You have found a pillow manufacturer whose products look right, and now you must ask for a price. You write a short email: “Please quote pillows, bulk quantity, best price.” A week later you receive a reply that raises more questions than it answers, or no reply at all. The problem is rarely that the manufacturer is uninterested. The problem is that your request does not contain enough information for anyone to quote accurately, so the manufacturer must either guess, ask a dozen follow-up questions, or set your enquiry aside for one that is ready to answer. A well-written request for quotation, or RFQ, is not paperwork. It is the fastest way to a comparable, trustworthy price.
This guide shows you exactly what to put in a pillow RFQ, in what order, and why each item matters. It is written for retailers, e-commerce sellers, hotel buyers, and brand owners who want quotations they can compare, from manufacturers they can trust.
At INTEGRITY TEXTILE, we read RFQs every week, and the difference between a good one and a vague one is immediately obvious. A good RFQ lets us price accurately, sample correctly, and reply quickly. Nantong Integrity Textile was founded on 4 March 2007 in Tongzhou District, Nantong, Jiangsu, and manufactures mid-to-high-end home textiles including pillows, sheet sets, duvet and quilt cover sets, quilted bedding, fabrics, hotel linen, and blankets, on an OEM and ODM basis. The advice below reflects what actually helps a factory like ours quote your pillow properly.
Start With Who You Are and What You Need the Pillow For
Open your RFQ with two or three sentences about your business and your use case. State whether you are a retailer, an e-commerce brand, a hotel group, or a distributor, and state where the pillows will be sold or used. A pillow for a luxury hotel, a pillow for a value e-commerce listing, and a pillow for a private-label sleep brand are different products even if they share a size, because durability, washability, and price expectations differ. A manufacturer that understands your market can suggest the right construction rather than quoting the wrong one efficiently.
State your target market countries as well, because size conventions, labelling rules, and care expectations vary by market. A standard pillow in one country is not standard in another, and a manufacturer that knows your market will flag size differences before sampling, not after production. Add your target launch or delivery window in this opening section too. A date tells the factory whether your project is urgent, planned, or exploratory, and it allows capacity to be discussed honestly from the start.
Keep this section short. Three sentences of context are enough. The factory does not need your full business plan, but it does need to know whether it is quoting a hotel contract, a retail range, or a brand launch, because each one changes the advice it should give you.
Specify the Pillow Itself: Size, Fill, Shell, and Firmness
This is the heart of your RFQ, and it is where most vague requests fail. State the pillow size in centimetres, not only by a name such as “standard” or “king”, and state whether the size refers to the pillow or to the pillowcase. State the pillow type: sleeping pillow, decorative pillow, bolster, or travel pillow, because construction differs completely between them.
Next, describe the fill. State the fill material you want, such as polyester fibre, microfibre, down alternative, feather blend, memory foam, latex, or a natural fill, and state the fill weight if you know it. If you do not know the fill weight, describe the firmness and loft you want in plain language, and ask the manufacturer to propose a fill weight that achieves it. Firmness words such as soft, medium, and firm mean different things to different people, so anchor them: describe who will sleep on the pillow, in which position, and what feel you are aiming for. A reference sample, if you have one, is worth more than a paragraph of adjectives.
Then describe the shell fabric: fibre, weave, and any finish you need, such as a plain cotton cover, a sateen cover, a quilted cover, or a waterproof or allergen-barrier inner. State whether the shell should be removable, whether it needs a zip, piping, or gusset, and whether the pillow itself or only its cover will be washed. Washability changes fill choice, shell choice, and stitching, so it must be stated, not assumed. If you have a target fabric weight or thread count, include it, but say whether it is a requirement or a preference, so the factory can suggest alternatives when a preference cannot be met at your target cost.
State Quantities, Variants, and Packaging Clearly
Quantities decide whether a factory can quote at all, and whether the price it quotes is realistic. State the quantity for your first order and, if you know it, the expected repeat volume. Factories price differently for a first trial and for a programme, and a buyer who hides a small first order behind a vague promise of huge future volumes will receive a price built for volumes that never arrive. Be honest about the first order. A factory that trusts your numbers will invest in your sampling properly.
List every variant separately: sizes, firmness levels, colours, and any embroidered or printed branding. A pillow in three sizes is three products for production purposes, even if it shares a name. State whether variants share fill and shell or differ, and give a quantity for each variant, not only a total. This prevents the common error where a quotation covers one variant while the buyer expected three.
Packaging is part of the product for bulk pillows, because pillows are bulky and freight-sensitive. State how pillows should be packed: individually bagged, vacuum-packed, rolled, or boxed, and how many pieces per carton. State whether you need a printed bag, a label, a barcode, or a hang tag, and supply artwork or dimensions where relevant. Vacuum packing, in particular, changes freight cost dramatically, so it must be agreed in the RFQ, not discovered during shipping. If you do not know the best packing method, say so and ask the manufacturer to propose one with its cost effect explained.
Ask for the Price on a Comparable Basis
A quotation is only comparable if every supplier quotes the same basis. State the trade term you want priced, such as ex-works, free on board, or delivered to your port, and state the port or destination. Ask for the unit price per pillow, broken down by variant, and ask what is included: sampling cost, packaging, labelling, inspection, and any tooling or mould charges. Ask whether the sample cost is refundable against a bulk order, and how many sample rounds the quotation covers.
Ask for lead time on the same basis from every supplier: from sample approval to ex-factory readiness, with sampling time stated separately. Ask about payment terms, and state your own expectations honestly. Ask about certifications and compliance documents you need, such as OEKO-TEX Standard 100, which our factory holds alongside ISO9001, ISO14001, and ISO45001, and say whether you need test reports with the shipment. A supplier that cannot provide a document you legally need is not a cheaper supplier. It is an unusable one.
Finally, ask one question many buyers forget: what would change the price? If your quantity changes, if a fill material becomes unavailable, or if you add a variant, how is the price recalculated? A manufacturer that answers this clearly is showing you how it thinks, and that thinking is what you are buying alongside the pillows.
Include Your Decision Process and Timeline
Manufacturers prioritise RFQs they understand. Tell the supplier when you need the quotation, when you expect to approve samples, and when you need bulk delivery. Tell it how you will decide: on price alone, on sample quality, on a combination, or through a trial order. If you are sending the RFQ to several factories, you do not need to say so aggressively, but you should say that you are comparing quotations on a like-for-like basis, because that encourages complete, comparable replies.
Give the supplier a single contact and a single channel for questions. If questions arrive from three people in your company with different answers, the factory will follow the last one and your quotation will be built on confusion. State who approves samples and who approves the final order, if they are different people. This small piece of organisation saves weeks of back-and-forth, and it signals that you are a buyer worth prioritising.
Close your RFQ with a clear request: a quotation by a stated date, a sample plan, and a named contact for follow-up questions. A vague close such as “let us know” invites a vague reply. A specific close invites a specific one.
A Short Template You Can Copy
Your RFQ does not need to be long. One page is usually enough, if it covers the points above. Use this structure: introduction and use case; pillow specification by size, fill, shell, firmness, and construction; quantities by variant; packaging and labelling; price basis and trade term; lead time and payment terms; certifications and documents; decision timeline and contact. Attach photographs or a reference sample description, and attach artwork if branding is involved.
Before sending, read your RFQ as if you were the factory. Could you price it without asking a question? Could you sample it without guessing? If the answer to either question is no, add the missing sentence before you send. That one-minute check is the difference between a quotation in days and a conversation that drags on for weeks.
It is also worth sending your RFQ to a manufacturer whose range matches your product. A factory with about 30,000 square metres of production space and around 143 employees, such as Nantong Integrity Textile, plans monthly output of roughly 40,000 sheet sets and 25,000 duvet cover sets alongside its pillow production, so it can discuss capacity and scheduling concretely once your quantities and dates are clear.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long should a pillow RFQ be?
One page is usually enough. Cover the product specification, quantities by variant, packaging, price basis, lead time, certifications, and decision timeline, and attach a reference sample description or photograph.
What is the most common reason pillow quotations cannot be compared?
Different price bases. One supplier may quote ex-works without packaging, while another quotes delivered with packaging and inspection included. State the trade term and ask every supplier what is included.
Should I include my target price in the RFQ?
Sharing a target price, or a target range, usually helps, because it lets the manufacturer tell you honestly whether your specification fits it, or suggest the closest achievable alternative. Hiding it often produces a quotation you cannot use.
Do I need to send a physical sample with my RFQ?
It helps greatly, especially for firmness and hand feel, which words describe poorly. If you cannot send a physical sample, describe the feel in detail and ask the manufacturer to send feel samples for your selection.
How many sample rounds should I expect?
Plan for at least one revision after the first sample. Ask the manufacturer how many rounds its quotation covers and what a further round costs, so sampling does not become an open-ended expense.
What should I do if a manufacturer does not reply to my RFQ?
Check first whether your RFQ contained enough information to quote. A complete RFQ with a clear deadline and contact usually receives a reply; a vague one-line request often does not, because the factory cannot price it responsibly.
Send an RFQ That Gets a Real Answer
A good pillow RFQ is a sign of respect for the manufacturer’s time, and manufacturers repay it with accurate prices, correct samples, and faster replies. Describe your business and use case, specify size, fill, shell, and firmness precisely, list quantities and packaging by variant, ask for a comparable price basis, and close with a decision timeline and a single contact. Do that, and your next quotation round will be shorter, clearer, and far easier to compare.
If you are ready to request a quotation, contact us at INTEGRITY TEXTILE using the structure above. You can reach us at Alex@integritytex.com or on WhatsApp at +86 151 5289 1159. Send your sizes, fill preference, quantities, and target dates, and tell us what a successful pillow programme looks like for your business. We will reply with a clear, comparable quotation and a sample plan you can act on.
