The sample request process with wholesale buyers
A buyer asks for samples in a meeting, in an email, or by circling styles on a line sheet. What happens next decides whether the right garment reaches the right desk before the buyer's meeting, and whether anyone remembers to ask for the order afterwards. A written process turns that from memory into routine.
By Philip Radvan, founder. Updated . 6 minute read.
Capture the request completely, once
Most sample problems start with a request that was half written down. Before anything is made or pulled from the rack, record:
- The account, the buyer and the ship-to address.
- Each style, color and size, and how many of each.
- What the sample is for: a line review, a fit check, a photo shoot, or a meeting with the buyer's own team.
- The date the buyer needs it in hand, not the date you hope to ship it.
- Whether it is a loan to come back, or the buyer's to keep.
Decide where each sample comes from
Some styles are on the rack today; others need a new sample from the factory, and some start from a design or a mood board rather than an existing style. Split the request by source, because a rack pull takes a day and a factory sample can take weeks. Tell the buyer which is which when you confirm.
Move it through phases everyone can read
Give each request a phase and an owner. A sequence that works: draft, submitted, approved, in the factory, in production, shipped, received, then evaluated. Each phase has one person who moves it on, and a due date that works back from the buyer's date.
Mark urgency honestly. If every request is a rush, none is; keep rush for the meeting that cannot move.
Treat loans as loans
Samples sent to a buyer are inventory you will want back, or will want to count when you do not get it. Send each loan with a statement of what went out and when it is due back, then follow up.
- Keep, return or more time: give the buyer three easy answers.
- Remind before the due date, not after it.
- When a buyer asks for another color or size, record it as a new request, not a note.
Follow up to the order
A sample is a question to the buyer. After the meeting, record what the buyer said about each style: yes, no, or changes. The styles that passed go on the buyer's list for the order; the ones with changes go back to development with the notes attached.
Over a season, the record shows which samples turned into orders and which never did. That is the cheapest sample budget review you will ever run.
Where Samplyn fits
Samplyn gives every sample request a record that buyers can start and your team can run, from the first ask to the garment coming back.
- Buyers add styles from their lists to a sample cart and check out into a sample request.
- Twelve phases from draft to passed or failed, with priorities, owners and printable sample-submit forms.
- Custody by barcode scan, and buyer loans with keep, return, more time or send me another, with statements and reminders.
More guides: How to track garment samples, Points of measure, a practical guide, The time and action calendar for garment production, Line sheets for department store buyers, Off-price vendor requirements, Routing guide compliance and chargebacks.