SORTING AND QUALITY
How to Record What’s in a Clothing Bale After Opening It
Sorting turns a bale into stock. Recording turns it into information: how many sellable items it produced, what was damaged and whether it matched the description.
This article covers the record that follows each bale. For the sorting method itself, see sorting second-hand clothes efficiently.
THE WORKFLOW
Six stages, one bale ID.
1. Receive
Give each bale an ID, photograph its label and packaging, and weigh it if you can. Note any damage or damp before opening; see preparing for delivery.
2. Inspect
Open one bale at a time and check items with your inspection checklist as they come out.
3. Sort and tally
Tally every item by category and your own grade, on one sheet per bale.
4. Log exceptions
Record every unsellable or damaged item with a reason, as described below.
5. Price
Tag sellable items with the bale ID as well as the price, so each sale can be traced to its bale.
6. Store
Label stored stock by bale ID, category and grade; see planning bale storage.
HYPOTHETICAL EXAMPLE
One bale’s tally sheet.
Hypothetical figures to show the layout, using the A–D grades from the inspection checklist. Your categories and grades will differ.
Hypothetical example only, not a description of any bale.
| Line | Items |
|---|---|
| Tops, grades A–B | 96 |
| Tops, grade C | 28 |
| Bottoms, grades A–B | 54 |
| Bottoms, grade C | 17 |
| Outerwear, grades A–C | 21 |
| Unsellable or damaged | 24 |
| Total items | 240 |
| Sellable share | 90% |
UNSELLABLE AND DAMAGED
Log every exception with a reason.
Exceptions are the most useful part of the record, both for your numbers and for any conversation with the supplier.
- Reason: stain, tear, missing fastening, damp or odour, wrong category, or other.
- Outcome: repair, upcycle, bundle, donate or recycle.
- Evidence: photos of anything outside the agreed description, taken before it is moved.
- Compare exceptions with the written terms if you need to raise a problem.
USE THE RECORD
What each bale tells you.
- The actual sellable share, to improve your usable-garment estimates.
- Cost per sellable item, for tracking cost per garment.
- How a supplier’s grade compared with yours.
- Which bales sold fastest, to guide repeat orders.
NEXT STEP
Sizing an order to your sorting time?
Your bale records show how much you can sort each week. Share your quantity and categories when you enquire.
General guidance for planning purposes. Examples are illustrative; outcomes depend on your own market, stock, prices and costs.