Apparel Search Tools
See how much cash a clothing, textile or footwear order ties up, and for how long, from factory deposit to customer payment.
Fashion brands usually pay the factory months before they get paid by customers. A deposit goes out when you place the order, the balance follows before goods ship, then freight and duty are due, and a retailer or shopper may not pay until weeks after delivery. This Apparel Search planner lays those payments on a calendar so you can see the most cash you will have tied up and when it comes back. It works for one order or several overlapping seasonal orders. Everything runs in your browser, and nothing you enter is saved.
Enter up to three orders. An order with no goods value or customer payments is ignored. Days are counted from the purchase order (PO) date. For retailer terms such as net 30 or net 60, count from the PO date to the day you expect to be paid.
Estimates only. Payment dates move, so confirm your terms with your factory, forwarder, customs broker and customers.
Method. Each payment is placed on a date (the PO date plus its day count), sorted in date order, and added to a running balance that starts from your cash on hand. The most cash tied up is the lowest point of that balance.
Illustrative example (made-up figures). A brand places a $7,650 factory order with a 30% deposit ($2,295) on the PO date, pays the $5,355 balance on day 75, pays $1,830 of freight and brokerage on day 105 and $1,224 of duty on day 110, and expects $24,205 from retailers on day 140. The balance falls to its lowest point of about -$10,704 on day 110, so that is the cash the order ties up. The first customer payment arrives 140 days after the first payment goes out, and the order ends about $13,501 ahead.
A style can be profitable and still strain your bank balance if you pay the factory months before customers pay you. Cash flow planning shows how much money you need and when.
Terms vary by factory, order size and relationship. A deposit at order and a balance before shipment are common, but you should confirm your own terms in writing.
Working capital is the cash available to run the business day to day. In fashion, it funds production and shipping before sales revenue arrives.
See all Apparel Search tools for the apparel industry.
Estimates only. This tool is provided for general planning and informational purposes. Results depend on the information you enter and on assumptions that may not match your business. Apparel Search does not guarantee accuracy or completeness of any result. Confirm figures with your own records, suppliers, accountant or other qualified professionals before making business decisions. See our Legal page for terms of use.