Garments on Hangers (GOH) Container Shipping Explained

Garments on hangers (GOH) shipping carries clothes hanging from bars or strings inside a container instead of folded into cartons. The point is presentation: coats, suits and dresses arrive without fold creases and can go straight onto a shop rail. The price of that is a container fit-out, usually arranged through the carrier or forwarder, plus extra loading labour and more careful planning. Flat-packed cartons are cheaper and more robust, so GOH is a choice you make for specific lines, not a default. This guide explains how the system works, what it adds to the cost, where it goes wrong and how to decide. It builds on FCL vs LCL shipping, because GOH is almost always a full-container (FCL) job.

What is a GOH container?

A GOH container is a standard 20 ft or 40 ft dry container that has been fitted with a hanging system. DSV describes the options as a string system, a bar system, or a combination of both, and publishes representative dimensions for 20 ft and 40 ft units. SEKO Logistics describes the two systems this way:

• Bar system: rows of movable horizontal bars, adjustable in height and spacing, in a single or double row. Hangers sit directly on the bars. SEKO says each bar supports around 300 to 500 kg and suits heavier items such as coats, suits and jackets.
• String system: a single row of bars along the top of the container, with ropes hanging down from them. SEKO says there are about twenty ropes per bar and each rope holds between 8 and 12 garments, so it suits lighter items such as shirts, dresses and blouses.

Cargomar, an Italian GOH specialist, describes installing custom bars and load-bearing structures, lining the inside walls against humidity and dust, and dismantling the equipment at the final destination before the container goes back to the carrier. Dimensions vary by manufacturer, age and owner, so treat published figures as representative.

Container specifications for 20 ft and 40 ft GOH units

These are the representative figures DSV publishes. They are close to a standard dry container, which is the useful point: the fit-out changes how the space is used, not the box.

Garments are light for the space they take, so payload is rarely the limit on a GOH box. The weight that matters is still the declared one: the container needs a correct VGM like any other, so see container weight limits, payload and VGM.

How is a GOH container loaded?

The sequence differs by carrier and country, so ask for your carrier's own procedure. In outline:

1. Order the fit-out with the booking. GOH is a conversion, not a normal equipment type, so the carrier or its contractor needs notice. One freight education site advises telling the carrier two to three days ahead; a Maersk local procedure for Myanmar describes the installation being arranged by a supplier once the booking is confirmed, with a fee if you cancel after the instructions are issued. Treat both as examples of the pattern, not a rule for your lane.
2. Agree the configuration. Bar or string, single or double row, number of bars. One freight education site lists 22, 23 or 24 bars in a single row for a 40 ft unit (44, 46 or 48 in a double row), with bar spacing of roughly 495 to 546 mm. Those are one source's figures; the configuration you get is the carrier's.
3. Load at the factory or a depot. The container is delivered to the packing point, garments are hung on their hangers and the rows are filled in order. The loading plan decides which SKUs sit where, which matters when the container will be opened at a retailer's distribution centre and unloaded in store order.
4. Close, seal and document. The rows must not be able to slide or swing. Seal the container and record the seal number.

The hangers are part of the specification. Retailers typically name the hanger type, size and sometimes colour for each product category, and the hanger must hold the garment's shape on the bar for several weeks. If your buyer specifies the hanger, buy to that, not to what is cheapest at the factory.

How many garments fit: GOH vs cartons

There is no trustworthy single number, and it is worth being suspicious of one. The sources disagree on direction: carrier pages describe GOH as giving a greater internal load capacity and, in one case, more garments per container, while a hanging system also uses space for bars, row spacing and the drop of the longest garment. The right answer depends on your garment type, so use the method instead.

• GOH: count the hanging positions (bars x positions per bar, or bars x strings x knots), then check that the longest garment clears the floor and its neighbours. Row spacing and garment width set how many hangers fit on a bar.
• Cartons: work out pieces per carton, then how many cartons fit by length, width and height, allowing for how the cartons stack. Folded knitwear compresses; structured tailoring does not.
• Compare per container, then per piece. The freight cost per piece is the container cost (plus the GOH fit-out) divided by pieces loaded, which is the figure that decides the argument.

Illustrative arithmetic only: if a 40 ft string system had 22 bars, 20 strings per bar and 8 to 12 knots per string, and each knot carried one garment, the theoretical ceiling would be 22 x 20 x 8 = 3,520 to 22 x 20 x 12 = 5,280 garments. A real plan will be lower once you allow for garment length, bulk and spacing. Ask your carrier or forwarder for the optimised piece count for your product rather than relying on a ceiling like this.

Why do retailers ask for GOH?

The reasons are about the product and the store, not the freight:

• Crease avoidance. Tailored and delicate items such as coats, suits and dresses are damaged by folding. SEKO notes that conventional packing can crease and damage fragile elements.
• Retail-ready presentation. Garments can go from the container to the shop floor without unpacking, steaming or pressing, according to SEKO. Whether that saves money depends on how much handling you remove at the distribution centre.

A common misconception is that GOH is always dearer per piece. It usually costs more per container, but the per-piece comparison is the real test.

What GOH adds to the cost

• Equipment fit-out. Carriers typically add a GOH refit charge to the ocean freight. One freight education site publishes an undated example tariff of about $1,400 for a 40 ft unit and $65 per additional bar. Treat that as an order of magnitude, not a quote; rates and rules vary by carrier, lane and season.
• Loading labour. Hanging garments is slower and more skilled than boxing them, though one source says overall loading time is shortened once the packing step is removed. Test it on your own line.
• Hangers. The hangers travel with the goods. At destination they are either reused, returned or dumped, and that decision has a cost.

Risks: movement, crush and moisture

Movement and crush. A hanging load can swing, slide along the bars or press against the doors. The fit-out manufacturer and the carrier supply the load-bearing structure, but you are still responsible for how you load it. Rows need to be tight, hangers need to be unable to migrate and there should be no gap at the door end that lets a row fall. The same principles apply as in cargo securing inside the container: assume the box will move in a seaway and plan for it. Ask the installer for the load plan or drawings, and confirm the rated load per bar.

Moisture and condensation. A steel container can sweat when moist air meets a cold surface, and wet garments mildew. SEKO notes that excessive moisture and extreme temperatures can damage garments and that ventilation systems reduce the risk of mildew, while Cargomar lines the inside walls against humidity. Desiccant is a common mitigation, and some supplier and retailer guidelines say to hang it from the container ceiling, but plastic barriers can trap moisture if the packing or goods were damp when loaded. Dry the goods and the container before loading, and check the door seals and floor for leaks.

Wooden bars and ISPM 15. If the hanging system uses solid wood, it is wood packaging material, and under ISPM 15 the scope expressly includes dunnage. Processed wood such as plywood is excluded. Check with your forwarder whether the bars or any blocking are wood, and whether they carry the treatment mark that destination countries expect: see ISPM 15 wood packaging rules.

Fumigation. If the destination requires treatment of the container or of wood, tell the forwarder early. Garments absorb odours and residues, so read container fumigation: certificates, fumigants and the rules for fumigated units before agreeing to a fumigated unit.

Documents and labels for a GOH shipment

GOH does not change the commercial paperwork for customs: you still need the commercial invoice, packing list and transport document. What changes is the level of detail the retailer wants.

• Packing list by SKU. A GOH load is often broken down by style, colour, size and hanging position so the receiver can unload in store sequence.
• Advance ship notice (ASN). Large retailers expect an ASN that matches the physical load, and a mismatch is a common source of chargebacks.
• Compliance labels. Hanging goods are typically labelled according to the retailer's routing guide, with rules on what goes on the garment, the hanger and the outside of any bag. The details differ for each retailer, so read retail vendor compliance and chargebacks and the retailer's own guide. For the marks on the container itself, see cargo marking and labelling.

Destination handling: unloading and the crease problem

The benefit of GOH is lost if the receiving end cannot handle hanging goods. SEKO mentions overhead ceiling rails and carts that move many hanging garments at once, and staff trained for delicate fashion items. A good receiving process:

• Check the seal, the container condition and any sign of water before opening.
• Unload rows in loading-plan order, and transfer garments to rails without bunching them.
• Inspect a sample for creases, hanger damage, odour and mildew before putting stock into the system.
• Photograph damage and note it on the receiving record straight away, because a claim needs evidence.

Garments that are tightly packed on a rail for weeks can still show pressure creases. Many warehouses let them hang for a short time and "shake and hang" before display, but how much recovery to expect depends on the fabric, so agree an acceptance standard with the supplier and test it on a first shipment.

GOH vs flat-packed: how to decide

What to do next

1. Confirm with the buyer whether the order must ship on hangers, and get the hanger specification and routing guide in writing.
2. Ask two or three forwarders for a GOH quote that shows the fit-out charge, the bar count and the number of pieces they expect to fit, then compare the freight cost per piece with the flat-packed alternative.
3. Agree the load plan, the securing method, the moisture precautions and whether any wood is in the fit-out, before the container is ordered.
4. Check that the receiving end can unload hanging goods, and agree an acceptance standard for creases and damage.

More than 29,300 logistics companies are searchable by country and service in the CargoLinked directory, so you can look for forwarders that handle apparel and ask them about GOH. The public requests board lists freight that shippers have posted for forwarders to quote on directly, which is a way to put your container and fit-out requirements in front of several forwarders at once.

This guide is general information, not legal, customs or insurance advice. Container specifications, carrier procedures, tariffs and retailer requirements differ and change, so confirm details with your carrier, your forwarder and the retailer before you book.