Why a cost sheet comes first
Many new brands set a retail price by looking at what similar hijabs sell for, then work backward to a target quote. That can work, but only if every cost between the workshop and the customer is known. Brands that skip this step often discover later that freight, duties, marketplace fees or returns have absorbed most of the margin. A cost sheet is a simple table that lists every cost per piece, adds them up to a landed cost and then a fully loaded cost, and shows what is left at each price you might charge.
This guide explains the structure. It does not give figures, because costs depend on fabric, size, finish, quantity, packaging, destination, channel and timing, and change over time. Your numbers come from your written quote, your freight forwarder, your customs broker and your own channel data.
The lines of a hijab cost sheet
| Cost line | What drives it | Where the figure comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Fabric | Fiber, weight, width, stock or custom color, consumption per piece | Workshop quote per program |
| Making | Cutting, edge finish, sewing for instant styles and caps, pressing, folding | Workshop quote per program |
| Digital or screen print, number of colors, design repeat, strike-offs | Workshop quote per design | |
| Labels and tags | Woven or printed label, hang tag, barcode stickers | Label supplier quote, own minimums |
| Packaging | Polybag, card, sleeve, gift box, inserts | Packaging quote, own minimums |
| Samples | Lab dips, strike-offs, sewn samples, courier | Sampling quote, spread over the order |
| Testing | Flammability for light fabrics, children's product testing, care and colorfastness | Lab quote, spread over the order |
| Freight | Air or sea, volume and weight, origin and destination charges | Freight forwarder quote |
| Duties and clearance | Classification of the product, origin, broker fees | Customs broker |
| Inbound and storage | Receiving, warehouse, pick and pack | Warehouse or fulfillment provider |
| Channel fees | Marketplace commission, payment processing, advertising | Your channel terms and data |
| Returns and losses | Return rate, items that cannot be resold, damage | Your own sales history |
From quote to landed cost
The workshop quote covers the product made, labeled and packed to your spec sheet. It is quoted per program, based on fabric, size, edge finish, print, packaging and labels, and confirmed in writing. Make sure you know what the quote includes: some quotes include labels and polybags, others do not; some include delivery to a port, others only to the workshop door. Write the delivery terms on the cost sheet next to the quote.
Add one-off costs spread over the order: samples, strike-offs, lab dips and testing. A flammability test on a sheer chiffon or a children's product test on a kids' line is a fixed cost, so it weighs more heavily on a small first order than on a reorder. Then add freight. Hijabs are light and fold small, so freight per piece is often modest by sea, but air freight for urgent or seasonal orders can change the picture. Ask your forwarder for both and price the scenario you will actually use.
Duties depend on how the product is classified and where it comes from. Scarves can fall under different headings depending on whether the fabric is knitted or woven, so classification is a question for your customs broker, not a guess. Add broker fees and any destination charges. The sum is your landed cost per piece. Our notes on shipping hijabs to the US cover the freight and customs steps.
From landed cost to fully loaded cost
Landed cost is what the product costs on your shelf. Fully loaded cost is what it costs to sell it. Add storage and fulfillment per order, payment processing, marketplace commission if you sell through one, and an allowance for advertising if you track it per product. Then add a returns allowance: the cost of items returned and not resellable, plus return shipping if you pay it. Hijab returns often come from size, opacity and shade, so clear product pages lower this line; see selling hijabs online.
Margin logic
Once the fully loaded cost is known, margin is simple arithmetic: the retail price minus the fully loaded cost, divided by the retail price. The useful questions are about what that margin has to pay for. It covers your overheads, your time, design and photography, unsold stock at the end of a season and the cash tied up between paying the workshop and receiving payment from customers. A brand that reorders steadily needs less buffer than a brand that launches many seasonal colors, because seasonal stock carries more risk of being cleared later.
If you sell wholesale to boutiques as well as direct, build the price ladder from the top down. Set the retail price customers will see, then the wholesale price that leaves the retailer room for their own costs and margin, then check that your wholesale price still covers your fully loaded cost with room to spare. If it does not, the product may suit direct sales only, or the spec may need a change.
Levers that change the cost sheet
- Depth per color. Fixed costs spread over more pieces; minimums are typical reference ranges confirmed in writing, see MOQ and lead time.
- Stock versus custom color. Stock colors avoid lab dips and dye-lot minimums.
- Print method. Digital print suits small runs and many colors; screen print suits larger runs. See custom printed hijabs.
- Edge finish. Rolled hems and hand-finished edges take longer than overlock.
- Packaging. A shared box size or a plain bag with a branded tag lowers packaging cost.
- Freight mode and timing. Ordering early enough for sea freight before peak season avoids air freight.
Keep the sheet alive
Update the cost sheet with actual figures after each order: the final invoice, actual freight, duties paid, real return rate. Compare them with your estimates and adjust the next price or spec. When you are ready for a written quote to anchor the first line of your sheet, send your spec through the sample request form; the quote itemizes what it includes so you can see what still needs to be added.