The single biggest friction point in furniture sourcing is the belief that you need a finished CAD drawing before you can talk to a factory. You don't. A good manufacturer expects to do the engineering — your job is to describe the piece clearly enough that they can.
What a factory really needs
When we price a new piece, the variables that move the number are material, joinery, weave density, finish, packing and volume. None of those require a drawing to state. A one-paragraph brief that names the material, the rough dimensions, the intended use and the target price band will get you a usable sample quote faster than a half-finished CAD file that nobody has reviewed.
Give us a reference photo, a dimension range and the market you are selling into. We will return a buildable drawing and a realistic price within one business day.
Reference images beat sketches
A photograph of a chair you like tells a weaver more in three seconds than a written description does in three paragraphs. Send three things: a hero shot, a detail of the join or weave you care about, and a shot that shows scale (next to a person, or a known object). We will reverse-engineer the proportions and confirm what is manufacturable in our materials.
The brief template we actually use
| Field | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Intended use | Residential vs hospitality changes every structural decision — foam grade, joint reinforcement, stability testing. |
| Dimension range | A range is fine. We confirm the exact number before sampling. |
| Material intent | "Solid ash" vs "ash-look veneer" is a 20% cost swing. |
| Target FOB | Sets the finish and packing ceiling before we over-spec. |
| Volume and cadence | One container or twelve changes the tooling math entirely. |
What happens next
From a written brief and reference images we return shop drawings, a costed bill of materials, and — if the maths works — a production-intent sample in 7–10 days. The drawing is where the conversation gets precise. The brief is just where it starts.