Many people want to grow their own business by importing goods from China, but they think it is very difficult to find a reliable China supplier. That’s ture. If you are looking for a China supplier through the Internet, you can only understand the information they released. To get to know them, the best way to test the strength of suppliers is to buy a ticket directly to their door.
1. Common Supplier Type
Before we start , let me introduce several types of China suppliers. The more common ones are manufacturers, trading companies and China sourcing agents.
Manufacturer : a factory that directly manufactures products.
Trading company : get the goods from the manufacturer for sale, without its own production channel.
Purchasing agent : Do no stock, just as an intermediary to help customers find manufacturers, and manage all the processes of customers importing from China.
Next, we need to know what a reliable supplier should do.
1. Communicate smoothly/less communication barriers
2. Reasonable price and corresponding quality assurance
3. Actively sign contracts with reasonable conditions and follow the legal process
4. Actively communicate with customers and feedback the actual goods at different stages
5. Ability to deliver on time
2. How to find reliable Chinese suppliers online
1) Ways to search for China suppliers
If you want to find China product suppliers online, you can choose to browse B2B platforms such as Alibaba/Made in China/Sellersuniononline.
There are many China suppliers on B2B platforms. If you want to contact the factory directly, they will be a good choice. However, there are also trading company who are mixed in. Such trading company usually have no way to directly produce the products you want. Instead, they find a factory to produce the products for you, and they hide this fact that is mixed in the factory supplier and does not take the initiative to expose their identity, usually want to get more interests.
In addition to the B2B platform, searching relevant keywords on social media such as Youtube, Linkedin can also help search for China suppliers. You will get many suppliers' information. You can enter keywords similar: China suppliers, China manufacturers, Yiwu suppliers, etc.
If you want to wholesale multiple product categories, or don't understand the import process in China, I think it’s a good choice to search for a China sourcing agent online. A professional sourcing agent can help you find novel products with best price, ensure product quality, save your cost and time. They can manage all the processes you import from China, until the goods are successfully transported to you. The most important is they can keep in touch with you at any time, so you can understand the import situation.
You can also find Chinese sourcing agents through Google and social media. Enter relevant keywords such as: Yiwu agent, China sourcing agent, Yiwu market agent, etc.
2) Determine the background of the China supplier
In order to determine the strength of suppliers, background checks are a very important factor. Regarding suppliers found on the website of Alibaba/Made in China/Sellersuniononline, you can check their address/telephone number or other they provide factory information on the webpage, such as factory photos, etc. If they have a record of participating in the exhibition, it is really great, this is proof of their certain strength.
After checking their social media profile, you can directly initiate a communication with them and ask some basic questions.
1. Number of employees
2. Their main production line
3. Product real shot and quality
4. Will part of the work be outsourced?
5. Is it in stock and how long will the delivery time take?
6. Export volume in recent years
Through the answers they give you, you can judge whether they are reliable. If they are vague about the facts, do not answer the questions directly, or only pick the good part and say that there is concealment in other places, then they may not be A good partner.
For the China suppliers you find online, you can use the basic question above to check if they are the manufacturer. You also can check their situation of social media. Of course, this can't be used as an absolute basis, because some established foreign trade companies with many years of experience focus on traditional foreign trade and have only started to expand their online business in the past two years. So their social media may not have a lot of content, but they are strong and worthy of trust.
If you want to get a reliable purchasing agent to help you import products from China, you can check if they have their own websites, so that view more information about the company, such as the honors they have won, the number of customers they have cooperated with, and some certificates to determine the strength and credibility of the company.
Of course, no matter what kind of supplier, you can ask them to provide more reliable information, such as: business license, bank account certificate, foreign trade registration certificate, ISO 9001 certificate, prove that the manufacturer can provide the test report of the product you require, etc. If they refuse to provide you with a certificate or respond vaguely, then you should probably consider other partners.
3. How to find reliable Chinese suppliers offline
1) Participate in the China fair
In China, there are two big fairs that many China suppliers will participate in. One is the Canton Fair and the other is the Yiwu Fair. Of course, depending on the content you need, you can also choose to participate in a more detailed fair, such as China East China, Export Commodities Fair, Shanghai Furniture Fair [CIFF] and so on.
Many China suppliers will bring their products to the fairs. You can choose your favorite suppliers and talk to them directly. However, some companies will disguise themselves as manufacturers to attract you and hide them. This fact, this is what you should pay attention to.
2) Go to the China Wholesale Market
You can go directly to the famous wholesale market in China to find suppliers. Such as Yiwu market, which gathers various commodities from all over the China and is also the world’s largest small commodity market. In addition to Yiwu market, you also can visit: Shantou Toy Market, Guangzhou Jewelry Market, Shandong Linyi-China Linyi Commodity City, Wu'ai Market in Shenyang, Liaoning, Hanzheng Street Market in Wuhan, Hubei, are also small commodity wholesale markets.
When selecting suppliers in the market, what you should pay attention to is whether they have their own factories, whether they are ambiguous when you ask questions, or just cater to your requirements, etc. Choosing a store in the market is one thing Profound knowledge, this involves many aspects. If you are a novice, it is recommended that you find a guide before going to the market, which will be very helpful for your procurement work.
Find a reliable supplier, your business has been half-successful, but you can't relax. Next, you have to negotiate with the supplier, monitor the production progress, ensure that the quality of other products is consistent with your samples, and negotiate the arrangements for shipping Wait, until you see the goods with your own eyes, everything can't be relaxed, or you can find a purchasing agent to do these things on your behalf. That can make you much easier. You only need to connect with the purchasing agent. Purchasing in China, they will be more professional.
Post time: Apr-14-2021