Supplier Sample Evaluation

New sellers order one sample, hold it, say "looks good", wire $8,400 for 1,000 units. Two months later returns hit 18%. The product was 0.4 inches off spec, the packaging failed FBA prep, the polybag had no suffocation warning. By then 600 units are stranded. A 25-point sample test before mass production catches all of this. Costs 30 minutes. Saves $3K-$10K per launch.

When to use this

• Sample just arrived from a new supplier
• Switching suppliers on an existing SKU
• Adding a new variation (color, size) and supplier sent a sample
• Pre-trade-show evaluation of multiple supplier candidates

The framework. The 25-Point Sample Test

Five sections, five points each. Each point is pass or fail. Three or more fails in any single section = full rejection, request a new sample.