First production run checklist for early-stage CPG brands

1. Lock the product brief

Most first-run problems start as an unclear brief. Before you contact a single supplier, write down what you are making in enough detail that two different manufacturers would quote the same thing. A brief that changes halfway through quoting makes every number you collected stale.

Treat the brief as a versioned document. When something changes — a new flavour, a different pack size — update the version and tell every supplier who is quoting, rather than letting each conversation drift on its own.

• Product description, formulation or spec sheet, and target unit size
• Primary and secondary packaging, with artwork status
• Target quantity for the first run and a realistic reorder quantity
• Target retail price and the cost per unit you need to hit
• Where the finished goods must be delivered, and by when

2. Qualify suppliers before you compare prices

A cheap quote from a supplier who cannot make your product reliably is not cheap. Qualify first, then compare. Ask each candidate what they already make, what their minimum order quantity is, which certifications they hold and who your day-to-day contact will be.

Keep supplier details in one place — contact, capabilities, MOQs, certificates and notes from calls — so the comparison later is based on the same facts for everyone.

• Relevant experience with similar products or formats
• Minimum order quantities that fit your first run
• Certifications and audit documents appropriate to your category
• Clear contact, payment terms and communication expectations

3. Request comparable quotes and document landed-cost assumptions

Send every shortlisted supplier the same brief version and ask for the same breakdown: unit price at your quantity, tooling or setup fees, packaging, lead time, validity date and what is excluded. Quotes that are structured differently cannot be compared honestly.

The ex-works unit price is only part of your cost. Write down your landed-cost assumptions — freight, duties, insurance, warehousing, wastage — and note which are confirmed and which are estimates. Early on, many will be estimates; that is fine, as long as they are labelled. A tool such as the PREPPI cost calculator gives an indicative figure to sanity-check your numbers, not a final price.

• Same brief version and quantity sent to every supplier
• Unit price, setup fees, exclusions and quote validity recorded
• Freight, duty and other landed-cost lines marked confirmed or estimated
• Currency and incoterm noted for each quote

4. Agree sample and quality acceptance

Before you commit to volume, approve a pre-production sample and agree in writing what “acceptable” means. Define the attributes you will check — taste, colour, fill weight, seal, print quality — and the tolerance for each. Keep the approved sample as the reference for the run.

Regulatory requirements such as labelling, ingredient declarations, claims and product safety vary by product and market. Have a qualified specialist verify these for your category; this checklist is operational education, not regulatory or legal advice.

• Pre-production sample approved and retained as the reference
• Written acceptance criteria and tolerances
• Labelling and compliance reviewed by a qualified specialist

5. Plan realistic lead times

A supplier's quoted lead time usually covers production only. Your real timeline also includes sampling rounds, artwork approval, packaging component lead times, deposit payment, freight and receiving at the warehouse. Map each step and add buffer where you depend on someone else.

Ask what happens if a component is late, and agree how and when delays will be communicated.

• Timeline from brief to goods received, step by step
• Packaging and component lead times confirmed separately
• Buffer added for sampling, freight and receiving

6. Set cash and approval checkpoints

Decide in advance who approves each commitment and when money leaves the business. Typical checkpoints are quote acceptance, deposit, balance on completion and freight. Having a second person review purchase orders and payments catches errors before they become expensive.

Match each payment to what it is for: an approved purchase order and a supplier invoice that agrees with it.

• Named approver for quote acceptance, PO, deposit and balance
• Deposit and balance terms agreed in writing
• Invoices matched to the approved PO before payment

7. Hand off a complete purchase order

The purchase order turns the accepted quote into a commitment. It should restate the accepted price and quantity, reference the approved brief and sample, and set out delivery address, dates, payment terms and acceptance criteria. Anything missing from the PO is open to interpretation later.

• Accepted price, quantity and currency restated
• Brief version and approved sample referenced
• Delivery details, payment terms and quality criteria included
• PO reviewed by someone other than the person who drafted it

8. Receive, inspect and close out

When goods arrive, count them against the PO and inspect a sample against your acceptance criteria before signing off. Record any shortfall or defect with photos and raise it promptly.

Finally, close the run: reconcile what was ordered, received, invoiced and paid, and write down what you would change next time. Those notes make the second run faster and cheaper to plan.

• Quantities counted against the PO
• Quality inspected against the approved sample
• Ordered, received, invoiced and paid reconciled
• Lessons recorded for the next run