Your Chinese New Year Sourcing Plan Is Either Boring… or Expensive.

Every year, I watch smart buyers make the same mistake: we treat Chinese New Year like a date on a calendar instead of a system shock to manufacturing and logistics.

In 2026, China’s official Spring Festival holiday runs February 15–23, 2026—a nine-day public holiday window.

But if you’re sourcing home décor from China, the real impact is bigger than those nine days—because labor movement and capacity don’t switch off and on like a light. Reuters described the Spring Festival travel period as the world’s largest annual migration and noted China expects a record volume of passenger trips in 2026.

So when someone says, “We’ll place the PO after Chinese New Year,” I hear:
“We’re okay missing the floor set.”

Here’s the Chinese New Year sourcing plan I actually use as a U.S. retail buyer—built to protect reorders, not just launch ideas.

The Reality: It’s Not One Shutdown. It’s a Three-Phase Disruption.

1) The Slowdown (before the holiday)

Factories typically reduce output 2–3 weeks before the holiday as teams thin out and production gets triaged.

2) The Stop (the official holiday)

For 2026, that’s Feb 15–23 for most of the country’s public holiday schedule.

3) The Restart (after the holiday)

Capacity usually ramps back gradually—Maersk notes factories may not resume full capacity until mid-March.

If your plan only covers the “stop,” you don’t have a plan—you have hope.

Freight Is the Second Trap: The Pre-CNY “Red Zone” Is Real.

Even if your factory is ready, logistics can become the bottleneck.

DHL describes a pre-CNY space crunch when demand for ocean/air capacity far exceeds supply, leading to overbooked vessels, scarce containers, and cascading delays.
DHL also recommends securing freight space 4–6 weeks ahead of the holiday to avoid January/early-February chaos.
Freightos notes a predictable surge in importer activity 3–4 weeks before Lunar New Year (their “Red Zone”).

Translation: you’re not competing with your category—you’re competing with everyone trying to beat the same deadline.

The Buyer’s Chinese New Year Sourcing Plan (Backwards From Shelf Date)

I plan from arrival date, not PO date. Here’s the structure:

Step 1: Freeze what must be “reorder-safe”

Before late January, I lock SKUs that already have:

stable materials/finishes
known QC checkpoints
proven packaging
repeatable manufacturing route

Because the worst time to “discover” a spec problem is when everyone is trying to ship at once.

Step 2: Set two internal cutoffs

Production cutoff (when the factory must start/finish key steps before slowdown)
Freight cutoff (when bookings must be secured before the pre-holiday surge)

Use DHL’s 4–6 week booking guidance as your sanity check for the freight cutoff.

Step 3: Demand OTIF discipline (not “we’ll try”)

OTIF (On Time In Full) is the simplest performance truth: did the supplier deliver the correct quantity at the agreed time?
If a supplier can’t talk in milestones, exceptions, and recovery options, they’re not chain-ready during peak disruption.

Step 4: Treat packaging as a profit lever

Holiday rush means more handling risk. I look for an ISTA mindset—even if you’re not formally testing every SKU.

ISTA says its 3-Series are general simulation performance tests designed to simulate damage-producing motions, forces, and sequences of transport environments.

If your cartons don’t protect corners, prevent abrasion, and resist compression, CNY will amplify your damage rate.

The 8 Questions I Email Every Supplier Before CNY

If you’re a supplier, answering these clearly is how you become my “preferred vendor.” If you’re a buyer, stealing these questions is how you reduce regret.

What is your last reliable ship window before the CNY slowdown begins?
What date do you expect normal capacity to return (realistically)?
Which SKUs are reorder-safe (materials secured + finish standards locked)?
What are the top 3 failure points you see every year (labor, sub-suppliers, QC, packaging)?
What is your plan for the pre-CNY freight crunch (booking timing, alternatives)?
What OTIF updates will you provide (weekly milestones, exception alerts)?
What packaging protections prevent peak-season damage (corner crush, scuffs, abrasion)?
If we miss the window, what’s the recovery plan (partial shipments, substitute materials, revised ETAs)?

What “Good” Looks Like (So You Can Spot It Fast)

A mature supplier doesn’t say: “We close for the holiday.”
They say: “Here are the three windows—slowdown, holiday, ramp-up—and how we keep your program stable across them.”

A mature buyer doesn’t say: “Can you ship before CNY?”
They say: “Here’s our Chinese New Year sourcing plan, and here’s what must be frozen to protect reorders.”