRGB at print resolution, named to match the SKU so the assets map straight into your product database. For orders above 200 pieces we photograph your private-label version at no additional cost.

What happens if the goods do not match the sample?

Send photographs and the SKU list within 14 days of delivery. If the deviation exceeds the tolerances on your approval sheet, we remake the affected pieces or issue a credit — this is covered by our written quality guarantee and applies to every order, not only the first one.

Related wholesale collections

All Products — 467 ready designs, MOQ from 10 pcs.
Rings — 273 ready designs, MOQ from 10 pcs.

Authoritative References

For buyers who need to verify the technical and regulatory basis of this guide, the following independent institutions publish authoritative reference data:

ISO 9001 Quality Management - the international standard for consistent production quality.
Wikipedia: Jewellery - manufacturing processes, materials and global trade background.