Sweaters & cardigans
Fine-gauge sweaters and cardigans, placed with a documented knitting factory we have visited in person. You pay 30% to start bulk and the 70% balance only after a third-party inspection.
Free brief · Reply within 24h · Inspected before the balance
Tech packExample tech pack by Pinterest user Munique Rodrigues
KnittingPanels knitted to size
SewingKnits finished at the machine
InspectionMeasured against your spec
Checked before you pay
What you can brief
Knitwear starts with the yarn and the gauge, not the pattern. Name both, and we place it with a factory that already knits that weight.
No tech pack yet? We draw it: $79 per style, 3–5 working days, 2–3 revision rounds, one flat price.
Cost and time
The calculator does not model fine-gauge knitting yet, so treat the number below as the closest guide, not a knitwear price. Yarn, gauge and stitch decide the real one.
Calculator estimate · Sweatshirt300–500 pcs
$12.00–$20.00per piece · FOB estimate
| Units per style | Estimate per piece |
|---|---|
| 100–300 pcs | $14.40–$24.00 |
| 300–500 pcs | $12.00–$20.00 |
| 500–1,000 pcs | $10.56–$17.60 |
| 1,000+ pcs | $9.36–$15.60 |
Closest calculator base: Sweatshirt (fleece or terry), FOB, per piece. Fine-gauge knitwear is not modelled yet. Mid fabric, standard construction, no extras. An estimate, not a quote: the factory quotes from your tech pack. Duty and freight are not included; confirm your HTS code with your customs broker.
Planned on the long end of each range: about 13 weeks plus inspection
Wk 0–1Brief and factory placement reply in 24h, factory within 7 days
Wk 1–5Sampling 2–4 weeks
Wk 530% deposit starts bulk
Wk 5–13Bulk production 6–8 weeks
Wk 13Third-party inspection before shipment
Wk 1370% balance, then ship after the report
UsualCan run toPayment or checkHave a ship date? Start at least 14 weeks before it. Chinese New Year closes factories for roughly 2–4 weeks.
Where we place it
Sweaters, knitwear and wool knitting are what Jiangsu is known for; Zhejiang supplies much of the yarn and knit material.
Chinese New Year closes factories for roughly 2–4 weeks in late January or February, in every province. Plan the calendar around it.
First place we look · Yangtze River Delta
Suzhou · Nanjing
Jiangsu suits sweaters and wool knitting, and larger, more technical runs. For a first small run we check which knitting factory takes 100 pieces in your yarn.
Yarn and knit materials often come from Zhejiang. A cut-and-sew sweatshirt is a different product: see hoodies.
How the money moves
The usual China horror story starts with 100% paid up front. Ours ends with a third-party inspector checking the finished order before the 70% leaves your account.
Day 1
You send the product, quantity and date. We reply within 24 hours.
Visited factory
A factory we have visited in person quotes you directly and makes the sample.
Deposit
Paid to the factory once you approve the sample.
Before shipment
An independent inspector checks the finished goods against your tech pack.
Balance
Paid only once the inspection report is back.
The factory bills you directly. Our fee, when there is one, is quoted in writing before any work starts.
Watch-outs
Knitwear fails in ways a photo does not show. These are the three we see most, and the check that removes each one.
The yarn is dyed before it is knitted, so every color has its own dye lot and its own queue. The calendar slips before a stitch is made.
The check
Name every color in the brief. We ask the factory for the yarn lead time and the per-color minimum before sampling, and plan the date around it.
The sample is knitted in one yarn and bulk in a cheaper one with a similar name. It feels different and wears differently.
The check
Put the yarn composition, count and mill on the tech pack, and have the inspector check bulk against the approved sample before you pay the 70%.
Knitted panels relax and shrink differently from woven fabric, so a sweater can measure right on the table and wrong after a wash.
The check
Measure the sample after washing or steaming, and give each point of measure a tolerance in the size chart.
Certificates: ask for the certificate number and the mill name, not the logo. We never claim a factory holds a certificate; the factory shows it to you.
Step 1 of your brief
Knitwear is ticked. Add the yarn and gauge on the next page if you know them, and we reply within 24 hours.
Knitwear questions
What brands ask us before a first sweater order, answered the way we answer by email.
Question not here?
Put it in your brief. Our team replies within 24 hours.
Send a briefor email chinaclothinggroup@gmail.com
From 100 pieces per style. Yarn-dyed colors can raise the minimum per color, because the yarn dye lot sets it, not the knitting machine. Tell us every color and we confirm the real minimum before sampling.
Sampling takes 2–4 weeks. Bulk usually takes 6–8 weeks from the approved sample; yarn-dyed styles can need more, so ask us with your colors. Start at least 14 weeks before a ship date and plan around Chinese New Year.
We do not print a knitwear range yet, because yarn and gauge move it too much. The closest calculator base, a sweatshirt, estimates $12.00–20.00 a piece FOB at 300–500 pieces; treat it as a guide only. The factory quotes the real number from your tech pack.
Jiangsu is known for sweaters, knitwear and wool knitting, and Zhejiang for yarn and knit materials. We place the style with a documented factory we have visited that already knits your yarn and gauge.
The factory quotes you and bills you directly. Bulk starts on a 30% deposit. The 70% balance is paid only after a third-party inspection of the finished sweaters. Our fee, if any, is quoted in writing before any work starts.
Read next
The guide covers how to tell a factory from a trading company. The cluster pages cover where knitwear and yarn are made.
Guide
Factory, trading company or agent, and the one question that tells them apart.
Cluster · Yangtze River Delta
Sweaters, knitwear, tailoring and wool knitting.
Production steps
Fabric, cutting, sewing and finishing, then a third-party inspection of the finished goods before the 70% balance is paid.
Yarn cones
Yarn cones
Operator guiding a knit panel through the overlock
Trimming and folding
Quality control roomFree brief · Reply within 24h
Tell us what you are making. We reply within 24 hours with an honest answer on fit, and if it fits, a documented factory we have visited quotes you directly.
30% deposit · 70% after third-party inspection · No commissions
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