HALA DECOHow mixed-SKU ordering gets you past MOQ
One SKU rarely justifies a container. The way buyers clear minimums without putting the whole budget behind a single product is to mix - across categories, and across the two buying routes.
What the minimums actually look like
Across the 460 items in our current range that carry a published minimum, the numbers break down like this:
| Custom/OEM minimum | Share of the range |
|---|---|
| 50 pcs | 11 items (the lowest band) |
| 300 pcs or below | 81 items |
| 1,000 pcs or more | 311 items |
| Median across the range | 1,000 pcs |
| Highest | 5,000 pcs |
So the honest answer to "what is your MOQ" is: it depends on the item, the median is 1,000, and it ranges from 50 to 5,000. That figure is the custom/OEM minimum - it applies to goods we produce for you.
The other route: stock, from 12 pcs
There is a second route, and it is the one small and first-time buyers usually need: stock, from 12 pcs per SKU, when the item happens to be on the shelf in Yiwu. Stock moves constantly, so we do not publish availability - it is confirmed when you ask. But it means the 1,000-pcs figure is not the door.
A mixed-SKU stock order - a dozen of this, two dozen of that, across six categories - is normal business for us, not an exception we grudgingly accept.
Why mixing SKUs is also the answer on the custom route
On the custom route the minimum is per item, which is where buyers get stuck: you want twelve items, each one justifies 300 pcs on its own, and suddenly you are committing to 3,600 pieces of a range you have never sold.
Mixing does not remove the per-item minimum. What it changes is the risk:
- You meet minimums once, not per container. The volume threshold is met by the order, so a slow-selling line can ride along with a fast one instead of being dropped for being too small on its own.
- Working capital spreads across the range. The same money covers the categories a customer actually shops across, rather than one product that happens to fill a container.
- Freight is shared by the light items. Carton densities vary much more than most buyers expect - across our range the median carton is about 0.06 CBM, but the spread runs from 0.006 to 0.31. Loading light cartons next to heavy ones is what brings the average freight cost per piece down.
What a mixed order looks like in practice
Three real items from the current range, with the packing data as it appears on each product page:
| Item | Minimum | Pcs / carton | CBM / carton | Cartons per 20GP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ramadan lantern ornament, bronze 641158 | 300 | 55 | 0.1013 | about 256 |
| Eid golden mirror serving tray 642038 | 1,000 | 40 | 0.1977 | about 131 |
| Eid triangle flag bunting, 300 cm 608230 | 1,200 | 252 | 0.0635 | about 409 |
None of those three fills a container on its own at a sensible quantity. Together they make a range a customer can actually shop: something to hang, something to serve on, something to string across the room. See the lanterns, serving and tableware and bunting ranges for what else sits beside them.
What to have ready before you ask
- The item numbers you want, with a rough quantity against each
- Whether each line is stock or custom - this is the question that decides the whole quotation
- Destination port (freight and therefore landed cost depend on it)
- Any artwork, packaging or private-label requirement
Send it through the enquiry form. If the per-item minimum is the thing stopping you, say so - that is a problem we solve regularly, and how the two routes work is set out there.
Quantities and carton figures here are taken from the published data on each product page. Container figures are planning estimates based on roughly 26 CBM usable in a 20GP; the final load is confirmed at booking and varies with carton shape and stacking.