Yes — a small run per design is normal for sterling silver, as long as you plan around the minimum. Ours is 30 pieces per design, per plating colour, for a design of your own, and 10 pieces per design when you put your logo on one of our existing designs. Ring sizes of one design count together. Among Chinese silver factories that publish their terms, a minimum of a few dozen pieces per custom design is common; some ask for considerably more, and some count each colour separately.
The wall small brands hit
Small designers tell the same story again and again: the minimum per style is far above what a first collection can sell, and it does not move when you ask. Some find that branded boxes and pouches have even higher minimums than the jewelry. The way through is to understand where a minimum comes from, then plan an order that clears it without overbuying.
Why factories have minimums
Minimums come from set-up work that costs about the same whether a factory makes a handful of pieces or a large run:
- The mould. Silver jewelry is usually cast: a master model is made from your approved design, a rubber mould is made from the master, and wax copies are injected into it and cast in silver. The model and mould are made once, whatever the quantity.
- Setting up each step. A casting run, a stone-setting set-up, a logo stamp, polishing and checking the first pieces against your approved sample all take time before the first good piece comes off the line.
- Plating batches. Plating is done in baths, a batch at a time. Each colour needs its own preparation, plating run and checks, and a small batch takes nearly as long as a full one.
- The order itself. Quoting, photographing the finished order, packing and export paperwork are the same work for a small order as for a large one.
Spread over many pieces, that set-up is a small part of each price. Spread over very few, it can be most of it.
What counts toward the minimum
| Your order | How it counts |
|---|---|
| One ring design across several sizes | Together — sizes of one design are one design |
| One design in rhodium and in gold | Separately — each plating colour is its own run |
| Two designs that share a style | Separately — each design has its own mould |
If your variants differ in another way — a stone colour, a chain length — tell us when you ask for a quote and we will say how they count.
Two routes: your design or ours
| Your own design | Your logo on our designs | |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum | 30 pieces per design, per plating colour | 10 pieces per design, per plating colour |
| 3D design and sample | Needed — sample from USD 50 per design | No 3D design or new mould; a sample is quoted per design |
| Before production | 3D in 2–3 working days, sample in 7–10 working days | A logo proof to approve |
| Production | 15–25 days after you approve the sample and pay the deposit | 15–25 days after you approve the logo proof and pay the deposit |
| Exclusive to you | Yes — we don’t offer your design to anyone else | No — other customers can order the same style without your logo |
The trade-off is plain. Your own design gives you a piece we make for no one else, at a higher minimum and with a sample to pay for. Our designs get you to market sooner, with a lower minimum and no 3D work — but they are not exclusive, so the same piece can appear elsewhere without your logo. You can use both: your own design for the pieces your brand is known for, our designs for the basics around them.
Below the minimum
A single sample, yes. A production run below 30 pieces of one design is sometimes possible for simple designs, so ask — but the price per piece rises quickly, because the same set-up is shared by fewer pieces. Often the better answer is to put your logo on one of our designs, from 10 pieces.
If you need only a handful of pieces of many designs, a factory may not be the right fit yet. A local maker, or a supplier of ready-made stock, will usually suit a first test better.
How to plan a first order
- Choose fewer designs. A few designs at the minimum or above cost less per piece than many designs below it, and leave budget to reorder what sells.
- Start with one plating colour. Every extra colour starts a new run with its own minimum. Add a second colour on the reorder of the designs that sell.
- Spread sizes, not designs. Ring sizes count together, so 30 rings of one design can cover your whole size range.
- Mix the two routes. Make your own design where it matters, and fill out the collection with our designs from 10 pieces each.
- Count the sample. The sample fee is credited back only when that design’s order reaches 100 pieces. At the minimum, budget for it as a cost — see the sample cost guide.
- Check the packaging minimums. Branded packaging is quoted separately, and its minimums depend on the material and printing. Ask for packaging prices with the jewelry, so both fit the same order.
The cost guide shows how to put the whole order — duty and shipping included — into a cost per piece.
Reorders
A reorder of an approved design goes straight to production: no new 3D design and no new sample. We keep the moulds and 3D files made for your designs for your reorders, and never offer them to anyone else. And a reorder can be as small as your first order, so you can restock what sells without buying more than you need.
All our minimums, sample fees and lead times are on our pricing page.