"What is your price?" is the wrong first question, because a lingerie catalogue does not have one price — it has bands. Here are the real bands from our own 373 live styles, and what actually changes as you move up them.
The numbers, straight from the catalogue
| Collection | Styles | FOB price per piece |
|---|---|---|
| Sexy lingerie | 122 | $0.77 – $13.80 |
| Pajamas & sleepwear | 141 | $1.32 – $15.91 |
| Club & party wear | 46 | $0.78 – $30.08 |
| Corsets & bustiers | 36 | $2.39 – $9.37 |
| Shapewear & waist trainers | 24 | $1.70 – $14.00 |
| GOGO dance wear | 4 | $3.59 – $9.16 |
Those are per-piece prices, FOB China, before volume discounts, freight and duty. The spread inside one collection is usually ten to fifteen times — which is why a single "our price is $5" answer tells you nothing.
Under $2: the single-piece floor
The floor of the catalogue is a single lace thong at $0.77. At this level you are buying fabric, elastic and a few minutes of sewing — no structure, no lining, minimal trim. It is a legitimate add-on product and a terrible thing to build a brand on: freight per unit becomes a large share of the landed cost, and the return rate on a $2 item can wipe out the margin on twenty of them.
$2 to $8: where boutiques actually live
This band holds most of the catalogue: three-piece lace sets, basic corsets, shapewear shorts. What you are paying for is construction — a lined cup, a proper hook-and-eye panel, spiral or steel boning, lace that survives a wash. Corsets sit at $2.39–$9.37 because the range is really two products: a fashion corset with light boning at the bottom, a steel-boned waist trainer at the top.
$10 to $30: club wear and heavy construction
Club and party wear reaches $30.08. Sequins, hand-set trim, mesh panels and multi-layer construction are labour-heavy, and labour is what you are buying at this level. Sleepwear tops out at $15.91 once you get into velvet, satin-lined sets and heavier robes.
Where the margin actually is
Retail markups in lingerie are typically 3–5x on wholesale, but the number that decides your business is landed cost per unit, not FOB price. A $3 set shipped by sea with a 15% duty lands near $3.80 a piece; the same set shipped by air on a small order can land 30–40% higher. On a low-priced item, freight choice moves your margin more than negotiating the factory price ever will.
Build a three-tier buy instead of one price point
A mix that works for most boutiques:
- Entry tier — one or two styles under $4, priced in store as an impulse or gift item.
- Core tier — four to six styles at $5–10. This is the range that reorders.
- Hero tier — one or two styles above $12, used for photography and window display, not volume.
Stock styles start from 1–2 pieces per style, so the entry and hero tiers cost almost nothing to test. Custom OEM orders typically start at 50 pieces per design per colour, which is the point where the price band starts to move in your favour.
What this article deliberately leaves out
Freight, duty and labelling costs — they depend on your destination, your HS code and your Incoterm, and they are covered in our importing guide. Ask for a landed-cost estimate for your actual mix rather than comparing FOB numbers between suppliers.