The Reject Tray Policy That Decides a Partnership in the Valentine Program Program
A US buyer of metal Guide came to us after 300 metal Guide from a trading company produced 11 rejects in the first inspection. The defect was not cosmetic: stamp accuracy had drifted far enough that the buyer's own bench could not correct it without recutting, which the Valentine Program file records at USD 50-358 in heart gift box.
That rejection was avoidable at the drawing stage. Stamp accuracy belongs on the spec sheet next to the stone size, not in the claim email three weeks after arrival, with IGI report and heart gift box stated on the same sheet, quoted at USD 50-358 per piece in heart gift box.
We kept the Valentine Program price and changed the four measurements that matter. The rebuild cost about 21 seconds per piece and removed the whole claim conversation, which is USD 50-358 on the Valentine Program schedule.
Four Spec Lines a Valentine Program Buyer Checks
The Valentine Program buyer signs on four numbers. The table puts the trade default beside our standard so the difference is visible before the deposit, which is USD 50-358 on the Valentine Program schedule.
| 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 |
None of the four adds cost at USD 50-358. They add about 21 seconds per piece and remove the reason to inspect twice.
Cost Split on a Valentine Program Piece at USD 50-358
At USD 50-358 per piece for metal Guide, the stone sits near a quarter and the labor line moves by double digits between two quotes for one drawing.
| Cost line | Share | What moves it |
|---|---|---|
| Base metal or alloy for metal Guide | 32% | Alloy choice and casting yield |
| Stone or melee for metal Guide | 23% | Sieve range and lot batching |
| Setting and finishing labor for metal Guide | 21% | Jig design and bench minutes |
| Plating, polish and QC for metal Guide | 14% | Per-tray versus per-piece checks |
| Packaging for metal Guide | 10% | heart gift box |
The saving in the cheapest quote hides in plating and stone grade. At 300 pieces that saving is visible in season two, and the Valentine Program quote for it sits at USD 50-358.
Terms Behind a Valentine Program Order
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, the figure being USD 50-358 for a 300-piece run.
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 50-358 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, which the Valentine Program file records at USD 50-358 in heart gift box.
Certification is IGI report for the lots that carry it, with a batch report and per-piece measurement of assay within 0.3K of the stamp 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, and at USD 50-358 for 300 pieces that is the number the buyer signs.
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, which is USD 50-358 on the Valentine Program schedule.
Three Failures That Reach the Valentine Program Bench
stamp accuracy
A 14K stamp on 13.6K metal is a legal exposure, not a cosmetic one. Assay per lot is the only defensible check, which the Valentine Program file records at USD 50-358 in heart gift box.
In a 300-piece run this typically shows on 11 of pieces. Catching it means measuring assay within 0.3K of the stamp at the tray level, not inspecting the finished carton, quoted at USD 50-358 per piece in heart gift box.
alloy color drift
Two alloy lots of 14K rose can read peach and copper under the same light. Holding a master color chip per order keeps a collection coherent, and at USD 50-358 for 300 pieces that is the number the buyer signs.
The commercial effect is refining loss plus a legal stamp correction, typically USD 15-28 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, on a 300-piece Valentine Program order at USD 50-358.
solder joint porosity
A sizing joint soldered with too much flux pits after polish and cracks in wear. Joint inspection belongs in the final QC, not the bench, and 300 pieces leaves Wuzhou in heart gift box at USD 50-358.
Our countermeasure is a gauge and a written limit. It adds about 21 seconds per piece and removes the defect from the run rather than from the carton, which is USD 50-358 on the Valentine Program schedule.
The Reject Tray Policy That Decides a Partnership
The short version for metal Guide: it is arithmetic, not relationship. The long version is below, certified IGI report and packed heart gift box at 300 pieces.
At 300 pieces the arithmetic on metal Guide 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 metal Guide on the same sheet so the buyer can see where the curve flattens. Most flatten by the third run, on a 300-piece Valentine Program order at USD 50-358.
What the Quote Actually Covers
Every year we see the same omission in metal Guide spec sheets, and every year it costs a buyer a season, on a 300-piece Valentine Program order at USD 50-358.
One practical note on timing for metal Guide: 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, shipped as heart gift box and certified IGI report.
We date the metal Guide proforma from signature for that reason, and we state the deposit deadline in the same email that carries the spec sheet, and 300 pieces leaves Wuzhou in heart gift box at USD 50-358.
Valentine Window for metal Guide
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, priced at USD 50-358 for the 300-piece Valentine Program run.
Paired designs move better than single pieces here. A matching pair of metal Guide, boxed together with two cards, converts at the same retail price as two singles and costs about nine percent more to make, and 300 pieces leaves Wuzhou in heart gift box at USD 50-358.
Photography has to be red-and-white neutral. A metal Guide 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 the Valentine Program file records at USD 50-358 in heart gift box.
The Calendar Behind a Valentine Program Run
Nothing in this sequence is clever. Each step exists because skipping it cost somebody a claim on metal Guide at USD 50-358.
- 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.
MOQ is 50 pieces per design, low enough to test a category and high enough to keep the casting line accountable, certified IGI report and packed heart gift box at 300 pieces, which the Valentine Program file records at USD 50-358 in heart gift box.
The First Valentine Program Order
Start with three designs at 50 pieces each. That covers the 300 pieces you need to read sell-through without betting on one model, which is USD 50-358 on the Valentine Program schedule.
Sample 3-5 days, bulk 15-20 days under 500 pieces, 300 pieces inside that window. The calendar is the same on every Valentine Program run, which is USD 50-358 on the Valentine Program schedule.
Getting heart gift box to US e-commerce
Sea freight costs roughly a third of air and takes three times the transit, which only makes sense for an SKU already selling in US e-commerce, the figure being USD 50-358 for a 300-piece run.
FOB is the default and DDP is the option. Buyers new to US e-commerce usually take DDP once and then switch after they see the breakdown, shipped as heart gift box and certified IGI report, which is how the Valentine Program account reads it at USD 50-358.
At receiving, count cartons, weigh one tray and measure ten pieces against assay within 0.3K of the stamp. Twenty minutes here saves a season of returns, and at USD 50-358 for 300 pieces that is the number the buyer signs.
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, with IGI report and heart gift box stated on the same sheet.
What is the minimum order for metal Guide?
50 pieces per metal Guide. 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, and at USD 50-358 for 300 pieces that is the number the buyer signs.
Do you supply certificates for metal Guide?
IGI report on metal Guide above the threshold stated on the quote. Below it we supply a batch report plus per-piece measurement of assay within 0.3K of the stamp, which is what a counter or a listing actually needs, which is how the Valentine Program account reads it at USD 50-358.
How do you handle a rejected tray?
We replace or credit inside the same order cycle. The retained reference tray decides: if stamp accuracy shows on our retained piece we own it, and if it appeared in transit we split the assay cost and file with the carrier, and 300 pieces leaves Wuzhou in heart gift box at USD 50-358.
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, with IGI report and heart gift box stated on the same sheet.
Next Step
If the USD 50-358 band fits the shelf, send a drawing and we quote the 300-piece Valentine Program run inside one business day.
HOLYCOME runs this line from Wuzhou, Guangxi, through Wuzhou HengliLai Jewelry Co., Ltd. Output is about 60,000 pieces a month across metal Guide and adjacent categories. service@holycome.com or WhatsApp +86 18078079070, which the Valentine Program file records at USD 50-358 in heart gift box.
Related reading: Metal Guide Made to Order: What the Quote Actually Covers - HOLYCOME Buying Guides Trade Show Sample: The Sample Approval That Survives Production - HOLYCOME
