Launch Date Calculator
Pick the day your range goes on sale and see the day the order has to be confirmed, working back through transit, production and sampling.
This date is 5 days short on the timeline we publish. Air freight, a later launch, or a smaller first drop are the usual ways to close the gap; we would rather say so now than quote a date we cannot hold.
| Milestone | Latest date | Allows for |
|---|---|---|
| Order confirmed, deposit paid | Mon, 14 Sept 2026 | about 10 days of sampling |
| Pre-production sample signed off | Thu, 24 Sept 2026 | about 33 days of production and QC |
| Production complete | Tue, 27 Oct 2026 | 5 days to pack and hand over to freight |
| Shipped | Sun, 1 Nov 2026 | 40 days transit (sea) |
| Arrived | Fri, 11 Dec 2026 | 7 days buffer for receiving and listing |
| On sale | Fri, 18 Dec 2026 |
Planning aid, not a promise. Stages are our published timeline (about 10 days sampling, 33 production, 5 to hand over); transit ranges are what we have seen on each lane, and the planner uses the top of each range. Ask us for a dated plan before you commit to a launch.
Why brands miss launch dates
Almost never because the factory was slow. The usual cause is that the calendar was drawn from the production quote alone: 33 days of production became “about five weeks”, and sampling, freight, customs and the days it takes to receive and list stock were never on the page. The planner puts every stage on it, uses the slow end of each transit range, and tells you plainly when a date is short.
What each stage is for
Sampling is where fit, fabric and construction get decided on a physical garment; a sealed sample is what bulk is measured against. Production and QC is knitting or booking fabric, dyeing to the approved lab dip, cutting, sewing, finishing and inspection. Handover is packing, export paperwork and the hand-off to the forwarder. Transit depends on the lane and whether you fly or ship. The buffer is yours: receiving, counting, photography and listing take real days. Our guide to how long clothing manufacturing takes walks through each stage, and the MOQ calculator sizes the order itself.
Frequently asked questions
How long does it take to manufacture a clothing order?
On our floor, about 50 days from a confirmed order to handover for freight: roughly 10 days of sampling, about 33 days of production and quality control, and 5 days to pack and hand over. Freight is on top of that, and it is the part brands most often forget: sea freight is measured in weeks, air in days. The planner adds the lane you choose and a buffer, then counts back from your on-sale date.
Why does the planner use the top of each transit range?
Because a launch date is a promise to your customers, and planning against the fastest transit you have ever seen is how ranges arrive after the launch. Using the slow end of the range means a normal delay lands inside the buffer instead of on your launch day.
What if my destination is not listed?
Enter the transit time your forwarder quotes and the planner does the rest. We publish transit ranges only for lanes we ship regularly; for Australia and other destinations we quote the transit for your port with the order rather than print a figure we cannot stand behind.
The planner says my date is short. What are my options?
Three, in order of cost. Air freight cuts weeks to days on the last leg. A smaller first drop can move through sampling and production faster if the fabric is in stock. Or move the launch. What does not work is asking a factory to compress sampling: the sample is where fit and fabric problems get caught, and skipping it moves the problem into bulk.