FAQs

Have a question that's not listed? Reach out to us at hello@arvam.studio

General

  • We evaluate each project through a production, pricing, and sustainability lens, not just minimums. By aligning your target quantities and budgets with what’s viable on the factory floor, we help you avoid overproduction while meeting both creative and commercial goals.

  • While we don't specialize in specific industries, our past projects span various sectors such as home goods, hospitality, music, art, culture, design, beauty, merchandising, and packaging. We're adaptable and ready to tackle diverse challenges.

  • Custom manufacturing means designing a product from the ground up - choosing every component, material, and feature to create something truly unique. Unlike sourcing from catalogs or modifying stock items, we specialize in bringing fully custom designs to life, often developing new molds, tools, and production processes to make it happen. If you have a product idea or a finished design that requires a completely bespoke approach, we’re the team to help you navigate every step - from refining the design for production to sourcing the right factory. This approach gives you complete creative control, allowing you to craft products that stand out in the market, rather than relying on merch blanks or simply printing your logo on something that already exists.

  • As we specialize in bespoke products across various industries and materials, we don't maintain a standard product catalogue.

  • We have the capability to source and manufacture globally, working directly with factories and taking into account product requirements, workmanship, and production location preferences. We also accommodate domestic manufacturing requests. Please specify your preference when making an inquiry.

    We are committed to fair trade practices, ensuring no exploitation of workers or natural resources, and we only work with ethical factories.

  • No, we maintain independence from factory affiliations, allowing us to prioritize your product quality, pricing, and location preferences while ensuring production continuity. We work on your behalf, not any factory’s.

  • Because we don’t work for factories - we work for you.

    Most sourcing agents are tied to just a handful of suppliers. That limits your options and often means decisions are made for the factory’s convenience, not your brand’s best interests. At Ārvam, we’re completely independent and factory-neutral. We build direct relationships with multiple trusted manufacturers across different product categories and materials, so we can match you with the right partners for your vision, not just whoever happens to be on our books.

    Our founder, a UK native who has lived in China for over half her life, combines deep local expertise and language fluency with a clear understanding of Western markets and consumer expectations. That unique background means we can negotiate more effectively, solve challenges on the ground, and ensure your products are made the right way, by the right people, on the right terms.

    From your first inquiry, you’ll have a dedicated project lead acting solely on your behalf — guiding you through design refinement, material selection, sampling, production, and delivery. Our role is to safeguard your vision, budget, and standards at every step.

  • We have a strong presence in Hong Kong 🏮 and Beijing 🐉, with our founder also operating internationally. This positions us at the heart of Asia’s manufacturing ecosystem, close to the factories and suppliers that bring your products to life.

    Being locally based also means we have the networks and relationships to work with both large, established factories and smaller, highly specialized producers. This gives our clients access to better rates, more flexibility in materials and processes, and a broader range of manufacturing expertise.

    While Asia remains our primary production hub, we serve a global clientele and collaborate with trusted partners worldwide.

  • No. We work directly with factories, not through Alibaba.

    Most suppliers on Alibaba aren’t actual manufacturers they’re traders or sales teams who list on behalf of multiple factories and pass on platform and commission costs to you. While it may seem convenient, it often leads to inflated pricing, inconsistent quality, and limited control.

    Instead, we’ve spent years building direct relationships with true production-only factories, the kind that don’t advertise online and don’t have sales teams. This allows us to cut unnecessary layers, reduce costs, and ensure better quality and accountability at every step.

Projects & Process

  • Developing custom products from scratch is what we do best. We specialize in bringing unique ideas to life, often creating new molds, tools, and processes. While not every concept is feasible, we excel at problem-solving—finding the right materials, refining designs, and sourcing the best factory. In our initial consultation, we’ll assess your vision, budget, and timeline to determine the best path forward.

  • We understand that tariffs and trade restrictions can impact your costs and supply chain. If you're concerned about tariffs on goods from certain countries, we can help you explore alternative sourcing options. Our extensive supplier network allows us to identify manufacturers that align with your quality, budget, and logistical needs while mitigating tariff concerns. Let us know your priorities, and we’ll find the best solution for you.

  • Certainly! We can take over your existing supplier base and manage the manufacturing process on your behalf, such projects will be discussed as consulting gigs.

  • We have extensive experience working with a wide range of materials, including but not limited to paper, cardboard, woods, plastics, clays, ceramics, rubbers and silicones, metals, and textiles. Our versatility allows us to accommodate various project requirements and specifications.

  • We provide a range of flexible service arrangements and packages to meet your specific needs. Our core offering is end-to-end manufacturing, where we manage every aspect of the production process. In addition, we offer consulting services to support your projects with strategic insights and guidance.

    While we typically work on a per-project basis, we also offer customizable options to suit different levels of engagement:

    • Per project for flexible, one-off programs.

    • In-residence services for deeper, hands-on collaboration.

    • Monthly or yearly retainers for ongoing support and long-term partnerships.

    • Hourly services for more targeted, short-term needs.

    This flexibility allows us to tailor our approach to your business, ensuring you get the right level of support for any project, big or small.

  • Our end to end service entails:

    • Consultation

    • Sourcing

    • Factory identification & validation

    • Quoting and price negotiation with factories

    • Basic-Level Product Development

    • Prototyping/Sampling and Tooling

    • Pre-production preparation and pre-press management

    • Production management

    • Risk management

    • Project management

    • Factory liaison & comms

    • Local language translation of all documents & requirements

    • Quality Control (and Testing if needed)

    • Co-packing organization (if needed)

    • Logistics

  • Our process starts with a brief consultation to understand your needs. If we have enough information, we provide a free initial project estimate. If not, we can support you in your development and enter the development phase to refine your concept and provide pricing. Next, there is usually some further product development and consultations required before we move to sample the goods. Once final samples are approved, our operations team handles production and delivery to ensure a smooth process.

    • Discovery: We start by understanding your goals, challenges, and project needs.

    • Analysis & Strategy: We analyze your project and create a customized plan based on your objectives.

    • Tailored Solutions: We offer specific recommendations that align with your vision and goals.

    • Implementation: We help guide the process, ensuring everything runs smoothly from start to finish.

    • Ongoing Support: After implementation, we stay available for evaluation and any necessary adjustments.

  • To get started, contact us at hello@arvam.studio or through our contact page. Please include details such as the product(s) you wish to create, your target launch date, desired pricing/budget, production quantity goals, and specific requirements like materials, dimensions, thickness, and any drawings or sample photos. The more information you provide, the more accurate our quote can be.

    For a more streamlined process, please use our detailed project form available here , which helps avoid initial back-and-forth emails and identifies necessary preparations for pricing.

  • Lead times vary depending on the product(s) and project, ranging from 20 to 80 days. For example, packaging production typically involves the following steps:

    • Sampling: 15-20 days per round

    • Production: 20-35 days

    • Air freight: 7-10 days

    • Sea freight: 4-8 weeks

    Production and sampling only begin after the relevant payments are made AND once all details are finalized and approved by you.

    For production, the lead time starts once the pre-production samples are approved and the deposit payment is received.

  • Absolutely! The majority of our productions are recurring but we are also happy to help on limited edition/one-off productions as well.

  • Lead time for reorders are very similar to the initial production time. Packaging projects, for example, will take about 25-40 days for production.

  • For general products, you can choose recyclable, biodegradable, or long-lasting materials. Design to minimize waste, and reduce unnecessary features. For packaging products, opt for FSC-certified paper stocks and avoid finishes involving plastic to ensure recyclability (e.g. laminates, foils).

  • We are committed to sustainability and offer a variety of eco-friendly options, including recycled materials, FSC-certified papers, traceable textiles, and biodegradable alternatives. Let us know your sustainability goals, and we'll work together to find the best solution for your project.

  • We do not sell or share your custom designs or artwork with our other clients. To ensure confidentiality, we can sign a non-disclosure agreement, guaranteeing that we will not share your designs with our other clients. We do of course, need to share designs with third-party factories to get the products made. We can facilitate non-disclosure agreements with suppliers for bespoke products. Additionally, we can assist with IP registration to safeguard your unique products. Please ask us about this if you would like support in this area.  

Shipping

  • We offer global shipping and can even split your shipment across air and sea, delivering to various locations on different dates if needed.

  • Absolutely. We can ship your order to multiple destinations using various shipping methods and schedules.

Pricing   

  • We provide one complimentary preliminary quote once you’ve shared complete project details. For most end-to-end projects, our service fees are built into your unit cost for simplicity, though we can provide a separated breakdown if that’s preferred. Consulting or advisory work is scoped separately. In all cases, samples, molds, testing, quality control, and freight are passed through at cost with no markup.

  • We understand the significance of adhering to budget constraints. Whether it's a small or large-scale endeavour, we aim to align with your financial targets. For manufacturing projects, we aim to achieve target unit pricing whenever feasible. By sharing your budget, we'll customize our approach and offer material, product, and design suggestions to ensure we meet your financial parameters as effectively.

  • The cost of sampling depends on your product and specifications. We will provide the sampling fee during the quoting stage. All samples are billed at cost price.