How we vet suppliers across Europe and the Far East

Every manufacturing relationship starts the same way: a factory audit, either in person or through a trusted regional partner, before we place a single sample order. We're looking for consistency of output as much as quality of a single sample — a beautiful first sample means nothing if batch four looks different.

Lead time honesty matters more than price. A supplier who tells us a capsule will take five weeks and delivers in five weeks is worth more than one who promises three and delivers in seven, because our advertising and marketplace timing depends on that number being real.

We keep a scorecard on every active supplier, updated every time a batch comes in — defect rate, on-time percentage, and how responsive they are when we need a fast change. A supplier that slips on two consecutive scorecards gets a conversation before they get a new order.