Industry
Textiles & fabrics: buy the mill, not the swatch.
Fabric is the product where a market swatch can look nothing like a production run. Colour and finish do not survive being described — they have to be seen, against each other, on the floor where they are made.
- Keqiao + Nantong clusters
- Weaving, dyeing, finishing
- Fabric-led MOQs
Why this category
What makes this category different to buy.
Textiles concentrate in two clusters: Keqiao in Zhejiang and Nantong in Jiangsu. Keqiao is the market-plus-mill hub; Nantong is strong in home textiles.
The risk in fabric is the gap between the swatch and the run. Dyeing and finishing change the hand feel, the colour and the shrink behaviour — and the swatch is usually the best the mill ever produced.
MOQ in fabric is usually set by the grey cloth or by the finishing line, and the two are different numbers. A buyer who does not separate them over-commits on one and under-buys the other.
Colour and finish are the reasons to visit in person: you can only judge a fabric by comparing it to its neighbours, under the same light, at the mill.
Supply chain shape
Who actually makes which part.
Which step sets the MOQ, and where quality actually changes.
- Grey fabricWoven base cloth, sold by the roll before dyeing and finishing.
- DyeingColour applied to the cloth — the step that most changes the fabric and its consistency.
- FinishingCoating, brushing, water-repellent and handle treatments.
- PrintingPattern and graphic work, with its own colour-matching discipline.
- TestingColourfastness, shrinkage, strength and any destination-market compliance.
On the floor
Checks specific to this category.
What to verify on site
- 01.Ask whether the stall is the mill or an agent — the five checks tell you which.
- 02.See the dyeing and finishing floor, not just the showroom of finished cloth.
- 03.Colour consistency across a run — how they control shade from batch to batch.
- 04.Shrinkage and colourfastness test records, for your specific fabric and weight.
- 05.Minimum per colour and per design, separated from the total MOQ.
- 06.Who holds the greige — a mill that does not control the base cloth is not fully in control of the fabric.
Numbers
MOQ, sampling and lead time — the ranges we actually see.
Ranges, not promises. Ask us for the driver behind any specific number before you plan a launch around it.
- Grey fabric MOQOften the larger number — the mill wants a full run on the loom.
- Finishing MOQSometimes lower, but colour runs have their own minimums per shade.
- SamplingLab dips, then a handloom or strike-off, then a pre-production yardage.
- Lead timeUsually the dyeing and finishing queue, not the weaving.
Reading these rangesThese are ranges we see, not quotes. In fabric, separate the per-colour minimum from the total — the two numbers drive different costs.
Compliance
Target-market requirements you cannot skip.
Destination-market requirements
- Colourfastness and shrinkage to the standard your market expects.
- Flammability where it applies — bedding, children’s products and upholstery have specific rules.
- Chemical compliance such as OEKO-TEX for restricted substances.
- Fibre content and care labelling that matches what you are actually buying.
What we don't do
What we can and cannot verify here
We check that test reports exist and that they match the fabric and weight you are buying. We do not interpret standards.
- We do not certify fabric or issue compliance marks.
- We cannot confirm a fabric meets a specific standard — only a lab can.
- Requirements vary by market and product. Confirm current rules before committing.
Before you book: how we verify a factory
Every supplier in this category goes through the same five documented checks before it reaches your itinerary.
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