How to choose a hair foil supplier

The checklist

Each row is a check you can make yourself, with what counts as a good answer and what should make you stop.

#	Check	How to verify	Red flag
1	Does the supplier make the foil?	Ask for photographs or video of its own line running your product	Stock images; a refusal; a showroom only
2	Is the legal entity clear?	Match the name on the quotation, the licence and the bank account	Payment asked to a different name
3	Is thickness stated in microns?	Read the quotation	“Thick”, “premium”, or no figure
4	Does the sample match the stated thickness?	Measure it, or weigh a piece of known area	A sample lighter than specified
5	Are the alloy and temper stated?	Ask for the material certificate	No certificate available
6	Are the test methods written down?	Ask how tearing and dispensing are tested	“We check every piece”
7	Does the certificate scope cover hair foil?	Read the scope on the certificate itself	A certificate for other products shown as proof
8	Are claims accurate?	Look for “FDA approved” and similar	Any approval that does not exist
9	Is printed foil tested in bleach?	Ask for the conditions, date and photographs	No test, or a verbal assurance
10	Is the MOQ stated per size and per design?	Read the quotation	One figure for “the order”
11	Are one-off costs listed?	Ask about plates, samples and dies	Costs that appear after the deposit
12	Are the documents named?	Ask which travel with the goods	Vague answers about origin or safety sheets

Factory or trader?

A trader is not a bad supplier. A good one handles small quantities, mixes products from several factories and speaks your language. The problem is a trader presented as a factory, because then the answers you get about thickness, capacity and lead time are second-hand.

Three checks separate the two.

• The equipment. A foil converter owns a slitter, embossing rollers, a sheet cutter or interfolder, and boxing equipment. Ask to see them running, on a date you choose.
• The licence. A Chinese business licence states the company’s scope of business. Manufacturing appears in it for a factory.
• The detail. Ask a technical question that a catalogue does not answer: what core the rolls are wound on, or what the fold overlap is on the pop-up sheets. A manufacturer answers from the line.

Our own answer to this question is on the hair foil production line page.

Reading certificates properly

A certificate proves what its scope says. Three habits prevent most misunderstandings.

1. Read the scope, not the logo. A certificate for food packaging does not cover hair foil unless hair foil is in the scope.
2. Check the holder. The certificate is issued to a legal entity. That entity should be the one you are paying.
3. Check the date. Certificates expire.

Be wary of the phrase “FDA approved”. The FDA does not approve this product, so the claim cannot be true. A supplier may be able to show that the foil as a material meets food-contact requirements, which is a statement about the aluminium and no more. Certifications and test reports shows what we hold, which at present is no certificate for hair foil.

Testing samples yourself

A supplier’s test results are evidence. Your own are proof. None of these checks needs a laboratory.

Check	How	What to look for
Thickness	Micrometer, or weight of a piece of known area	The stated gauge
Wet fold	Fold the foil three times with lightener on it	No breaks
Comb	Draw a tail comb across it	No piercing
Dispensing	Pull a whole pop-up box, sheet by sheet	One sheet per pull
Flatness	Open the box as delivered	No bent sheets
Print	Soak printed foil in lightener with a white swatch	No ink on the swatch

The methods we use for the same checks are on how we test hair foil.

Questions to ask before paying a deposit

1. What exactly is the specification: size, thickness in microns, alloy, finish, sheet count, box?
2. What tolerance applies to thickness and to sheet count?
3. What is the minimum order for each size and each design?
4. What are the one-off costs, and which are charged again on a reorder?
5. How long does production take after the sample is approved?
6. Which Incoterm is the price quoted at?
7. Which documents come with the shipment?
8. What happens if the goods do not match the approved sample?
9. Who owns the plates and the artwork?
10. Will you sign a non-disclosure agreement?

Put the answers in the order confirmation. A supplier who will write them down is one you can hold to them.

One example

This checklist is meant to be used on any supplier, including us. Our own answers are on these pages: the factory, thickness and alloy, QC testing, certifications, MOQ and lead time and documents. Where an answer is not yet published, the page says so.