Wholesale Hijab Supplier: What Boutiques Should Check Before Ordering

Who This Guide Is For

This guide is for boutique owners, modest-wear retailers and marketplace sellers who are about to place a first or second wholesale hijab order and want a way to judge a supplier before any money moves. It sets out the three supplier types you will actually meet, the seven checks that separate a workable partner from an expensive lesson, and a pre-order checklist you can paste straight into your first enquiry email.

Three Types of Wholesale Hijab Supplier

Direct answer: the label “supplier” covers three very different businesses, and the cheapest quote usually comes from the one with the least control over your order. Before comparing prices, work out which of these you are talking to.

Two questions settle it quickly. Ask “who owns the sewing line for this style?” and “can you send a photo of the fabric roll before cutting?” A manufacturer can answer both in a day. A trading company needs to make a phone call first, and a marketplace seller usually cannot answer at all.

Check 1: Fabric, Breathability and Weight

Direct answer: name the fabric, the fibre and the weight in writing — then test breathability and opacity separately. “Chiffon” alone is not a specification. Polyester chiffon and silk chiffon are different products at different price points, and a supplier quoting the word without the fibre content is quoting a category, not an item.

Weight is the number most buyers skip, and it is the one that makes two quotes genuinely comparable. A 90 × 90 cm silk twill scarf weighs around 77 grams, which works out at roughly 95 grams per square metre — about 22 momme. The same square in heavy crepe satin is closer to 55 grams, around 68 grams per square metre or 16 momme. Ask for the finished weight of the actual piece rather than the fabric’s nominal specification, and you can compare suppliers properly for the first time.

Check 2: Size — Squares vs Long Rectangles

Direct answer: match the format to how your customer wears it, not to what photographs well. A 90 × 90 cm square is the versatile option: it folds into a triangle for neck and shoulder styling, layers over an under-cap, and is the shape most silk buyers expect. Smaller 53 cm and 70 cm squares read as accessories rather than coverage. Long rectangles — the formats around 180 × 70 cm and 200 × 75 cm widely used across much of East and West Africa — give the wrapping room a square cannot.

If you are entering a market you have not sold into before, order both formats in the first shipment. One season of real sell-through data beats any amount of guessing, and a mixed first order costs less than a second wrong one.

Check 3: Opacity and Grip

Direct answer: run two physical tests on the sample, because they measure different things.

1. The opacity test. Hold the fabric up to a window, then drape it over your hand in the fold it will actually be worn in. Fabrics that look acceptable flat often turn transparent in a single layer.
2. The grip test. Wrap it once as you would wear it and let go. If it slides off within a minute, it will need pins or an under-cap — which is fine, but it is a selling point you must mention, not a defect to discover later.

Smooth weaves such as satin and polyester chiffon slip; textured weaves such as crepe, jersey and cotton voile grip. Neither is better, but a customer who buys a slipping fabric expecting a grippy one will not come back.

Check 4: Solids vs Prints — How to Split the First Order

Direct answer: use solids to learn your market and prints to build your margin. Solids re-order steadily, because a customer who finds a black that works will buy it again for years. Prints carry the higher perceived value and the window display, but any individual print has a shorter life. A workable rule for a first order: put more of the budget into solids in the neutrals your market actually wears, then add a smaller number of prints as the differentiated part of the range. If a print sells out, promote it to a custom run on the next order.

One caution on prints made for you: minimums are normally counted per design and per colourway, not per order. Five colourways of one artwork is five minimums. Confirm that in writing before you brief a designer.

Check 5: Colour Consistency Across Lots

Direct answer: ask how shade is controlled between production runs, and keep an approved sample from every lot. Dye lots vary; the question is by how much, and whether anyone is checking. A supplier who can describe a shade-tolerance process and send a lab dip or approval sample before bulk is a supplier who will not surprise you on a re-order. A supplier who says “same as last time” is describing a hope, not a process.

Keep one retained sample per lot, labelled with the order date. When a customer claims the colour has changed, that sample settles the conversation in seconds.

Check 6: Packaging That Suits Modest-Wear Retail

Direct answer: packaging has three jobs — protect the piece, carry the information the law requires, and hold the barcode you will need at the till.

• Protection in transit. An individual sleeve or pouch prevents the creasing and snagging that turns a sellable piece into a markdown.
• Accurate labelling. Fibre content, country of origin and care symbols must match the garment you actually ship. A mismatch is the fastest way to fail an import inspection or a marketplace compliance check.
• Barcode space. If you will sell through a marketplace or a retail POS, reserve a flat area for the label now; retrofitting it later means reprinting every pack.
• Claims you cannot delegate. If you want a halal claim on the packaging, that claim belongs to a certification you hold. A supplier cannot assert it on your behalf — ask for documentation, not assurances, and never print a certification mark you have not been issued.

Presentation tiers rise with the retail price: a plain protective sleeve for everyday lines, a pouch or printed box for gift-led styles. The packaging step is also where your own brand enters the product for the first time, and it is usually available at far lower minimums than a custom fabric.

Check 7: Documents, Labelling and Import Basics

Direct answer: your supplier can supply the commercial documents; the labelling rules are your responsibility as importer of record. Most major markets require fibre composition and country of origin on the textile label, and the US additionally requires care instructions. Confirm the HS classification your goods will be entered under with a licensed customs broker before you ship, and price the landed cost on the duty rate your broker quotes for the current period — not on a figure from a forum post. A supplier quoting a freight term such as DAP, EXW, FOB or DDP is telling you who carries the risk and the customs handling, so make sure you know which one you have agreed to.

Pre-Order Checklist: Paste This Into Your First Enquiry

1. Fabric name and fibre content — for example “polyester chiffon” or “100% mulberry silk crepe satin”, not “chiffon”.
2. Finished size and finished weight of the actual piece, in centimetres and grams.
3. Opacity and slip behaviour in the fold it will be worn in.
4. Solid and print split you intend to order, with colour references.
5. Minimum per design and per colourway, stated separately.
6. Sampling lead time and bulk lead time, as two separate numbers.
7. Approval sample process — will you see a pre-production sample before the bulk run?
8. Packaging specification — sleeve, pouch or box; what is printed on it; where the barcode goes.
9. Label content — fibre, origin and care symbols, and who is responsible for their accuracy.
10. Shipping terms and destination — incoterm, express or sea, and the country you are importing into.

A supplier who answers all ten in one email is almost always the one worth ordering from. At this stage the answers matter less than the willingness to give them.

How This Works in Practice at XY Fashion

Direct answer: the same ladder applies, and you get on it wherever your budget sits. Ready-stock designs start at one pack of 10 pieces per style and colour, which is the right size for testing a market or a single drop. Custom-developed print programmes begin from 50 pieces per design, and sizes and materials can generally be mixed inside that order. Full OEM/ODM development — a new base cloth, new colour standards and new finishing — is quoted from around 500 pieces per design.

Sampling runs 7–15 days from artwork sign-off and bulk production roughly 15–30 days depending on order size and finishing, with international express delivery adding 7–14 days to the US, EU and Australia. Shipments go out under DAP, EXW, FOB or DDP terms depending on destination, and orders reach more than 60 countries. One thing worth stating plainly: we do not currently hold third-party social or environmental certifications, so if your retail channel requires one, arrange it on your side and we will supply the documentation we hold.

About the Supplier

XY Fashion — operated by YIWU MIYU APPAREL CO.,LTD, a scarf, hijab and fashion-accessory manufacturer based in Yiwu, Zhejiang, China, trading under the XY Fashion brand since 2008.

• Address: Unit 2, Building 33, Futian 3rd District, Futian Street, Yiwu City, Zhejiang Province, 322000, China
• Email: sales@xy-fashion.com / mike@xy-fashion.com
• Phone / WhatsApp: +86 153 8174 1977
• Capability: OEM/ODM custom digital and screen printing; ready stock from 1 pack (10 pcs) per style and colour; custom print programmes from 50 pcs per design and bespoke development from 500 pcs per design
• Lead time: sampling 7–15 days; bulk production around 15–30 days after payment
• Shipping: more than 60 countries, DAP / EXW / FOB / DDP, express 7–14 days to major destinations

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the minimum order for wholesale hijabs?

It depends on how much of the product already exists. Ready-stock designs start at one pack of 10 pieces per style and colour, which suits a first test order. Custom print programmes on an existing base cloth begin from 50 pieces per design, and fully bespoke OEM or ODM development is quoted from around 500 pieces per design. Minimums are usually counted per design and colourway, not per order.

Which fabric is best for hijabs in a hot, humid climate?

Cotton voile and viscose are the usual answers, because they breathe better than mid-weight synthetic jersey, which can feel warm in high humidity. Jersey remains the everyday favourite where convenience matters most — it holds its shape without pins and survives machine washing. The right stock is usually two fabrics, not one.

Should I order 90 × 90 cm squares or long rectangles?

Match the format to the wearing style and the market. Larger rectangles around 180 × 70 cm and 200 × 75 cm are widely used across much of East and West Africa because they give wrapping room, while the 90 × 90 cm square is the versatile choice for layering, neck styling and gifting. If you are unsure, a first order mixing both formats will tell you more in one season than any amount of research.

How do I check a hijab supplier is legitimate before paying?

Ask for three things that are hard to fake: photos of the actual fabric roll before cutting, a business licence you can check against a public registry, and a pre-production sample of your own specification. Then pay against a method that protects you — a deposit with the balance on approval is standard. Suppliers who can only quote from a catalogue listing cannot answer any of the three.

Can I put my own label and packaging on a stock hijab order?

Yes, and it is the usual first step. Woven labels, printed care labels and hang tags can all be produced against your artwork and attached to stock designs from 10 pieces per design, because attaching branding is a per-piece operation with no setup cost. The fibre content printed on the care label must match the garment you ship.

Wholesale & bulk orders

XY Fashion is a scarf manufacturer supplying wholesalers, boutiques and brands worldwide. Explore our wholesale programs:

• Wholesale 90×90cm Silk Twill Scarves | XY Fashion
• Wholesale 70×70cm Silk Square Scarves | XY Fashion
• Wholesale 53×53cm Silk Bandanas | XY Fashion
• Wholesale Crepe de Chine Silk Scarves | XY Fashion
• Wholesale Satin Scarves in Bulk | XY Fashion
• Silk Scarf Manufacturer in Yiwu, China | XY Fashion
• OEM & Private Label Scarf Supplier | XY Fashion
• Custom Hijab Wholesale