Most quality failures in apparel are not discovered at the point of discovery - the warehouse receipt or the customer return. They are created at the factory and travel through the supply chain unchecked until they land somewhere expensive. A three-stage inspection system intercepts them at the cheapest possible point: while the garments are still at the factory.
Stage 1: Inline inspection at 20% production
The inline inspection happens when approximately 20% of the order quantity has been produced. This is the most valuable intervention point in the quality process because it is the earliest at which a systematic problem can be detected and corrected before the majority of units are affected.
The inline inspector checks against the approved sample for: measurements across key dimensions, seam quality and tension, colour matching against the approved shade card, label placement and accuracy, and fabric defects (holes, barre, shade variation). Any findings are logged with photographs and reported to the factory's production manager on the same day.
The purpose of the inline inspection is not to reject units - it is to catch systemic issues early enough that corrective action on the remaining 80% of production is still possible.
Stage 2: Final inspection before packing
The final inspection happens after 100% of production is complete and before garments are packed into polybags and cartons. This is a formal audit using the ANSI/ASQ Z1.4 sampling methodology - the industry-standard statistical sampling plan that determines how many units to inspect from a given lot size to achieve a given confidence level.
Acceptable Quality Level (AQL) 2.5 is our standard for major defects - meaning we accept no more than 2.5 defective units per 100 inspected on major quality criteria. This is the same standard used by H&M, Next, and most major EU retailers.
The final inspection report is uploaded to TextilMarkt with photographs of inspected units, a defect breakdown by type and frequency, the accept/fail decision, and corrective action requirements if any defects are found.
Stage 3: Pre-shipment inspection
The pre-shipment inspection happens after packing is complete and before the container is sealed and loaded. At this stage, the inspector checks packed carton counts against the purchase order, verifies carton marks and labels, opens a sample of cartons to verify pack contents, and confirms the garments match the approved sample on final presentation.
The pre-shipment check is the last line of defence before the goods become freight. Any failure at this stage is escalated to both the factory and the brand with a hold on shipment release until resolved.
The accountability structure
The three-stage system works because of how accountability is structured. If a defect passes our QC process and results in a rejection at the brand's warehouse - or worse, a consumer return - we absorb the rework or replacement cost. This is not a contractual nicety; it is the operational incentive that makes our QC team rigorous.
Sourcing agents who earn commission on FOB value have no financial stake in the quality outcome. If the batch is rejected, the agent has already earned their margin. The brand bears the cost. Under our model, quality failures cost us directly - which is why our 99%+ acceptance rate is a business outcome, not a marketing claim.
If your current sourcing programme does not have inline inspection - if QC only happens at the pre-shipment stage - you are catching problems after they are expensive to fix. Talk to us about a QC audit of your current factory relationships.