Intimate Apparel: Why You Need to Understand MOQ?

Minimum Order Quantity (MOQ) is an important concept that every industry insider of intimate apparel business needs to understand thoroughly to make sure sufficient quantities of products are always available at their store in a cost-effective manner. Different factories have different MOQ’s and the more units you can adhere to, the lower your cost price will be. In this blog post, we will discuss why you need to understand MOQ when ordering Intimate Apparel.

What is a MOQ?

MOQ is the minimum amount of a product that a business needs to purchase from a producer while placing an order. Typically, the factories determine the MOQ for a product in a way that they can pay back the cost of production not limited to cost of labours, machineries, raw materials etc. with some profits. Intimate apparel is generally made in smaller batches due to its size and complexity, which can undeniably make it difficult for your business to source a good factory who can offer lower MOQ.

Why do Factories use MOQ?

There are two vital reasons for which most factories impose MOQ, one reason is they have to stop other productions and another reason is they too have minimum order themselves from their suppliers. Manufacturing of intimate apparel products involve planning, design, sampling and fitting, creating and grading patterns, re-setting of machineries etc. which involves different costs from start to finish. So, as a business, the MOQ ensures all the work is worthwhile for them.

Aside, the factories don’t hold all the fabrics, trims and hardwares in their stock. They too have to purchase based on your order and they too have to undergo MOQ from their supplier.

What Affects MOQ?

There are several factors that can affect minimum order quantity like complexity of design, choice in fabrics and trims, and consumption of fabric and sizes. Basically, the more complicated the design and materials used, the higher the MOQ set by the factory. This is because of traditional economies of scale; ordering more units usually results in a cheaper price. However, this does not mean that factories don’t need to make a profit too – which is why minimums are often negotiable.

How does it Apply to Intimate Apparel?

Intimate apparel are specialised products and often require a certain level of expertise in order to design and manufacture. For example, you might have an MOQ of 100 pieces per order. This means that if you are ordering 100 pieces of a particular item, the factory will be able to give a lower unit price than if you were ordering 50 pieces. 

MOQ helps to protect brand’s reputation. If customers receive orders that don’t contain all of the items they ordered, then this can lead to unhappy customers and negative reviews. So, understanding how MOQs work, how they apply to business, and how to negotiate the best deal are all important considerations when ordering to factories. 

When done right, MOQs can save a good amount of money. Above all, it’s important to talk and negotiate with factories so that you can get the most out of your MOQs and make sure that you are getting the best possible value from your order.