The Reject Tray Policy That Decides a Partnership
The brief was simple: 300 comparisons, 925 sterling silver, delivered before June. The run that arrived carried 17 pieces with prong geometry, and the buyer spent USD 30-85 on sorting before the goods reached a shelf, shipped as heart gift box and certified IGI report.
Nobody on that bench was careless. They were working to a spec that existed only in a photograph, and prong geometry is what a photograph fails to define, priced at USD 42-235 for the 300-piece Valentine Program run.
The fix cost about 22 seconds per comparison and removed the credit note entirely. That is the whole economics of a spec sheet, and it is why we write one on every quote, and the Valentine Program quote for it sits at USD 42-235.
What US buyers Check Before They Sign
Four lines decide whether comparisons at USD 42-235 sells through or comes back, and none of them appears on a typical trading-company quote.
| Spec point | Common trade output | HOLYCOME standard | Cost if missed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hallmark depth and placement | Stamped where it fits | Fixed position, depth measured so it never breaks the shank | Customs query and remaking |
| Solder flow at the joint | Not inspected | Joint inspected under 10x before setting | Crack at the seam in transit |
| Plating thickness | Nominal only | 0.20 micron rhodium logged per lot, 3 microns on vermeil | Wear-through inside one season |
| Surface porosity after polish | Seen after plating | Cast porosity checked before plating, rejects pulled at that stage | Plating blister six weeks later |
Put these four into the purchase order and the Valentine Program argument after delivery becomes arithmetic, on a 300-piece Valentine Program order at USD 42-235.
Where USD 42-235 Per Piece Actually Goes
Cost per piece at USD 42-235 leaves little room for assumption. The table shows which line compresses and which one only moves quality.
| Cost line | Share | What moves it |
|---|---|---|
| Base metal or alloy for comparisons | 30% | Alloy choice and casting yield |
| Stone or melee for comparisons | 20% | Sieve range and lot batching |
| Setting and finishing labor for comparisons | 19% | Jig design and bench minutes |
| Plating, polish and QC for comparisons | 12% | Per-tray versus per-piece checks |
| Packaging for comparisons | 19% | heart gift box |
A factory with no bench minutes per piece has never costed comparisons at USD 42-235. Ask for minutes and for the reject rule.
Order Terms, Sample Timing and Packing
The commercial frame is short enough to state in full. Minimum order is 50 pieces per design, and mixed designs travel in one shipment, so a 300-piece Valentine Program order can carry three or four models without a separate setup charge. Sample pieces leave in 3-5 days when the components are in stock, and a new model adds about twenty days before the first article exists, shipped as heart gift box and certified IGI report.
Payment is 30 percent with the order and 70 percent against the bill of lading, with the balance window stated on the invoice rather than agreed by message. Prices quoted at USD 42-235 are FOB Guangzhou or Shenzhen; DDP is quoted separately because the duty line moves with the tariff schedule and not with our cost.
Packing follows the heart gift box format at 300 pieces to the carton, and the packing list carries SKU, size and stone size so receiving can count without opening every box. Private-label cartons add three days for the print run and must be approved before the first bulk order, not after it, quoted at USD 42-235 per piece in heart gift box.
Certification is IGI report for the lots that carry it, with a batch report and per-piece measurement of stone retention after a 40-cycle wear test for the lots below the threshold. The document set travels with the shipping papers, which is what a customs broker asks for at the port rather than after clearance, which is how the Valentine Program account reads it at USD 42-235.
A rejected tray is settled inside the same order cycle against the retained reference piece. If the difference sits on our retained sample we replace or credit; if it appeared in transit we split the assay cost and file with the carrier, and that rule is written on the order before the deposit clears, on a 300-piece Valentine Program order at USD 42-235.
The Three Failures We See Most in Incoming Samples
prong geometry
A prong that grips the girdle instead of the pavilion survives the showroom and fails the third ultrasonic clean. The seat has to be cut to the pavilion angle before the prongs close, certified IGI report and packed heart gift box at 300 pieces.
Our countermeasure is a gauge and a written limit. It adds about 22 seconds per piece and removes the defect from the run rather than from the carton, shipped as heart gift box and certified IGI report.
rhodium burn-off
A 0.05 micron rhodium layer reads white in the tray and shows yellow at the shank in six months of daily wear. Thickness, not bath chemistry, is the variable that matters, which is how the Valentine Program account reads it at USD 42-235.
In a 300-piece run this typically shows on 14 of pieces. Catching it means measuring stone retention after a 40-cycle wear test at the tray level, not inspecting the finished carton, and the Valentine Program quote for it sits at USD 42-235.
size-step drift
A run gauged at size 6 and estimated elsewhere ships a size 8 that measures 7.75. The mismatch shows up as a resize queue two weeks after launch, with IGI report and heart gift box stated on the same sheet.
The commercial effect is a return shipment plus a resize labor claim, typically USD 9-14 per piece. Buyers who have seen it once put it in the purchase order; buyers who have not usually discover it on the first return, which the Valentine Program file records at USD 42-235 in heart gift box.
The Reject Tray Policy That Decides a Partnership
On comparisons, the difference between a 40-day order and a 90-day order is usually two signatures, not a factory delay, on a 300-piece Valentine Program order at USD 42-235.
At 300 pieces the arithmetic on comparisons changes: the fixed costs spread, the variable costs do not. That is why the second order prices better than the first even when the gold fix has moved up, shipped as heart gift box and certified IGI report.
We quote both a first-run price and a reorder price for comparisons on the same sheet so the buyer can see where the curve flattens. Most flatten by the third run, shipped as heart gift box and certified IGI report.
What the Quote Actually Covers
Buyers in the American bridal market tend to over-index on unit price for comparisons and under-index on what happens after delivery, on a 300-piece Valentine Program order at USD 42-235.
One practical note on timing for comparisons: the calendar starts when the spec is signed, not when the deposit clears. A buyer who signs in week one and pays in week three gets the goods in week five, which is how the Valentine Program account reads it at USD 42-235.
We date the comparisons proforma from signature for that reason, and we state the deposit deadline in the same email that carries the spec sheet, which the Valentine Program file records at USD 42-235 in heart gift box.
Valentine Window for comparisons
The Valentine window is short and unforgiving: stock has to be in the warehouse by the last week of January or the season is gone. That puts the production order in the second week of December, ahead of the Lunar New Year slowdown, and the Valentine Program quote for it sits at USD 42-235.
Paired designs move better than single pieces here. A matching pair of comparisons, boxed together with two cards, converts at the same retail price as two singles and costs about nine percent more to make, which is USD 42-235 on the Valentine Program schedule.
Photography has to be red-and-white neutral. A comparison shot on a red silk background reads as a gift in a listing thumbnail, and that is the only image most buyers will ever see, which is USD 42-235 on the Valentine Program schedule.
How a Repeat Order Gets Built
The sequence below is fixed for a Valentine Program run. The dates move with the stone lot, not with the shipping season, the figure being USD 42-235 for a 300-piece run.
- Lock the spec: metal, stone size range, plating thickness, sizing band and finish, all written on one sheet.
- Pull a stock-component sample in 3-5 days and measure it against that sheet, not against the photo.
- Approve the sample in writing, including the reject rule and the retained reference tray.
- Run bulk in 15-20 days for orders under 500 pieces, with the gauge check independent of the shift.
- Ship from Guangzhou or Shenzhen with the QC sheet in the carton and the batch report by email.
Reorders inside this sequence run 12-15 days, because the model and the gauge set stay here after the Valentine Program shipment, shipped as heart gift box and certified IGI report.
What This Means for a First Order
A first Valentine Program order of 50 pieces per design at USD 42-235 is a test of the line, not a commitment to the range.
Ask for the retained tray and the batch report with the first shipment. Both are free and both decide the second order, with IGI report and heart gift box stated on the same sheet, the figure being USD 42-235 for a 300-piece run.
Freight, Duty and the Arrival Check
Export runs through Guangzhou or Shenzhen. Air freight lands in 5-8 days on the US west coast and 7-10 on the east, shipped as heart gift box and certified IGI report, which the Valentine Program file records at USD 42-235 in heart gift box.
For a first order, DDP matters more than the freight rate. The surprise is the duty line, not the per-kilo charge, and at USD 42-235 for 300 pieces that is the number the buyer signs.
Check the count, the weight and stone retention after a 40-cycle wear test and prong tip height within +/-0.10 mm before the carton goes to the shelf. Twenty minutes at receiving saves a season of returns, which is USD 42-235 on the Valentine Program schedule.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the payment terms?
30 percent deposit with the order, 70 percent against the bill of lading. For accounts on a second order we quote 30/70 with a 15-day balance window once the first shipment has cleared, priced at USD 42-235 for the 300-piece Valentine Program run.
What is the minimum order for comparisons?
50 pieces per comparison. Designs mix inside one shipment, so a first order of three designs at 50 pieces each is normal for a new US account. Below 50 the gauge check stops being independent of the shift, priced at USD 42-235 for the 300-piece Valentine Program run.
Do you supply certificates for comparisons?
IGI report on comparisons above the threshold stated on the quote. Below it we supply a batch report plus per-piece measurement of stone retention after a 40-cycle wear test, which is what a counter or a listing actually needs, which the Valentine Program file records at USD 42-235 in heart gift box.
How do you handle a rejected tray?
We replace or credit inside the same order cycle. The retained reference tray decides: if prong geometry shows on our retained piece we own it, and if it appeared in transit we split the assay cost and file with the carrier, priced at USD 42-235 for the 300-piece Valentine Program run.
What are the payment terms?
30 percent deposit with the order, 70 percent against the bill of lading. For accounts on a second order we quote 30/70 with a 15-day balance window once the first shipment has cleared, priced at USD 42-235 for the 300-piece Valentine Program run.
Next Step
The next step is a sample in 3-5 days, not a container. Write to service@holycome.com or WhatsApp +86 18078079070 and mark it Valentine Program, shipped as heart gift box and certified IGI report.
HOLYCOME is operated by Wuzhou HengliLai Jewelry Co., Ltd., a factory in Wuzhou, Guangxi, producing since 2009 at roughly 60,000 pieces a month. Contact service@holycome.com or WhatsApp +86 18078079070, and 300 pieces leaves Wuzhou in heart gift box at USD 42-235.
Related reading: Comparisons Made to Order: What the Quote Actually Covers - HOLYCOME Care & Cleaning Trade Show Sample: The Sample Approval That Survives Production - HOLYCOME
