What Buyers Ask Before Starting a Custom Merchandise Project

We help brands, IP owners, artists and talent teams, game companies, event teams and agencies develop custom plush and related character merchandise. Our work includes artwork review, sampling, specialist supplier coordination, approval records, QC, packaging and delivery planning.

AIYYANG coordinates product development with specialist suppliers selected for the product. Supplier availability, capacity, commercial terms and QC references are confirmed for each project.

Send the current mascot or character artwork, the intended retail or event use, the product and SKU list, quantity per SKU, target size, packaging, destination and required receiving date. Identify your artwork approver and label what is approved or still open.

If a field is unknown, mark it as “to confirm” and state the decision you need help with. The RFQ checklist shows how to prepare a comparable supplier brief.

No. A sketch, character sheet, current design file or clear campaign brief can be enough for an initial review. We first identify whether the missing information belongs to the buyer, can be presented as a development proposal or must be tested in a physical sample.

The current version still needs a name and status. Approved character features must be separated from product interpretations such as depth, pose, attachment, cutline, crop and packing layout. Our artwork review process explains that handoff in detail.

Start with use and interaction rather than a generic cost comparison. Plush provides a three-dimensional soft object and creates decisions about shape, pose, fabrics, embroidery and attachment. Acrylic preserves printed artwork in a flat format but adds cutline, print-layer, hole and hardware decisions. Printed badges add crop, edge, backing and display-card questions.

The character may guide all formats, but every product needs its own derivative brief and SKU label. One source file should not be treated as the complete production instruction for a mixed collection.

MOQ is not one fixed number across custom merchandise. It can be affected by the product, number of designs, setup work, materials, components, custom colors, decoration method, packaging and current supplier purchasing conditions. Dividing one total quantity among many SKUs can change the production logic because each design retains its own setup and control work.

We confirm MOQ only after reviewing the current scope. If the project is intentionally small, our trial-order article explains why reducing complexity, SKU count or custom components may matter without promising a universal minimum.

A useful quotation needs a defined product, current artwork status, design or SKU count, quantity per SKU, target size, required materials or open material decisions, packaging, destination and required delivery context. The buyer should also identify whether the request is for development, sampling, bulk production or a combined scope.

Price comparisons are unreliable when suppliers are interpreting different products or missing fields differently. Keep unknown requirements visible, and ask every supplier to state exclusions and assumptions. Artwork approval alone does not confirm commercial terms.

A physical sample is necessary when the important question cannot be approved from files alone. Typical examples include three-dimensional shape, balance, hand feel, fabric behavior, color interaction, component fit, decoration placement, how an item hangs, base fit or packaging fit.

Some printed or simpler items may use an appropriate proof for certain visual questions, but the proof type depends on the actual process and risk. The decision is not “sample or no sample” in the abstract; it is whether the chosen evidence can answer the approval questions. See what we check in a sample for the full review logic.

Sample approval must identify the exact physical sample, dated image set, specification or revision being approved. Feedback should state which features are accepted, which need correction and which remain open. A short “looks good” message is not enough when it could refer to one color or one photographed angle.

If the buyer approves with conditions, those conditions stay in the record. A later design change should state which SKU and which approved feature it affects. Commercial and schedule effects still require a current review.

The approved sample and controlled specification become comparison references for supplier coordination and bulk checks. The record should link the sample to the correct artwork version, materials, decoration, components, size, packaging and approved conditions. Production should not rely on memory or an unlabelled chat image.

Inspection checkpoints, sampling method, acceptable variation and defect handling are agreed for the actual product and order. AIYYANG coordinates the approved references and quality-control decisions with the selected specialist suppliers.

Discuss packaging before the final sample and quotation when it affects product fit, attachment, protective elements, labels, retail presentation, assembly or carton planning. A backing card may change hardware orientation. A box may require a confirmed product envelope. A label may need buyer-supplied wording or destination-specific review.

Packaging is not an afterthought added after production. The packed acrylic example on this page shows the handoff between item format and packing, but each project still needs its own count, protection, label and carton requirements.

No reliable delivery scope can be confirmed from artwork alone. Planning depends on the confirmed product, quantity, packing data, destination, receiving priority, handoff point and current logistics review. Freight terms, transit assumptions, taxes, customs responsibilities and local delivery conditions must be stated in a current quotation.

If the buyer has a launch or event date, provide the required receiving date and the consequence of missing it. The project can then be planned backward, with open sample, approval, production and packing decisions made visible instead of hidden inside one delivery promise.

We can coordinate third-party testing and supporting documentation for your target market. Tell us the sales country, intended age group and use, materials, and any requirements from your retail shop or importer before sampling.

For toys, the review may include applicable EN 71 or ASTM F963 requirements. The laboratory, test scope, sample requirements, cost and timing are confirmed for the specific product. CE marking and a laboratory test report serve different purposes; testing support does not mean that every product already holds a report or meets every market’s requirements.

Send the current brief and name the unresolved decision. Include artwork, product idea, quantity per design, target size, packaging direction, destination and deadline priority. We will route the question to artwork review, product planning, sampling, supplier coordination, QC, packaging or delivery review.

AIYYANG supports custom plush toys, plush keychains, acrylic charms and standees, badges, character merchandise and custom packaging. Use the project inquiry form, contact us on WhatsApp, or email aiyyang866@gmail.com. We will identify what is confirmed and what must be decided before quotation or sampling.