An upholstered furniture manufacturer in Turkey takes an order through six stages: quote and approval, production planning, frames and preparation, upholstery and sewing, quality control, then packing and shipping. Most of what a buyer worries about (fabric, size, labels, packing) is decided in the first stage, long before anyone cuts a frame. This guide walks through each stage at our own factory and shows what you provide and what you get back.
ellda mobilya is a furniture manufacturer in Kayseri, Türkiye, producing sofa sets, corner sofas, bed base sets and mattresses since 2010. We wrote this from the factory side for importers, wholesalers and store owners who are about to place a first order with a Turkish manufacturer and want to know what happens between the deposit and the container.
What an upholstered furniture manufacturer in Turkey does in-house
A manufacturer controls the stages where most problems start: the frame, the cutting and sewing, and the final check before packing. A trading company buys finished goods from one or more factories and resells them, so its answers about construction or timing are second-hand.
At ellda, every catalogue model is made in our own factory in Kayseri Organized Industrial Zone, on a 10,500 m² production area. Seating and bedroom products are made under the same roof, so sofa sets, corner sofas, bed bases and mattresses can be planned as one order and loaded in one shipment. Buyers talk to a sales team that works directly with production, in English, Arabic or Turkish.
If you are still choosing between suppliers, our list of questions to ask a sofa manufacturer is the place to start. This page assumes you have chosen and want to understand the process.
The six stages from quote to container
| Stage | What happens in the factory | What you provide | What you receive |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Quote and approval | Models, pieces, fabric, colour and destination are agreed | Model list, quantities, fabric choices, destination, market requirements | A quote with price, production time and shipping terms |
| 2. Production plan | The order is scheduled by materials and capacity | Approval of the quote and any samples | Confirmation that the order is scheduled |
| 3. Frames and preparation | Frames, base bodies and pre-upholstery parts are prepared | Nothing new, unless you change the order | |
| 4. Upholstery and sewing | Fabric is cut, sewn and upholstered to the model's catalogue details | ||
| 5. Quality control | Dimensions, stitching, surfaces and mechanisms are checked | Your inspection plan, if you use a third-party inspector | |
| 6. Packing and shipping | Products are packed for long-distance transport, labelled and loaded | Forwarder details and shipping documents you need | Packing list and the shipment |
The right-hand columns are the point. Almost everything you supply goes in at stage 1. After that, your job is to answer questions quickly and keep changes to a minimum.
Stage by stage: what to expect
1. Quote and approval
This is where your order is really built. The quote turns a catalogue selection into a production specification: which pieces of each set, which fabric and colour, how many of each, and where they are going. Requirements that depend on your market, such as a flammability label for the United States or the United Kingdom, belong here too. At ellda, what can be supplied against a market requirement is confirmed in the quote.
2. Production plan
Once the quote is approved, the order goes into the production schedule according to material needs and capacity. Fabric availability is often what sets the date, which is why an unusual fabric or colour can change the timing more than the quantity does.
3. Frames and preparation
Frames for sofas and corner sofas, and the bodies of bed bases, are prepared before any fabric is cut. Mechanisms, such as the lift that opens a storage bed base, are fitted at the stage the model requires.
4. Upholstery and sewing
Fabric is cut, sewn and fitted to the frame according to the model's catalogue details. This is the stage where a late fabric change becomes expensive, because cut fabric cannot go back on the roll.
5. Quality control
Every piece is checked before packing. The checks at our factory cover:
- Dimensions against the catalogue and the order
- Stitching, quilting and piping
- The fabric surface: no marks, stains or colour differences
- Bed base mechanisms and leg fittings
- The pack: closed properly for transport and labelled
If you use a third-party inspection company, tell us in the enquiry so the inspection date can be planned around the packing stage.
6. Packing and shipping
Export orders are packed for long-distance transport, and a loading plan is shared with the quote. Packing for a long sea route is different from packing for a truck to a store across town, so tell us the route and destination early. If you are combining product groups, our guide to mixed container furniture shipping explains how a load is planned.
Where your decisions lock in
The cheapest moment to change anything is before the quote is approved. Here is when each decision effectively becomes final:
| Decision | Locks in at |
|---|---|
| Models and piece mix | Quote approval |
| Fabric and colour | Production plan (fabric is ordered or reserved) |
| Sizes, for example bed base widths | Frames and preparation |
| Market labels and compliance requirements | Quote approval |
| Packing method and destination | Before packing; ideally at quote stage |
Say a wholesaler in Romania wants to switch one sofa set from a plain velvet to a bouclé after approval. Before the plan is fixed, it is a revised quote. After cutting, it means new fabric, new sewing and probably a new date.
Visiting the factory
Buyers and dealer candidates can visit our factory by appointment. A visit is most useful when it is tied to a decision: seeing fabrics and finished pieces before you approve a quote, or seeing a production run of your own models.
To get the most from a visit:
- Bring your shortlist from the catalogue, with the models you are unsure about marked.
- Ask to see the quality control step and a packed piece ready for export.
- Bring your market requirements in writing, so they can be discussed with the people who will apply them.
How ellda mobilya works with export buyers
We produce sofa sets, corner sofas, bed base sets and mattresses in one factory, across 80 catalogue models. Price, production time, minimum quantities and shipping terms depend on the models, fabrics and destination, so they are stated in the quote rather than published. You can see the same six stages on our production page.
Next step
Choose your models, note the fabrics and the rules of your market, and send them through our export page. The more complete stage 1 is, the fewer surprises there are in stages 2 to 6.
