Producing custom sportswear in China is a sequence, not a single purchase. Buyers who treat it that way get a predictable result; buyers who jump straight to a bulk purchase order usually discover the problem after the fabric is already cut. Each stage below has one output that unlocks the next, and skipping an output is what costs the most money.
This page sets out the full route a custom sportswear order takes through a Ningbo factory, from the first brief to the container being loaded. It is written for overseas buyers, clubs and new brands who want to know what happens between paying a deposit and receiving boxes.
Quick answer: Custom sportswear production runs through six stages: (1) design brief and tech pack, (2) fabric and trim selection, (3) sampling and approval, (4) bulk production, (5) quality control and testing, and (6) packing and shipping. Sampling sits in the middle on purpose: it is the cheapest place to make a mistake and the most expensive place to skip one. A clean order usually takes four to six weeks after sample approval, with a further one to three weeks for shipping.
The brief is the document that decides everything downstream. It needs to name the garment type, the sport it is for, the quantity per size, the decoration method and the deadline. A sketch on a phone is a starting point, not a brief.
Garment type and cut — polo, tee, hoodie, shorts, warm-up jacket, and whether it is a men's, women's or youth block.
Size breakdown, not just a total. A 500-piece order split badly leaves you with surplus smalls and no larges.
Decoration: embroidery, screen print, transfer or full sublimation, and where each element sits on the garment.
Colour references, ideally Pantone numbers rather than a photograph of another shirt.
In-hand date and destination port or door.
If you are still working out where the design itself comes from, our piece on ten steps to designing custom sportswear walks through artwork preparation before you approach a factory.
Fabric is where most of the cost, feel and durability of the finished garment is decided. The factory will normally offer a set of stock qualities and quote against them, because a stock fabric carries no minimum and no lead time. Choosing a custom knit means a minimum order on the fabric itself before a single garment is made.
For a first order the sensible move is to pick from stock qualities that already suit the sport, then move to a custom knit once volumes justify it. The trade-offs between weight, stretch, moisture handling and cost are covered in detail in selecting sportswear fabrics at a China factory. Trim matters too: zip quality, drawcord, elastic and thread colour are all specified here, and they are hard to change later.
The sample you approve is what the production floor is held to, so sign it off in writing rather than by message.
Sampling produces one physical garment that both sides agree is correct. Until that garment is approved, nothing else should be cut. Expect a first sample in five to ten working days for a stock fabric, longer if the fabric has to be knitted or dyed.
Check the sample against the brief, not against your memory of it: measure the chest and length against the size chart, look at the decoration placement against the artwork, and wear it once if you can. Send back one consolidated list of comments rather than a running conversation, and ask for a revised sample if anything structural changes.
Approve the sample in writing and keep a photo set of it.
Note the fabric reference and the exact thread and print colours used.
Confirm the packing method on the approved sample, including the size sticker.
Once the sample is signed off, fabric is cut and the order enters the line. This is the longest stage and the one with the least flexibility: changes requested here cost fabric, cutting time and usually money. Production typically runs two to four weeks depending on quantity, decoration method and how many colourways are involved.
Sublimated garments are printed before cutting, so a colour change mid-order means reprinting panels. Embroidered orders can absorb a late logo change more easily, but only if the programmed file has not already run. The practical rule is that anything you want to change should be raised before step 4 begins. Our write-up of the production process from pattern to finished garment explains how the stages overlap.
Inspection happens in two places: in-line, where the operator checks the garment they just made, and at the end, where the finished order is checked against the approved sample in a batch. A third-party inspection can be arranged at your cost if your buyer or your customer requires an independent report.
Fabric and print testing covers colourfastness, dimensional stability after washing, and where relevant the fibre content claim. If your order carries a certification claim from a customer, raise it at the brief stage rather than during inspection, because the paperwork takes longer to arrange than the test itself. The sequence we follow is described in sportswear fabric testing steps.
Packing decisions taken at the sampling stage are what keep a delivery schedule intact at the end of an order.
Packing is part of the product in any team order. A club that has to open twelve boxes and sort 400 shirts by size before it can hand them out has been given extra work by the factory. Specify polybag or no polybag, individual name or number labels, and the carton size breakdown while the order is still in sampling.
Shipping is usually sea freight for bulk and air or express for samples and urgent top-ups. Both the packing spec and the freight options are covered in packaging and shipping of sportswear from China.
A bulk club order is normally packed per player and size-labelled, so the cartons can be handed out without sorting first.
| Stage | Typical duration | What has to be ready before it starts |
|---|---|---|
| Brief and tech pack | 2–5 days, buyer side | Design, size breakdown, deadline |
| Fabric and trim selection | 1–3 days | Sport, season, budget per piece |
| Sampling and approval | 5–15 working days | Confirmed brief and fabric |
| Bulk production | 2–4 weeks | Signed-off sample |
| QC and testing | 2–5 days | Approved sample for comparison |
| Packing and shipping | 3–10 days to sail, 1–3 weeks transit | Packing spec and forwarder details |
Total from confirmed brief to goods leaving the factory is normally four to six weeks, plus transit. Anything quoted at two weeks for a decorated order is either using stock garments or skipping the sampling stage.
Approving a sample by message rather than in writing, then disagreeing about what was approved.
Changing the size breakdown after cutting, which creates both surplus and shortage.
Leaving the packing specification until the goods are finished.
Choosing a fabric by photograph instead of by weight and composition.
Assuming a certification claim can be added at inspection time.
No, but it saves a sample round. A written brief with garment type, size breakdown, decoration placement and colours is enough to start; a tech pack simply removes the back-and-forth that a sketch usually causes.
Five to ten working days for a standard garment in a stock fabric. A custom knit, a new dye lot or a complex sublimated panel set can push this to two or three weeks, because the fabric has to be made first.
Practically, no. Fabric is cut to the approved size breakdown, and sublimated panels are printed before cutting. Raise changes at the sampling stage, where they cost a sample rather than a production run.
It depends on the garment and the decoration method rather than on the factory's mood. Stock fabrics with embroidery or print carry the lowest minimum; custom knits and multi-panel sublimation carry the highest, because they set a fabric minimum before the garment minimum.
If you have a size breakdown and a deadline, send both and we will confirm which stages can be compressed for your order. A written quotation with fabric references and production timings follows the brief.
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