How to vet a clothing manufacturer before you commit
Matias Santos, Founder·
The most expensive mistakes in clothing production happen before a single unit is produced. They happen when a brand commits to a factory without understanding what they are actually committing to.
Vetting a manufacturer is not glamorous. It is a process of asking specific questions, paying attention to specific signals, and having the discipline to walk away from a factory that seems fine but fails a critical check.
Here is the process that actually works, built from what experienced founders have learned the hard way.
The core principle: watch what they do, not what they say
Every clothing manufacturer will tell you they can meet your timeline, match your quality spec, and communicate reliably. These are table stakes claims and they are meaningless without evidence.
The vetting process is about generating evidence, not collecting assurances.
Step 1: Verify they have done your specific product before
This is not about whether they make clothing generally. It is about whether they have produced your specific product category, your construction type, your materials, your finish level.
A factory that makes excellent t-shirts is not necessarily capable of making structured outerwear. A factory that works in cotton is not necessarily equipped for technical synthetics. The manufacturing process, the machinery, and the skill set are different for every category.
How to Vet a Clothing Manufacturer Before You Commit | NovaSupplier
Ask: "Have you produced [your specific product] before? Can you show me photos of previous orders in this category?"
A factory that hesitates, shows generic samples, or pivots to "we can make anything" is telling you something. A factory that shows you specific photos of similar work, mentions the brands they've produced it for, and asks you clarifying questions about your construction is showing you something.
The second part of this is cross-checking. If a factory says they've worked with a specific brand, search for that brand. Look at their product. Does the quality level match what you need? Does it match what the factory is claiming?
Step 2: Ask about MOQ, and what it actually depends on
Minimum order quantities are more variable than most brands understand. They are not fixed numbers. They depend on product complexity, fabric availability, machinery setup costs, and how busy the factory is.
A factory that says "our MOQ is 500 units" may genuinely mean 500 units for their standard operations, but 200 units for a brand they want to build a relationship with. A factory that says "our MOQ is 100 units" for a technically complex product may not actually be able to produce it profitably at that level.
Ask: "What is your MOQ for [your specific product], and what drives that number? Is there flexibility for a first order with potential for future growth?"
The answer tells you whether they're quoting a policy or thinking about your specific situation.
Step 3: Send a detailed test question before you send money
This is the most underused vetting technique and the most revealing.
Before you initiate a sample order, send a detailed, specific question about your product. Something that requires genuine thought to answer, a question about a construction detail, a material substitution, or how they would handle a specific challenge you anticipate.
Then pay attention to three things:
Response time. Did they reply within 24-48 hours, or did it take four days to get a response that should have taken an hour?
Specificity. Did they answer the actual question, or did they give a generic answer that could apply to any enquiry?
Pushback. Did they simply say yes, or did they engage with the complexity of what you asked? Manufacturers who say yes to everything without asking questions are not thinking about execution. Manufacturers who push back or clarify are.
This is the clearest predictor of how communication will go during production, and communication during production is where most problems become expensive problems.
Step 4: Understand the sample process before you pay for it
Sampling is the most important step in the manufacturing relationship. It is your opportunity to understand what the factory is actually capable of before your money is fully committed.
Ask these questions before ordering:
"How much does a first sample cost and what does it include?" A factory that can't give you a clear, specific answer on sample pricing is not well-organised. Expect €150-500 for a standard garment sample depending on complexity.
"How long does a first sample take to produce?" Standard sample timeline is 2-4 weeks. Longer than that for a basic garment suggests capacity issues. Much faster suggests it was not made carefully.
"What is your revision process if the sample needs changes?" You will almost always need at least one revision. A factory that has no clear answer to this, or that implies revision is unusual, is not set up for the iterative process that good production requires.
"Will the same team that produces the sample also produce the bulk order?" The sample-to-bulk quality gap often happens because the answer to this is no. The sample is made carefully by a skilled team; the bulk is run through a more automated process with less attention. Knowing this in advance allows you to ask the right quality control questions.
Step 5: Check their response to the hardest question
Ask something that puts their interests in tension with yours.
"What would you do if the bulk order arrived and quality didn't match the sample?"
A factory with no answer, or a defensive answer, is telling you what will happen when that situation arises, and it will arise with every new manufacturing relationship.
A factory that describes a clear process, quality inspection before shipping, responsibility for re-production if quality doesn't match, a named person responsible for QC, is demonstrating the operational maturity that separates reliable partners from one-season relationships.
Step 6: Understand the payment structure they offer
Standard payment structure for first orders with a new factory:
30-50% deposit before production begins
Balance on completion and before shipping, or on sample approval for second-stage payment
Red flags on payment:
Request for 100% upfront before any sample or production begins
No willingness to discuss staged payments
Resistance to any form of escrow or payment protection
A factory that won't accept staged payments is either under financial pressure or does not operate in a way that allows them to be held accountable to delivery. Neither is what you want from a production partner.
Step 7: Verify what you can independently
Everything you can verify independently, verify independently.
Search the factory name online. Do they have a website? Is the factory location verifiable on Google Maps? Does the location match their claimed capacity?
Search the brands they say they've worked with. Do those brands exist? Are they credible? Does the product quality align with what the factory is claiming?
Check certifications against the issuing body. GOTS, OEKO-TEX, BSCI, all have online verification registries. A certification that can't be verified is not a certification.
Reverse-image search their factory photos. Generic stock photos or images that appear on multiple factory websites are a signal worth noting.
You are not conducting a forensic investigation. You are doing the basic due diligence that will catch the clearest warning signs before your money is at risk.
The signals that should make you walk away
They say yes to everything without asking questions. Good manufacturers think about execution. If a factory agrees to your timeline, your MOQ, your quality spec, and your price without a single clarifying question, they are not thinking about whether they can actually do it.
Communication slows down after the first message. If your enquiry got a fast response but follow-up questions are taking days, this is the pattern you will have during production, not an improvement from it.
Their prices are significantly below market rate. For Portuguese and European manufacturing, a basic t-shirt at scale should cost €8-15 to produce, a hoodie €18-35 depending on weight and construction, structured outerwear €40-80. A factory quoting €5 for a hoodie is either producing something that doesn't match your spec or operating in a way that should concern you.
They cannot show you verified past work in your category. Photos that look generic, brand references you can't find, or refusal to name previous clients are all reasons to be cautious.
They resist factory visits. A factory that won't welcome you for a visit has something to protect. Every credible Portuguese manufacturer will allow a visit from a serious brand. It is standard practice.
The right mindset going into this process
Finding the right manufacturer takes longer than you want it to. You will talk to factories that seem perfect and reveal a critical flaw in the vetting process. You will sample with two factories and find that one is significantly better. The process will take 2-4 months if you're running it seriously.
This timeline is not a failure. It is the investment that produces a production partner you can work with for years.
The founders who have the most painful manufacturing experiences are the ones who rushed the vetting, who accepted the first factory that seemed fine because they were behind schedule, or who skipped the sample because they were confident the bulk would be right.
The founders who have the best manufacturing relationships are the ones who treated the vetting process as the most important work they did in the first season.
NovaSupplier verifies every manufacturer on our platform before they appear in brand search results, capabilities, quality, communication, and certifications. If you're looking for verified Portuguese clothing manufacturers, start at novasupplier.com.