Putting your own brand on a chair: methods, labels and cartons

Private label is usually discussed after the price is agreed, which is the wrong order. The method you choose decides the minimum quantity, adds days to the first run, and can hold a container at the port if the wrong mark is missing.

Published by JPChairs · Chair manufacturer in Foshan, China · 2026-10-20

Six places a logo can go, and what each one costs

Chairs offer six places to put a name, and they differ by a factor of seventy in unit cost. Choose on three things: what the frame is made of, how many chairs you are buying, and whether the mark has to survive five years of daily cleaning.

• Printed under-seat label: no minimum quantity, USD 0.05 to 0.12 each, applied on the line. It is the only branding that works on a 50-unit order.
• Woven label sewn into a seam: 500 pieces per colourway, USD 0.18 to 0.35 each, plus 12 to 18 days for the label to be woven before production starts.
• Laser-etched stainless or aluminium plate: 50 pieces, USD 0.90 to 2.40 each, typically 25 by 60 mm, fixed with two rivets or an adhesive pad.
• Domed resin badge: 100 to 200 pieces, USD 0.45 to 1.20 each. It yellows after about 18 months in direct sun, so keep it off terrace seating.
• Embroidery on the chair back: 200 pieces, USD 1.60 to 3.80 by stitch count. Under 8,000 stitches stays at the bottom of that range.
• Heat transfer onto PU: 100 pieces, USD 0.60 to 1.10 each, but it starts to crack at around 15,000 Martindale rubs, which is one year in a busy dining room.
• Printed export carton: 300 cartons, USD 0.35 to 0.90 each plus a USD 90 to 160 plate charge per colour.

Matching the method to the material

Three of the six methods only work on certain surfaces, and the failures are predictable enough to rule out at drawing stage.

• Solid beech or oak: laser-etched plate or woven label. Direct laser into timber cuts 0.3 to 0.5 mm deep and darkens beech far more than ash, so test on the actual species before committing.
• Powder-coated steel: laser through the coating to bare metal gives a grey mark on a dark frame. Two-colour etch and fill costs USD 0.60 to 1.40 more per plate.
• Stainless steel 304: laser anneal leaves a black mark with no depth and survives a 480-hour salt spray test; chemical etching removes 0.1 mm and needs a lacquer to hold the contrast.
• Fabric upholstery: embroidery needs a 25 mm clear margin from any seam, a woven label needs 12 mm, and both need a backing interfacing above 280 g/m2 fabric weight.
• PU and PVC: heat transfer pressed at 150 C for 12 seconds. Above 160 C the grain flattens and the mark sits glossy against a matte panel.
• Stacking banquet and rattan frames: plates and cartons only. There is no clean seam and no flat face to press onto.

Artwork, and what has to arrive before chair one

Most private-label delays are artwork delays. Four files and one physical swatch clear them.

• Vector artwork: .ai or .svg with fonts converted to outlines. Minimum stroke 0.8 mm for laser, 3 mm for a satin embroidery stitch, and no type below 6 mm cap height on a plate.
• Colour reference: a Pantone TCX code plus one physical thread or label swatch. Screen colours miss by 2 to 4 Delta E once they are dyed into fabric.
• Placement drawing: a datum and two dimensions, with a tolerance of plus or minus 1.5 mm from a seam and 2 mm from an edge. "Centre of the back" is not a dimension.
• Set-up charge: USD 60 to 220 per method, one time, and the tooling is held for 24 months after the last order.
• Approval loop: 3 to 5 working days for a first-article photograph, and we do not start the run until it is signed off in writing.

The labels that are not optional

Branding is voluntary. Four other marks are not, and two of them have to be permanent on the chair rather than printed on the carton.

• Country of origin: a permanent, legible "Made in China" mark on the chair itself. A carton-only mark is the single most common reason a US entry is held under 19 CFR 134.
• Flammability: a CA TB117-2013 compliant label for US upholstered seating, and for the UK a permanent label carrying the cigarette and match results plus the wording "CARELESSNESS CAUSES FIRE".
• Fibre content: EU Regulation 1007/2011 applies where the cover is at least 80 per cent textile by weight, and every fibre above 10 per cent has to be named.
• FSC mark: usable only with a licence number printed beside it, and only on products that carry the claim. Wrong numbers void the whole carton, not just the label.
• Care symbols: not a legal requirement for furniture in most markets, but hotel groups ask for them, and they cost USD 0.04 each printed inside the carton.

The documents that travel with those labels, and who signs them, are itemised on the labelling and documentation FAQ.

Carton print, barcodes and shipping marks

Plain kraft cartons with a printed shipping mark are all most contracts need. Retail-ready packaging is a different budget line entirely.

• Flexo, two colours on kraft: minimum 300 cartons, USD 90 to 160 per plate colour, USD 0.35 to 0.90 per carton, and 7 to 10 days for the plates.
• Pre-printed litho: minimum 1,000 cartons at USD 1.60 to 3.20 each, used for retail units with a photograph on the panel.
• Shipping mark block: consignee, your PO number, item number, quantity, carton number as x of y, net and gross kg, carton size in cm, and country of origin. Print it on two adjacent faces, not one.
• Barcodes: we print GS1-128 on the carton and EAN-13 on any inner box, using your GS1 prefix. Supply the number; do not let anyone generate one.
• Weight rounding: declare gross to the nearest 0.5 kg. Cartons more than 5 per cent off the measured weight are the ones inspectors pull.

What it costs in time, and when to skip it

Private label adds days the first time and almost none afterwards, because the tooling is held on the shelf.

• First order: 5 to 9 working days on top of the production slot, of which 3 to 5 days is artwork and first-article approval.
• Repeat order: 2 to 3 days, and none at all if we are holding spare stock of the label or plate.
• Per chair: USD 0.05 for a printed label up to USD 3.80 for a large embroidery, which on a 300-unit run is USD 15 to 1,140 in total.
• Hold spares: 20 per cent more labels and plates than the order quantity. Re-weaving a 500-piece label costs 12 to 18 days and another set-up charge.
• Skip it when: the run is under 50 units, or when the buyer is a distributor who will re-brand on arrival. Take the under-seat label and spend the difference on better fabric.

The branding options available per product line are listed on the commercial restaurant chair models.