How do samples and tooling work with a Chinese factory?
Settle three things in writing before you pay: which physical sample is the approved reference, who owns the tooling you paid for, and where it is stored. Tooling paid for by a buyer is routinely held by the factory, and ownership on paper is what decides whether you can ever move production.
Samples and tooling are where a sourcing relationship quietly acquires its shape. Both are usually handled informally at the start, when everyone is agreeable and the sums are small, and both become the pivot of any later argument about quality or about leaving.
The golden sample
A "golden sample" is the physical unit both sides agree production will be judged against. It is not a marketing term; it is the evidentiary anchor of the whole quality conversation. Without one, a defect dispute becomes an argument about adjectives — and adjectives translated between two languages, at that.
- Approve one specific physical unit, not a photograph and not a description.
- Have two made and keep one. A reference sample held only by the factory is not a reference.
- Sign and date both, and record what was signed in the contract.
- Write down the attributes that actually matter and their tolerances. "Same as sample" covers colour and finish poorly and dimensions not at all.
Samples are often better than production. That is not usually deception — a sample is made slowly, by the most experienced person available, sometimes by hand. It is a proof of possibility, not a prediction. A trial run at production settings is what predicts.
Tooling: paid for and possessed are different things
Where your product needs a mould, die, jig or printing plate, you will usually be asked to pay for it, sometimes at cost and sometimes amortised into unit price. What that payment buys is frequently left undefined, and the default outcome is that the factory holds the tooling, on its floor, indefinitely.
| Settle in writing | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Who owns the tooling | Ownership is not implied by payment. If you want it, say so in the contract |
| Where it is stored, and whose premises | Ownership of an object inside somebody else’s factory is a legal position, not a practical one |
| What happens on termination | Release, transfer, or destruction — and within what period |
| Whether it may be used for anyone else | A mould that makes your part can make your competitor’s |
| Maintenance and life | Tooling wears. Who pays to refurbish it, and at what point |
Why this decides whether you can ever leave
The practical consequence of unclear tooling terms is switching cost. A buyer who wants to move production and cannot retrieve the tooling faces paying for it again — which is often enough to keep them where they are through a quality problem or a price rise. That is not an accident of the arrangement; for some suppliers it is the point of it. Settling ownership and location before the first payment costs a paragraph.
Drawings and design files
The same logic reaches your design. Where you supplied drawings, specifications or artwork, say in writing that they remain yours, that they are provided for the purpose of manufacturing your order, and that the supplier may not use them for other customers. This is ordinary and suppliers expect to be asked. What is not ordinary is discovering the point has never been raised.
Want this done rather than explained?
Find, vet and negotiate with Chinese suppliers — from US$400/day, Supplier shortlists in days.
Sources
All sources checked 7 September 2026. This page is general information, not legal, tax or customs advice. Requirements vary by product, market and circumstance — confirm your own position before acting.