Manufacturing
Custom Manufacturing
Your product, made to your specification by a factory you have approved.
See what is includedBuyer-side sourcing · Quanzhou, China
Apparel and footwear from China, sourced on your side.
Aura Supply Chain Solutions coordinates apparel and footwear manufacturing, quality control and payments from Quanzhou, Fujian. We compare factories, manage samples and production, and check your goods before they ship. You approve a written quote, then pay Aura the supplier amount, Aura's fee and agreed expenses. Aura then pays the supplier.
- Base
- Quanzhou, Fujian
- Focus
- Apparel and footwear
- Payments
- You pay Aura; Aura pays the supplier
- Reply
- Within two business days
How can Aura help you buy from China?
Have apparel and footwear made to your specification. Check the finished order before shipment. You keep the decisions, with factory-side evidence at each stage.
Also available: ready-made purchasing from 1688, Taobao and factory stock
Apparel and footwear, from the same cluster.
Private-label garments, sportswear, activewear, sneakers and casual footwear. Shishi is known for apparel and fabrics, and Jinjiang is one of China’s main footwear and sportswear centres; both are a short drive from our base.
- T-shirts, hoodies and sweatshirts
- Sportswear and activewear
- Trousers, outerwear and basics
- Sneakers and casual footwear
On the ground
Close to the factories your goods come from.
- factories in contact on an average day
- 2+
- business days, at most, to your first reply
- 2
- apparel and footwear factories contacted in the cluster
- 30+
- manufacturing cities within a short drive
- 3
How it works
What happens after you send a brief?
Six stages, each with a decision point for you. You approve a written quote and pay Aura before Aura pays the supplier. The full process
- 01BriefYou tell us what you need. We write it down as a brief with acceptance criteria.
- 02ShortlistWe research suppliers and compare offers, evidence and risks.
- 03SamplesWe arrange samples, revisions or a verification visit.
- 04You payYou approve a written quote, then pay Aura the supplier amount, Aura's fee and agreed expenses. Aura then pays the supplier.
- 05Production & QCWe place the order, manage milestones and run agreed checks.
- 06ShipmentWe coordinate packaging and the handover to your carrier.
Every check is reported against the Aura Standard: material, construction, packaging and documentation.
Written evidence at every step.
- 01
Product brief
Your requirements written down as supplier requirements and acceptance criteria.
- 02
Supplier comparison
Quotations, MOQ, lead time, location and terms side by side, with evidence and open risks.
- 03
Sample and visit records
Dated photos and notes, with observed facts separated from supplier claims.
- 04
Inspection report
Measurements, defects and a clear outcome before you release the balance.
Case studies
Recent work, from brief to shipment.
01 — Apparel
Heavyweight hoodie production run
Streetwear label, Sweden
- Challenge
- The label needed 500 heavyweight fleece hoodies in three colours. Its previous supplier had shipped a lighter fabric than the approved sample.
- What we did
- Aura turned the brief into supplier requirements, compared four factories in Quanzhou and Shishi, ran two sample rounds and mirrored the factory's deposit and balance schedule. A pre-shipment inspection measured every size against the size chart.
- Outcome
- Fabric weight matched the approved sample. Two measurement deviations were corrected before packing, and the order shipped in the agreed week.
02 — Footwear
Canvas sneaker sample approval
Independent footwear brand, Denmark
- Challenge
- The brand wanted a vulcanised canvas sneaker made in Jinjiang but had no way to judge factories or samples from Copenhagen.
- What we did
- Aura shortlisted three Jinjiang footwear factories, visited the preferred one and coordinated two sample revisions on toe-cap shape and outsole bonding, photographing each revision against the spec.
- Outcome
- The second sample was approved. The brand placed a first order of 600 pairs against a written specification.
03 — Apparel
Printed T-shirt bulk order
E-commerce apparel brand, Germany
- Challenge
- The brand needed 2,000 printed cotton T-shirts across five sizes, packed to its warehouse's carton and labelling rules.
- What we did
- Aura compared quotations from five suppliers, including 1688 vendors, agreed the carton and labelling specification in writing, inspected the finished goods and checked carton counts and shipping marks at loading.
- Outcome
- Assortment and carton labels matched the warehouse requirements, and the goods were handed to the brand's freight forwarder on schedule.
What buyers say
We finally had someone on the ground who told us what they actually saw, not what the factory wanted us to hear. The photos and measurements made the release decision easy.
“Aura narrowed a long list of footwear suppliers down to three we could actually work with, and explained exactly why the others didn't fit.”
Product lead, independent footwear brand, Netherlands “Clear quotes, clear funding steps and no surprises at the factory. It felt like having our own sourcing desk in Fujian.”
Operations manager, e-commerce apparel brand, Germany
Why work with a buyer-side agent?
Payment coordination
You approve a written quote, then pay Aura the supplier amount, Aura's fee and agreed expenses. Aura then pays the supplier. We never finance orders or hold stock for ourselves.
No factory commissions
We accept no commission, paid placement, kickback or undisclosed benefit from a supplier. Our remuneration is stated in your quote.
Evidence, not assurances
Every recommendation comes with what we saw, what the supplier claims and what is still unverified. The final decision stays with you.
Based inside the Quanzhou apparel and footwear cluster.
Quanzhou, Jinjiang and Shishi are within a short drive of each other. That makes in-person visits, sample collection and inspections practical, not occasional.
About the clusterQuestions
Common questions.
All questionsIs Aura on the buyer's side or the factory's side?
The buyer's. You pay Aura, and we accept no factory commission, paid placement, kickback or undisclosed supplier benefit. A factory or seller is a supply source, not our client.
Which products do you work with?
Apparel and footwear: private-label garments, ready-made clothing, sportswear, activewear, sneakers and casual footwear. Safety-critical, medical, PPE, toys, complex electronics and unfamiliar regulated goods are excluded.
How much does Aura charge?
Starting points: feasibility review from EUR 200; supplier verification visit from EUR 249; pre-shipment inspection from EUR 349; reinspection or loading check from EUR 249; qualified supplier shortlist from EUR 1,250; Production Watch from EUR 490 per month, with visits extra. Custom manufacturing and purchasing use a project fee or procurement fee stated in your quote. Styles, visits, travel, inspection days, sampling, urgency and shipping coordination affect the fee.
Who pays the supplier, and when?
You approve a written quote, then pay Aura the supplier amount, Aura's fee and agreed expenses. Aura then pays the supplier. For manufacturing, payments follow the factory's deposit and balance schedule: you pay Aura each instalment before Aura pays the factory. Stock purchases are paid in full before Aura buys. Aura never finances orders, never holds stock for itself and accepts no factory commissions.
Request a quote
Tell us what you want made or bought.
Send a short brief. You get a reply within two business days, with scope questions or a written quote. Nothing is booked or bought until you approve.