FTD is one of the most recognized names in floral distribution in the United States, supplying flowers and gifts to approximately 9,000 florists nationwide. East West Basics has built a long-standing, strategic relationship with FTD, producing creative home and decorative items across multiple product categories.
But the story that defines this partnership is not about volume or longevity. It is about accountability under pressure and how East West Basics handled things when something went wrong.
FTD needed a run of 20,000 decorative ceramic vases to sell through their florist network and into consumers’ homes. East West Basics was engaged to develop, source, and produce the vases to FTD’s specifications, delivering on both aesthetic quality and real-world durability.
Producing decorative ceramics with painted finishes requires precision at every stage: from the quality of the paint and its application to curing time and durability testing. The challenge in this category is not purely aesthetic. Paint that looks perfect in production can behave very differently in a consumer’s home.
In this case, the paint supplied to the factory was substandard. The factory, unaware of the deficiency, proceeded with production. The vases passed visual inspection, were packed, and shipped. Two forty-foot containers of purple ceramic vases arrived at FTD and made their way to consumers. Only then did the problem surface: the paint was washing away under running water and in the dishwasher. 20,000 defective units. And the factory that supplied the substandard paint refused to make it right.
East West Basics stepped in and made it right. In less than 30 days they had reproduced all 20,000 vases and airfreighted them to FTD—all at their own expense.
At East West Basics, accountability doesn’t end at the factory—it ends when your product arrives exactly as promised. This philosophy, built over three generations of family ownership, meant absorbing a $200,000 loss without hesitation, without debate, and without placing any burden on the client.
Within 30 days of confirming the defect, East West Basics had reproduced all 20,000 vases, air freighted them to FTD at their own expense, and terminated the relationship with the non-performing factory. FTD received a complete resolution—no negotiation, no partial credit, no bill.
In international manufacturing, things go wrong. The real question is whether your sourcing partner has the systems to prevent most issues—and the integrity to make it right when one slips through.
East West Basics has built a defect rate of less than 0.005% not by avoiding problems, but by learning from every one of them. Each incident gets absorbed into their quality protocols, factory vetting, and production oversight. Problems that would catch other sourcing companies off guard are caught early and prevented. And when the rare issue does surface, East West Basics owns it—completely, quickly, and at their own expense.
Whether you’re developing a new product line, expanding into new categories, or looking for a manufacturing partner who understands your market, we’d like to hear about your project.