Your container has arrived, the doors are open and you are looking at a wall of bales. How do you inspect used clothing bales so you know the order is what you paid for, and so any problem is found while it is still easy to sort out? This guide covers the checks to run on unloading day, in a sensible order, and how to record what you find.
Before the doors open: check the container and seal
Your shipping documents list a container number and a seal number. Before anyone opens the container, compare both with the paperwork and photograph the seal with the container number in the shot. If the seal is broken, missing or does not match, stop, take photos and tell us and your freight forwarder before anything is unloaded.
If customs has opened the container for its own inspection, a customs seal may have been added. Ask for the paperwork that records it. Our guide to what happens when your container arrives at port covers the customs and terminal steps that come before this point.
As soon as the doors open, and before anything moves, photograph the inside. That picture shows how the bales were stacked and whether anything shifted on the voyage.
How to inspect used clothing bales as they come off
Work through the bales as they are unloaded, not after they are stacked in your shop or store. Four quick checks on every bale catch most problems.
First, the wrapping. It should be tight and intact, with no torn sections or crushed corners. Second, the label. Each bale is packed by category, so the label should match what you ordered. Third, dampness. Smell the bale and feel the wrapping for wet patches or stains. Condensation can form inside a container on a long sea voyage, and the bales near the roof and the doors tend to be the most exposed. Fourth, the count. Tally the bales in each category against your packing list.
Set aside any bale that fails one of these checks and keep it apart from the rest. Do not open it yet. Photograph it first, as described below.
Open a few bales, not just the outside
The wrapping tells you about handling. It does not tell you what is inside. Open a sample of bales from different positions in the container, such as the front, the middle, the back, the top and the bottom, and from each category in your order.
In each sample, look for four things. Is it the category you ordered? Does it smell clean, without a musty odour? Are there any mould spots, especially on the inner layers? Do the items look like a sensible match for that category? If you are unsure what a category should contain, our page on each bale category we supply describes them.
If your order includes shoes or handbags, open a few of those too. Shoes should come as pairs and should not be mouldy inside. Handbags should have their straps, zips and clasps, and the zips should run. Towels and bedsheets should smell fresh with no mildew, and jeans should be free of damp patches, especially along the seams.
Keep your expectations realistic. Used clothing varies from one item to the next, so judge each bale as a whole, not by one garment you happened to pull out first. A single stained shirt in a bale of good quality clothing is normal. A bale that is wet, mouldy or the wrong category is a different matter and needs to be reported.
Record everything and tell us the same day
If you find a problem, evidence matters more than anything else you do. Take clear photos with the date visible on your phone. For each affected bale, take one wide shot showing its position in the container and one close-up showing the label and the problem. Note the date, the time and who was present.
Write your checks down as a short list before unloading starts, so everyone helping you follows the same routine and nothing is skipped when the day gets busy.
Keep the wrapping and labels from affected bales, and do not sell or throw out the goods before we have spoken. Then send us the photos with your order details and the relevant line from your packing list. The sooner we see it, the easier it is to work out what happened, and you deal with us directly, so there is no one else to chase.
If everything checks out, store the bales off the floor in a dry, ventilated space and open them as you need them. Unopened bales keep better than opened ones.
Getting ready for your first container? Ask us anything about what to expect on unloading day and we will answer you directly. You can also message us on WhatsApp.
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