Elksourcing:Do’s and Don’ts in Evaluating China Sourcing Agent

Elksourcing:Do’s and Don’ts in Evaluating China Sourcing Agent

Importers who do not have the expertise, manpower or the time to procure and manage supplies from China will often turn to the services of a China sourcing agent. However, it is not that easy to find a sourcing agent you can trust, and trust is very important in this kind of requirement. You need someone who is trustworthy and not someone who works for hidden commissions. Below are some do’s and don’ts to help you in evaluating sourcing agents in China:

Do clarify the sourcing agent’s tasks and responsibilities. This is very important when using third-party service providers. Do you want them to handle everything from procurement to quality control? Or do you only require them to perform tasks that you cannot handle? You have to be clear with their responsibilities so you will know who should be accountable in case of problems.

Don’t forget to consider the sourcing agent’s geographical presence. If the products you want to purchase are from Shenzhen, then looking for a sourcing agent or company at Shenzhen would make a lot of sense than using an agent from the opposite end. The China sourcing agent will be working closely with suppliers. Thus, you need him or her to be near the location of your suppliers.

Do be realistic with your expectations. Remember that you are working with people and not robots. Even the best sourcing agents have their flaws. They cannot guarantee you low prices, and on-time shipments all the time. Thus, you have to know what is most important for you so you know in which areas you cannot compromise. Ideally, you want someone who is competent and reliable. However, it is better to work with someone with average skills but is hardworking and reliable than someone who is smart but untrustworthy.

Don’t micromanage the production yourself. You asked for the help of a sourcing agent, so let him/her do the job you paid him to do. You want to work closely with the agent, but you can do so without interfering with his work. You want to have control over your business processes, so you show the supplier who is the boss. As a result, the suppliers won’t listen to your sourcing agents anymore and you won’t be able to maximize the benefits of using their services. This doesn’t mean you have to rely completely on a third party sourcing service either. If they go out of business, you will want to be able to continue doing business with your good suppliers.

Elksourcing:Why Product Sourcing China Is Recommended?

China is considered as the second biggest economy in the world. It is not surprising that many companies want to make business with Chinese firms and suppliers.  Despite misconceptions by the general public about the quality of products from China, seasoned capitalists continue to source products from the country because of specific reasons. Product sourcing China is buoyed by the country’s expansive supplier base, sophisticated manufacturing and competitive costs.

Rich supplier base
To say that China’s supplier base is rich is an understatement. It is estimated that one-fifth of the world’s manufacturing is done in China. Here, almost everything imaginable is manufactured- from appliances, food, textiles, furniture, consumer electronics, cars, toys, household items to apparels.  Although many of the sub-components and materials are exported from other countries, assembly work is performed in countless factories across China.

Factories are also surrounded by supporting plants where materials are sourced or sub-assembly is made. The sheer amount of manufacturing plants in the country further lowers the cost of production in China, as manufacturers offer the cheapest prices possible in order to compete with the market.  Add to this the well-developed infrastructure which supports the efficient transportation of goods and commodities.

Sophisticated Manufacturing
Product sourcing China is boosted by the sophisticated manufacturing plants in the country. The biggest economy in Asia is also home to factories with world-class manufacturing capabilities. In China, factories engage robotics-based automation to ensure superior quality of the products. Factories in this East Asian nation also provide topnotch efficiency, quick turnaround time and excellent customer service.  

Competitive costs
But arguably the biggest reason why companies continue to source their products from China is the low cost. The labor force in the country remains as one of the most competitive in the world. While labor expenditures in China have steadily climbed annually by 15% since 2008 when a labor contract law was passed, the wages of Chinese laborers remain lower compared to their counterparts out west.  Cheap labor costs in the country are also a result of the massive workforce in China. The world’s most population nation with more than 1.3 billion people offers a large manpower complement to support the huge production demand for manufacturing and related industries.

Product sourcing China makes a lot of sense from a business point of view.  Corporations can make maximize their earning potential by ordering superior quality but cheap goods or products from China. 

Elksourcing:Considerations When Using Global Sourcing Services

The primary goal of companies when employing global sourcing strategies is to reduce cost. Sourcing companies will take charge of identifying and screening of suppliers, management of supplier relationships and other important tasks. But before you make use of global sourcing companies or services, there are some important factors to consider.

Lead Time

While importing products from other countries may help cut costs, you also have to consider the lead time for global purchases. Global purchases generally have longer lead time compared to domestic purchases. You have to consider sea freight, air freight, and not to mention the time it takes to get clearance from customs. This is why using local sourcing services familiar with the nation’s customs and regulations will be essential to reduce the risk of unnecessary delays.

Transportation

Related to lead time is transportation. Global sourcing will most likely require you to use different modes of transportation. You may have to combine air, water and land transportation to get the goods from the supplier to your delivery points at the quickest possible time. In this aspect, it is best to consult with experts in the supply chain to find the best solution.

Legal Issues

In using global sourcing strategy, you need to decide on the body of law to apply on your contract, whether the law of the buyer’s country, or the law of the supplier’s country, or an applicable treaty between both countries. You have to be clear in your contract to avoid complications in the future.

Language and Culture

Implementation of global sourcing strategies may be hindered because of differences in culture and language. Misunderstandings may arise if this problem is not addressed, and it may be detrimental for your company. Before you hire sourcing services, make sure to ask if their staff understands your language.

Currency

You also need to decide on the currency to be used for the transactions. There are certain risks involved in this so you will want to be extra careful. Ask the advice of experts if you are unsure.

Other than the factors mentioned you also have to look into quality and packaging considerations. If you will be using sourcing services in China, make sure they have a defined global sourcing process that will meet your requirements.

Elksourcing:Practical Guide for Choosing China OEM Manufacturer

The major and initial issue in choosing a Chinese manufacturer is determining whether the manufacturer is “real” or not. Chinese companies are masters of disguise. They use the Internet and sourcing websites to make themselves look much better than they are. But they can also hide the reality even on site. So you have to develop an efficient system for breaking through the façade to get to reality as quickly as possible.

The general procedure I follow and the one you should follow as well is as follows.

First, you or your representatives have to visit the factory personally. It is shocking how much variation there is in manufacturing systems even within developed areas such as Dongguan, Guangzhou and Zhuhai. Factories making a virtually identical product can range from those using primitive hand techniques from the 1930s all the way to those that use state of the art German or Japanese automated equipment. You cannot believe what the factory says about its systems and you cannot believe the photos they provide. You must go to look personally.

Second, when you visit the factory you have to use your time efficiently. You goal must be to determine whether the factory is real or is it a Potemkin village or movie set, composed of all surface and no substance. What every foreign buyer must realize is that any factory owner can create the illusion of being a strong business by putting on a show for the foreign buyer. The buyer arrives to see a buzzing, active factory with all assembly lines moving at full speed. As soon as the buyer leaves, the place shuts down again, waiting for the next victim to arrive.

I usually do the following to break through to reality:

I refuse to visit the factory floor first. The Chinese side is always upset about this decision. I just make clear that I have other things I want to do first.

The first place I visit is the raw materials warehouse. Is the warehouse full or empty? An empty warehouse is almost always a sign of a manufacturer that is struggling. If the warehouse is full, I then look to see what sort of material is in the warehouse. Are the materials consistent with what the manufacturer says it produces? Are the suppliers local, national or international? Do I recognize any of the suppliers? Are the suppliers reputable?

I next like to visit is the shipping warehouse. If the export warehouse is empty, this is an obvious signal that the manufacturer has no current business. If the warehouse if full, I then check whether the deliveries are for China internal markets or for export. If for export, I then check what the destinations for the product. Are they headed for countries that generally have buyers that care about product quality? I also pay close attention to the packing of the product and loading procedure. You can tell a lot about a company by the way it loads the product into a container.

My next visit is to the finance office of the manufacturer. I just sit on a chair for about an hour and observe what is going on. If there is no activity, I know the company is dead. If there is activity, I then observe. Is cash moving in and out of the safe? A company that relies on cash transactions is typically not part of an international sales market. Reliance mostly on cash evidences a local player with little China national and international business.

My next stop is the sales department of the company. Again, the first thing I observe is whether the department is busy. Are the sales people taking orders and working with purchase orders and invoices and receipts, or are they drinking tea and staring out the window? What language are they speaking? Are they talking in Chinese or English? No English means no international business. Finally, I just sit in a corner and listen. This can be very valuable. For example, in a recent factory visit I noted that 100% of the phone calls to the sales department consisted of customer complaints about late delivery, short delivery, incorrect delivery and faulty product. That told me all I needed to know about that company.

Finally, after all this back office visiting, I am ready to look at the factory. Here, I further frustrate the factory owner by refusing to look at the work shop floor. Instead, I make clear that I want to visit the quality control department. If there is no QC department, that tells me everything. If there is a QC department, once again I just take a chair in the corner and watch. My goal is to determine what happens when a quality problem is discovered. Do the QC people go out to the factory floor to see what happened?  Do they just pull out the defective item with no further action? Or do they do absolutely nothing? What happens to the defective item? Is it destroyed or is it put aside, presumably for sale in the local market. Some manufacturers will take you to their QC/RD laboratory. The same basic rules apply for this visit. Does the lab show signs of use, or it is just a fancy showroom designed to fool gullible foreigners? I recently visited such a lab at the offices of a food manufacturer. The equipment was beautiful. In fact, it was so beautiful that it was quite obvious that none of the QC and testing equipment had ever been used.

Finally I will visit the factory floor. By this time I have a pretty good idea what is going on at the factory. The factory floor visit is usually just a check on the equipment being used and the QC procedure is in effect.

Once you get used to using an approach like the one I use above, you will find that you can weed out the bad factories very quickly. In my experience, good factories are rare. If your initial review suggests that the factory is a good one, you should take the time to move to the next stage of discussing whether or not you can really do business with the factory. Any good factory will also be very busy. You need to have an honest discussion about what you want to have made, in what quantity and in what time frame. On the other hand, if you reject a factory, make your departure as soon as possible. Do not fall into the trap of wasting time going to lunch or dinner with the factory people that fall into the obvious reject list. On the other hand, if the good factories invite you to lunch or dinner, take the time to go. Good factories are rare and you should work immediately to build a relationship.

Shopify dropshipping:1688 Taobao Private Label Clothing Dropshipping Service

1688 Taobao Private Label Clothing Dropshipping Service

Along with more and more private label clothing brands on Shopify and Amazon as well as eBay successfully making good profits, the private label clothing brand are more and more attractive to online ecommerce sellers no matter beginners or experienced dropshippers. The clothing market is one of the biggest in all the online platform thus there are lots of segments for you to explore with private label brand. For example, children clothing, men’s clothing, women’s clothing are very big category, we can choose baby clothing 0 to 36 months, XL size or trainning clothing, underwear for women clothing category, or streetwear especially focus on the youth hip pop people, golf clothing for leasure life people.

However, when we planning to start private label dropshipping business which doesnt mean we can run immediately unless you professional dropshipping experience with enough funds at the beginning. Thus it is very important to evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of private label clothing dropshipping business.

Pros and cons of private label clothing dropshipping

When you customize clothing from Chinese clothing dropshipping suppliers and then put your logo on them before you sell, you have a private label. Doing business this way can lower product unit costs and lead to higher profit margins.

Another great upside of using a clothing dropshipping supplier or factory is that you can determine the quality and exact specifications of your clothing style. In some ways, this control leads to unmatched exclusivity. If you want to separate your clothing store from your competitors, creating a private label is one of the easiest ways to do so.

Assuming everything goes right with your clothing label, you can also build a strong customer base.

People become dedicated to clothing brands that provide the products they love. As long as you make the clothing store with helpful products that have sound quality, chances are customers will grow attached to your brand and repeat purchase in your store instead of your competitors.

Undoubtedly, one of the largest drawbacks of private labeling clothing is the moq clothing order quantities and quality as the dropshipping supplier will not help you private label the clothing for few quantities due to the cost concern, also if you do not have stable sales or didnt have good marketing strategy, there will be lots of stock inventory. You need to be sure that your clothing have stable sales daily or monthly and find a reliable clothing dropshipping factory or supplier to help you achieve your goals.

A lot of businesses trip up when the clothing dropshipping supplier becomes unreliable or fails to produce clothing meet your quality specs. Thus it is very important to find a trustworthy private label dropshipping agent when you dropshipping from China.

Private label clothing material list

When you decide to launch a private label clothing dropshipping business, it is necessory to know the material list, it not only includes label, size tag, hanging rope, logo tag, but also include packaging bags, logo sticker, coupon card as well as thank you card etc.

When you plan to do the private label clothing dropshipping you may need a full set of marketing design on the label, tag, packaging, sticker and thank you card to serve your marketing purpose, since they are all customized, the printing factory all has MOQ, you may not necessary to customize them all, just based on your budget to design them, determine the size for each of them for quote.

How to find Chinese private label clothing dropshipping supplier

How to find Chinese private label clothing dropshipping supplier might be a big headache for currently Aliexpress dropshippers. For one thing, Aliexpress sellers usually do not offer private label service, for another thing the clothing dropshipping suppliers all have high MOQ on private label clothing. Furthermore, private label clothing cost higher at the beginning. What should you do if you want to do the private label clothing dropshipping business from China? Find a fashion clothing dropshipping agent instead. After years of clothing dropshipping experience in biggest fashion clothing city Guangzhou, Elksourcing served hundreds of clothing dropshippers and accumulated reliable clothing factories resources, Elksourcing released private label clothing dropshipping service to help clothing dropshippers easily dropship private label clothing from China 1688 Taobao.

Elksourcing 1688 Taobao Private Label Clothing Dropshipping Service

Set up the private label clothing dropshipping service is easy but it is very hard to find reliable clothing factory with exactly the same design, material, size and quality with reasonable price to help you get enough profit margin. Elksourcing private label clothing dropshipping service include sourcing, purchasing, quality check, labeling, repacking, barcode, inventory warehousing, order printing, pick pack, international shipping and tracking upload as well as package tracking aftersale. If you have best seller clothing products, we can help you contact factory to customize private label clothing to meet your material quality, size and price requirements.

Store integration. To start our private label service, we will need admin access to integrate your store to update orders. Currently our ERP system supports Shopify, e

Sourcing. We mainly source and filter the clothing dropshipping supplier from 1688 Taobao based on your orders, and sourcing the printing factory for the label, tag, packaging, card for cheapest price and minimum MOQ;

Purchasing/Sample. Once we confirmed the clothing material, color, size and stock or delivery time with 1688 Taobao dropshipping suppliers, we will order them. If you have best seller clothing, then we will need to order sample before bulk wholesale orders;

Quality inspection. When the warehouse received the clothes, we will need to check the clothing material, workmanship, color, size, quantities to reduce aftersale issue and improve user experience. If the clothing from new supplier, the warehouse we need to measure the size to match the clothing size on your store. The clothing has flaws or stains cannot be removed will be returned for exchange or refund;

Labeling. If the 1688 Taobao clothing supplier do not help you label before ship to warehouse due to too less order quantities, Elksourcing warehouse could help you label after QC.

Repacking. After sewing label Elksourcing warehouse will help you repack with your packaging bags and stick size label.

Barcode. Elksourcing warehouse will print and stick barcode for each repacked clothing based on the SKU in shopify store, thus make sure each clothing style has unique SKU.

Inventory stock. During the barcode step, Elksourcing ERP system will add inventory for each clothing based on SKU above. After that we will put them on the warehouse shelf and mark shelf ID in the ERP system and update clothing inventory info. We can also help you create an account to check the real time inventory in our ERP system, you can easily check the items stock quantities, one the way to warehouse and out of stock.

Pick Pack. Once the warehouse people update the inventory information, the ERP system will show the orders complete for shipping, then warehouse people will pick up the orders complete, print order ID and receipt name as well as the order list, confirm barcode via PDA, take photos as evidence. During packing step if you ship sweater or coat which has big volume, we also could help you compress the volume to save shipping cost.

pack pack service
pack pack service

Consolidate service. After warehouse picked the orders and confirmed the SKU color, size and quantities in the order, then it will be consolidate packed to measure package weight and volume.

In order to provide faster and more stable service shipping from China to EU and USA, Elksourcing mainly ship via 4PX, Yunexpress and Yanwen for the small packages, usually 5 to 14 days during COVID19, stable and cost effective, we also offer courier service FedEx, DHL and UPS for 3 to 5 days delivery.

Tracking upload. In the pick pack step our ERP system will generate tracking number and print shipping label to stick on the package, then click fulfill to return tracking number to Shopify and other shoppingcart system.

You can also check Elksourcing dropshipping service procedure for more details.

How much does Elksourcing charge for private label clothing dropshipping service and how long time it takes to fulfill?

Unlike other Chinese order fulfillment agent, Elksourcing charge 15 yuan service fee per order which including nearly all the service listed above, then we charge 2 yuan/pcs label service fee, if you need to compress the package you will need to pay extra 2 yuan per bag for compression bags, and we have minimum 100 to 200 orders per month requirements due to the cost concern.

Thus if you want to start private label clothing dropshipping business, the total cost includes clothing price+domestic shipping from supplier to warehouse+label packaging material cost+service fee+label service fee+international shipping cost. please feel free to contact Elksourcing if you interested, we can help you estimate the total cost.

Since the whole private label clothing dropshipping service procedure has more than 10 steps, we usually take 1 to 2 days to fulfill orders once the clothing arrived our warehouse.

Does beginner qualified for private label clothing dropshipping business?

Elksourcing nearly received new Shopify clothing dropshipping inquiry every week with private label service requirements, frankly speaking we do not suggest beginners to try private label clothing unless they have stable sales and complete private label marketing strategy. Here we list 2 mainly conditions for you as a reference.

Firstly, although we could help you start private label dropshipping with 100 to 200 orders per month, you should at least have 10 to 20 orders per day or 400 to 600 orders per month, stable sales help you reduce the potencial stock inventory risk;

Secondly, the clothing in your store should be at least 25 usd or above or your avarage order value should be exceed 40 usd as the private label clothing cost is definitely more expensive than you dropship from Aliexpress at the beginning. You should have enough profit margin to private label the clothing. Currently Elksourcing private label clothing clients average order value exceed 70 usd, some already exceed 150 usd thus they have very big space to private label clothing and get enough profits for their business.

Thirdly, for beginners no need to do private label clothing dropshipping only because other clothing brands make big money, we should make it as a target and divide into small targets move forward step by step, until you accumulated enough experience and clients with stable sales, you can plan the private label clothing brand with your own marketing strategy to maximize the private label clothing function on your store.

After the 3 steps you are welcome to inquire Elksourcing private label clothing dropshipping service, we can not only help you dropshipping from 1688 Taobao, but also help you customize best seller clothing from local clothing manufacturers to reduce the cost.

Why dropshipping from 1688 Taobao? Does it cheaper than Aliexpress?

1688 Taobao have at least 10 times products and suppliers than Aliexpress, if you just start dropshipping and the product you selelct under 15 usd, dropshipping from 1688 Taobao wont be cheaper than Aliexpress as there has 1688 Taobao agent service fee and higher shipping cost. But if you have stable sales with best sellers, you can greatly optimize the product cost to reduce the cost for higher profits and faster delivery than Aliexpress.

Does Elksourcing have MOQ orders for MOQ?

Yes, due to the high labor costs these days, we have a minimum requirement of 100 orders per month and an average of 3 to 4 orders per day, so we need to make major efforts to ensure faster fulfillment services for customers with stable sales .

How much is the 1688 Taobao order fulfillment service fee?

Different dropshippers have different product categories and SKUs which has different cost during order fulfillment procedure. We charge fashion clothing dropshippers 20 yuan service fee per order since there are many skus and virants, other products categories we charge 10 yuan service fee per order. The more orders the cheaper service fee.
Our service fee charged on per order, it includes sourcing, purchasing, repacking, warehousing, pick pack, packing material and tracking upload service, you do not have to pay each service respectively.
When you inquiry service fee via email, please provide your store url and monthly order quantities, we will quote more accurate cost.

What’s the fee structure dropshipping from 1688 Taobao?

When you dropshipping from 1688 Taobao, the cost mainly include 4 parts, product cost, domestic shipping fee from supplier to 86Deal warehouse, service fee and international shipping fee.

How do I estimate the dropshipping cost from 1688 Taobao?

It isnt hard to estimate the cost as long as you provide the products photos or 1688 aliexpress product links. We will help you source on 1688 and confirm the product cost, domestic shipping, weight and volume for international shipping, plus service fee you will get a general ideas for the product cost dropshipping from 1688 Taobao.

How long does 1688 Taobao dropshipping takes? How long Elksourcing processing my orders?

Similar to dropshipping cost, the order delivery time include 3 parts, supplier deliver time, warehouse processing time and international delivery time.
Since Elksourcing located in Guangzhou, South China, since China is very big, if your supplier located in South China, the delivery time usually 1 to 2 days, if your supplier located in , middle China or East China, it takes 3 to 4 days, if your suppliers located in West, North East, North China, it usually takes 4 to 6 days to our warehouse. Our warehouse processing time usually in 1 day, when it comes to vacation, it may take 2 days sometime. As for international shipping delivery time, currently most packages shipping from China to EU and USA could be delivered in 7 to 15 days, more stable than ePacket and China post air mail.
How to reduce 1688 Taobao dropshipping order fulfillment time?Firstly when we sourcing products we usually choose suppliers in South and East China as the distance between us closer and the logistics more faster. Secondly we suggest Shopify sellers wholesale best seller products in store as they have stable sales and wholesale for higher profits and faster delivery from our warehouse. Thirdly, choose courier service as paid shipping service in Shopify store.

Can I pay through PayPal?

Sorry, we do not accept Paypal. If you can pay in RMB, Elksouring accepts WeChat and Alipay, and if you can pay in US dollars or the EU, you can accept Payoneer.

What dropshipping platforms you support in addition to Shopify?

In addition to Shopify, we also supports Amazon, eBay, Shopee, Lazada, Tophatter, Wish, Woocommerce and Mengato.

2020 Autumn Winter trending men’s women’s fashion apperal selection for Shopify dropshipping

It is estimated that by 2025, the global overall apparel consumer market revenue will reach US$2.3014 billion, with a compound annual growth rate of 5.3%. Among them, the overall consumer market revenue for women’s clothing will reach US$1.1791 billion, accounting for 51%; the overall consumer market revenue for men’s clothing will reach US$757.4 billion, accounting for 33%. For Shopify fashion apperal sellers it is very big market to make profits.

Global Women’s Clothing Consumer Market Overview

The top five subcategories of market share ranking from high to low are: women’s pants; women’s sweaters/knitwear/pullovers; women’s skirts (dresses/skirts); women’s accessories and others; women’s sportswear and swimwear .

Global Menswear Consumer Market Overview

The top five categories with a compound growth rate of 2020-2025, from high to low, are: men’s sportswear and swimwear; men’s T-shirts; men’s pajamas/housewear/underwear; men’s accessories and others; men’s jackets and jackets.

Portraits of online consumers in fashion-country differences between USA and Germany

Gender/income segment is similar: the ratio of male to female consumers, high, middle and low income groups all love online fashion shopping.

Age groups are different: the largest proportion in the United States is 25-34 years old, and in Germany it is 45-54 years old.

For different target markets, it is necessary to study the characteristics of consumer portraits in their respective markets, and then design and develop different products according to their different characteristics.

2020 Autumn Winter women’s clothing trends

Customer Portrait Analysis of Women’s Clothing

Gen Z 18-25 years old

1) High school, college students, women who are new to the workplace

2) Rapid growth in consumption capacity

3) Emphasize self and pursue fun

4) Compared with others, they shop online twice as often

Millennials (Gen Y) 26-44 years old

1) Working women, usually with families, children and pets

2) Main consumer group of women’s clothing

3) The consumption concept is cautious, emphasizing lifestyle and taste

Gen X 45-54 years old

1) Focus on high quality and high consumption capacity

2) The generation of women with the highest brand loyalty

3) Email marketing is the preferred channel of Gen X-generation

With the gradual spread of the COVID-19 epidemic in countries around the world, working from home has become a mainstream global trend, and some companies have even decided to allow some employees to work from home permanently. This has also given birth to a strong demand for home sports categories. This change in pursuit of a healthy lifestyle will not disappear with the easing of the epidemic, but will make people pay more attention to exercise.

Women’s hot selling sub-categories in 2020

Women’s sportswear

The Shopify sellers can create small and beautiful brands with moderate prices and complete functions. Fujian is the industrial belt of China’s sportswear. Among them, Shishi has complete upstream and downstream enterprises of sportswear, and Shishi Clothing City also has a large number of styles.

In addition, Hangzhou, Yiwu, Guangzhou, Dongguan, Xiamen and other places are also the main industrial belts of sportswear. Shopify sellers need to pay attention to the brand effect of mature and new brands in sportswear, avoid competition with super brands, and find breakthroughs in terms of price, style, and specificity. You can find all kinds of women sportswear dropshipping supplier on 1688.

1688 women sportswear dropshipping supplier

Women’s sportswear selection dropshipping tutorial-United States (Hot season: all year, Q4 is slightly higher)

Consumer behavior characteristics

1) Consumers pay more attention to quality and can accept high prices for high quality

2) Functionality for different sports is the core requirement

3) They tend to choose high-quality fabrics, strong tailoring, and hope to withstand high-intensity activities and weather conditions (rain, snow, heat, wind)

4) Versatility, a multi-purpose, also has great appeal

Women’s Sportswear Selection dropshipping tutorial -Europe (Hot Season: All Year)

European women hope that sportswear can have both sports and fashion concepts, and can seamlessly switch to other daily life scenes after sports. Therefore, they hope that the design of sportswear can be easily matched with other daily clothing styles.

Legging: Design with invisible pockets or side pockets, plastic effect of abdomen and buttocks, high waist style

Sports tops: summer sports underwear, tank tops and T-shirts, long-sleeved functional tops (yoga clothes) with waist exposed in autumn and winter, warm hooded sweaters

Material: nylon, polyester fiber, Lycra, elastic fiber, cotton, functional fabric

Shopify seller recommendations

landing pages and selling points:

1) Pay attention to the fashion elements, such as animal patterns, including leopard, snake, zebra, etc., but be careful not to pile up too many elements

2) Functional support effect, detachable chest pad, comfortable and softness, perspiration and breathability, stretchability, light and easy to carry jackets, etc.

Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day/April spring promotion in the first half of the year, Coupon summer in June; the second half of the year starts from Prime Day; autumn and winter: the second half of the back to school season, Q4 holiday as the main promotional node.

Women’s Underwear Selection Guide-Europe

Recommended categories: shaping underwear, invisible bra. Hot season: all year, May-August (bra)

Product selection suggestions

1) No steel ring, no chest pad, invisibility is quite popular

2) In recent years, outer wear and large-size underwear have gradually become a popular trend. Appropriate attention can be given to styles

Mainly divided into: shorts style> one-piece style> vest style> corset style

Underwear Material

Body shaping underwear: 80%-90% nylon + 10%-20% elastic material; invisible bra: nylon + silicone

Body sculpting underwear is mainly black and flesh-colored, focusing on breathability and support performance, and washing is also a selling point. The invisible bra is washable, non-degumming, and perfect fit is the main selling point. In product pictures, use product detail drawings (such as hook design), size drawings, and plastic effect drawings

In the first half of the year, Spring Sale, Coupon Summer, and Prime Day will have sales opportunities in the second half of Q4. It is recommended to continue to plan for the whole year. China is a big country producing underwear, and its industrial belts include Guangdong Shantou, Nanhai, Shenzhen, Zhongshan, Fujian Jinjiang, Zhejiang Yiwu, etc. which you can source the dropshipping supplier on 1688 easily.

Women’s Underwear Selection Guide-Japan

Japanese consumers have high requirements for the quality of skin-friendly textile clothing, and the comfort of underwear and pajamas is the primary motivation for buying styles.

Underwear: without steel ring>with steel ring.

Pajamas: Split> Siamese.

Invisible underwear: bra without steel ring, comfortable material.

Shaping underwear: lace, gathering function, etc.

Underwear: cotton, silk;

Pajamas: Modal, silk, coral fleece

Mainly single color, the best-selling colors are white, flesh color, pink, red, blue, gray and black. New life theme in April, Mother’s Day in May, Prime Day in July and Black Friday and Cyber Monday on 11/12.

Women’s Fashion Trends for Fall Winter 2020

2020 popular color keywords

Neo-Mint New Mint Green, Purist Blue Clear Water Blue, Cassis Black Currant Purple, Cantaloupe Melon Orange, Mellow Yellow Ancient Golden.

Popular elements/prints and materials/styles

70’s wallpaper printing, thousand birds pattern, check pattern, Disco Collar wide retro collar, puff sleeves, large shoulder pads.

Material/style

Colored leather, Suede suede/faux suede, faux fur, feather elements, wool coat, classic trench coat, loose suit.

Fashion trend information source

Well-known fashion bloggers: Kylie Jenner, Kim Kardashian West, Kendall Jenner, Khloe Kardashian, Kourtney Kardashian, Chiara Ferragni, Noha Style Icon, Olivia Palermo, Aimee Song, Alexa Chung.

Recommended sub-categories of men’s clothing

The overall market share of menswear has been steadily increasing year by year. The penetration rate of Chinese sellers is moderate, and there is a large market development space.

Men’s clothing consumers pay more attention to quality, and can accept high prices for high quality; high quality and functionality are the core requirements, while paying attention to style and aesthetics; the return rate is lower than that of women’s clothing.

Shopify sellers can innovate differentiated product design from the dimensions of the combination of quality and price, new fabrics, new functions, and new technologies, and enter the market in combination with brand building and appropriate marketing skills.

Popular sub-categories of menswear

Sportswear

Hot selling site: US station

Short-sleeved sports tops, sports pants, sports shorts, sports vests, sports suits, sports jumpers, training pants

Underwear and pajamas

Hot-selling countries: USA EU

Boxer briefs, undershirts, thongs, pajamas, bathrobes, pajamas

coat

Hot-selling countries: US, Europe, Japan

Casual jackets, leather jackets, down jackets, coats, sweaters, vests, jackets

Tops

Knitted tops, shirts, casual ribbed tops, sweatshirts, sweaters, T-shirts, Polo shirts, hoodies, sweaters, bottoming shirts

Accessories

Hats, belts, ties, gloves, small leather products, suspenders, squares, snoods, scarves.

Men’s Sportswear Selection Guide-United States (Hot Season: October-December)

The consumer groups of men’s sportswear can be classified according to sports items, which are mainly divided into the indoor fitness family and the outdoor family. Indoor fitness can cover yoga, running, equipment, etc., and outdoor can be divided into mountaineering, camping, cycling, boating, rock climbing, and sailing. Consumers pay more attention to quality, in order to be able to accept the price of high quality, functionality is the core demand; but style and aesthetics should not be ignored, high-quality materials, strong tailoring, can withstand intense weather conditions (rain, snow, hot wind) , Versatility, multi functional.

Short-sleeved sports tops, sports pants, sports shorts, sports vests, sports suits, sports pullovers, training pants.

Mainly made of polyester fiber, emphasizing breathability, quick-drying, mesh material, seamless technology, and good elasticity and ductility.

Men’s sportswear selection guide-Europe

The best-selling season is concentrated in Q4, reaching the highest annual sales peak in December, The market target population is concentrated between 25-35 years old. European consumers pay more attention to comfort, function (warmth, windproof, perspiration), simplicity and convenience in the choice of men’s jackets.

Hot styles: Jackets, winter jackets, mid-length down jackets

Material: Poly fiber, cotton, nylon, etc.

The colors of the best-selling models are mainly dark and other basic colors. The design of zippers, pockets and hats may become selling points. Emphasize the waterproof and windproof performance and heat preservation function of the product. Machine washability is also a selling point for consumers.

Men’s Sportswear Selection Guide-Japan

Hot season: concentrated from September to February, reaching the highest peak of annual sales. The market target population is concentrated between 25-35 years old. In the choice of autumn and winter jackets, the pursuit of simplicity, convenience and functionality. The consumer change from the pursuit of high-end brands to the pursuit of cost performance and functionality. The style design is also inclined to European and American styles, and no longer insists on a formal sense of rigidity. But emphasizes warmth, leisure, fitness.

Subdivided categories include down jackets, coats, jackets, vests

Down jacket: The style is mainly fit, and the basic requirement is to keep warm;

Coat: simple style, mainly for business occasions with suits, pursuit of texture, slim style;

Jacket: The main color is plain, which constitutes a casual style that matches the windbreaker and sweater, and the overall simple/slim design. Vest: V-neck sweater vest with shirt suit, electric heating vest.

Down jacket: polyester; coat: wool/polyester/nylon/cotton: jacket: polyester, cotton nylon, polyester, polar fleece; vest: polyester, wool, cotton.

In 2020, the outdoor sportswear market will reach 43.5 billion U.S. dollars, of which: the United States will reach 21.7 billion U.S. dollars; Europe will reach 18.45 billion U.S. dollars; and Japan will reach 3.34 billion U.S. dollars.

The compound annual growth rate for 2020-2024 is expected: the United States will reach 8.6%; Europe will reach 6.2%; Japan will reach 5.4%.

As a Shopify seller, when you dropship men’s and women’s sportwear you need to think about the consumer demand for sportswear to select the sub-categories for dropshipping business.