For buyers
Samples
Glass is a material you have to hold. Weight, wall thickness, how a colour reads under shop lighting — none of it survives a photograph.
What to ask for
Send the article numbers. Every product page carries one, and quoting by article number removes the round of emails that starts with “the tall clear vase”.
If you are choosing between finishes or colours on the same shape, say so — a set of the same piece in three finishes is a more useful sample parcel than three unrelated products.
Lead time
Sample lead time and production lead time are quoted separately, and the sample is the shorter of the two. Both are counted from confirmation to goods ready at the factory. Courier transit sits on top and depends on your address, so we quote it apart rather than folding it into one number you cannot check.
A sample of something already in the range moves faster than one that needs a new colour or a new mould. If your sample request is really a development request, say that up front and we will quote it as one.
What a sample settles
- Weight and wall thickness. The two things that decide whether a piece feels cheap, and the two a photograph hides.
- Colour under your lighting. Amber and red glass shift a long way between daylight and a retail spotlight.
- Finish consistency. Mercury, antique and crackle finishes vary by hand; a sample tells you the range you are buying.
- Packing. Ask for it in its export carton if the question is whether it survives your last mile.