The Perfect First Inquiry: What to Send a New Mahjong Supplier
How to write a first inquiry that gets precise quotes fast — the six facts suppliers need, sample wording, and the red flags hiding in vague RFQs.
Your First Email Is Your Bid for Priority
Suppliers triage inboxes by signal. An inquiry that reads "how much for mahjong?" queues behind one that reads like a purchase order in waiting. The difference is not English quality — it is the six facts every supplier needs to quote seriously.
The Six Facts
1. Who you are: company, channel (retail, club, corporate, e-commerce) and market. 2. The product: format (166/160 tiles), material direction, decoration idea. 3. Quantity: honest target range — tier pricing follows it. 4. Customization: logo placement, packaging level, accessories. 5. Timing: delivery window and season you are buying for. 6. Destination: port or ZIP plus preferred Incoterm. Six lines. That’s the whole ask.
A Worked Example
"US boutique retailer, 12 stores plus online. Looking for 166-tile ivory acrylic sets, gold engraving, our logo on tile backs, rigid gift box with sleeve. First order 100–150 sets, reorders quarterly if sell-through holds. Delivery to LA, FOB or DDP quote. Need shelves stocked by November." — This inquiry gets an itemized quote same-day because nothing needs to be asked twice.
Attachments That Accelerate
Vector logo files, a tile map sketch, packaging dielines if they exist, brand Pantone references. None are required for a first quote; every one shortens the path to a sample. Suppliers quote what they can see.
Red Flags — on Both Sides
Buyer-side flags: refusing to name a quantity (suppliers price the relationship, not the product), asking for every option "just to compare." Supplier-side flags you should watch for: quotes without questions, no mention of sampling, prices that ignore your stated customization. A good first exchange contains curiosity in both directions.
What a Good Reply Looks Like
Within hours, from us: clarifying questions if needed, an indicative quotation with tier boundaries, a sample plan and a request for artwork. That is what a factory’s first reply looks like when the process is real — and it is the standard you should hold every supplier to.