Trial Order or Full Order? How to Start Without Risk

A sample is one piece, chosen by the supplier. A trial order is a real batch, made on a real production run. It is the closest you can get to the full order without placing it.

Many buyers skip the trial because it costs a little more per set. That is usually a mistake. The extra cost is small. The thing you learn is not.

What a sample cannot tell you

A good sample proves that the supplier can make a good sheet once. It does not prove:

A trial order tests all five.

What a trial costs

Our smallest bed linen order is 200 sets. At 300 thread count, that is about $1,600 to $2,200 FOB. The price per set carries a small premium over larger volumes, and we say so up front.

Compare that to the cost of being wrong on a full order. If you order 2,000 sets and the shade is off, or the size is short, you are stuck with a warehouse of the wrong sheet. See the smallest order guide for the full terms.

How to run a trial

1. Order from your approved sample. Keep the sample. It is the standard the trial is judged against.

2. Write the spec into the order. Size after washing, thread count, weight, shade, packing. If it is not written down, you cannot hold anyone to it.

3. Check on arrival. Count the cartons. Open several, not one. Measure, weigh, and compare shade against the sample.

4. Wash it. Wash a few sets three times the way your laundry washes. Use the checks in how to test a sample. Log the results.

5. Put sets into real use. Put a few dozen on beds for a month. Ask housekeeping and the front desk what they notice.

6. Compare with the sample. Does the batch match what you approved? Write down the differences.

Our own checks on a shipment follow AQL 2.5. See what AQL 2.5 means.

When to move to a full order

Go to the full order when:

If one of these fails, tell the supplier which one, and ask them to fix and resend. A good supplier will want your numbers. See 7 questions to ask before ordering.

What the full order gains

Price per set comes down as quantity goes up, because set-up costs are spread over more pieces. See how order size changes price. And once you know a supplier can repeat a spec, you can plan repeat orders and keep your linen in a single shade.

One thing to watch

A trial that goes well can lead to a rush to order big. Do the numbers first. Use the 3-year cost of a bed and your own wash life to work out how many sets you really need, so you do not over-buy.

Ask for samples and a trial quote. Tell us the spec and the number of beds, and we'll send both a trial price and a full-order price.