China Sourcing Agent

Every year, thousands of startup companies turn to China sourcing in this factory of the world. However, not all Chinese partners are good to work with as some place quantity over quality, some are devious in their dealings, and others are simply too difficult to work with. Due to the number of hidden risks involved, it is prudent to follow specific guidelines when seeking China sourcing partners. Following are some tips for finding good China sourcing suppliers. Online Directories – Beware of partnering up with Chinese suppliers based solely on picks from online directories. Most of these websites do not effectively screen the companies before accepting them and suppliers usually have to pay a fee to be listed which doesn’t give the websites much incentive for ensuring their authenticity. Background Checks – If you find companies online, or from other sources, ensure that you run background checks on them. Request References – If a…

Nowadays, there’re so many B2B websites like Alibaba, Global Sources, Made-In-China, etc, it’s so easy to find factories for your sourcing needs. In fact, it’s TOO EASY! So, you will find dozens or even hundreds of factories, so you will be puzzled, who is the best factory to work with? It’s very difficult to verify them, quite often, you end up with working with a lousy factory, and suffer in quality, time, even money! Therefore, lots of sourcing veterans recommend working with a verified China Sourcing Company, what’re the benefits? 1. Trust. This is the most important thing in business, especially when dealing with suppliers in ten thousand miles away. It’s safe to work with a China sourcing company which has been officially verified. 2. Better communication. Factories are strong in producing goods, but usually they are not strong in communications, as they lack of English speaking talents and the experience of dealing with…

When your business of importing from china grows, you need to find a buying agent to help you, but it is not easy. You do not know how and where to find an agent. There are questions such as should you sign a contract with them? If yes, what clauses to put on the contract? How can you tell if they are trustworthy? To use a buying office or a buying agent? Here are 6 things you should keep in mind when selecting an agent: 1. Trust is everything I think you would agree with me that to work with an agent, trust is important. Ideally, you need someone who is competent and reliable. How can you tell if your agent or representative in China is trustworthy? In many cases, first impressions can misguide you. You can do some online research to see if there are any comments and feedback about…

With international e-commerce booming up recent years, more international buyers import small orders of different goods from various Chinese suppliers, the international shipping cost from individual suppliers is extremely high if all the packages are shipped internationally separately every week. Small order import is mainly suitable for high-value, low volume/weight goods such as electronic gadgets, flashlights, luxury goods, etc with which the shipping cost occupied only a small portion of the total import cost. Small orders are not suitable for goods like ovens, kitchenware, giveaway and premiums, etc due to the high international shipping cost and thus the low margin space you can keep. A good China sourcing agent can provide well organized warehouse space to consolidate all the small order boxes and send them all within one shipment within a period of time, the shipping cost will be easily decreased by up to 50%. Quality control is another big issue, many…

A good Purchasing Agent plays a very important role in doing business in China, especially when you’re placing a large order: Sourcing and Verifying suppliers, Quality Control, Loading Process Supervision, Goods Consolidation, Shipping Coordination, Business Risk Control, Legal Contract Support and After-sale service. What is a purchasing agent and why do you need one? A purchasing agent could be an individual, a group of team or a company, helping companies overseas to import from China. Usually it will be supported by a team of experts in each field: sourcing, verification, order processing, quality control, etc. A good agent can be an extremely valuable asset in your overall product procurement strategy. Here are the main services offered by your qualified China purchasing agent: I. Keep finding new products and suppliers. II. Verify, inspect or audit existing suppliers. III. Price negotiations and Supply Chain Management. IV. Order processing. V. Quality Control. VI. Loading Supervision. VII….

The secret to great leadership does not exist in that cup of coffee you drink every morning–although it certainly doesn’t hurt. Great leaders all share something in common–they have certain habits that they do every single day. Take after them to embody the same characteristics, no matter who you’re leading. 1. Inspire optimism It can be difficult to always be the person finding the silver lining inside a huge, gray cloud. Even if you’re the only one carrying the burden, keep in mind that after a little while, positive feelings always do catch on. 2. Be genuine No matter how small the action, great leaders are genuine in everything they do. They are purely themselves, take it or leave it, and they don’t compromise their ideals or core values in an attempt to be liked. They do things because they believe in them; they believe in the words they say, they…

So, you’re planning on visiting factories in China. By this point, you may have been talking to a couple of potential suppliers for weeks or even months now. You may have narrowed your list down to a few candidates and are starting to arrange meetings and tours of factory facilities. Meeting your Guangzhou sourcing agent and supplier for the first time is a very important part of the sourcing process, especially in China. It is just as crucial a moment for the supplier as it is for you as this first meeting can make or break a business relationship. This is the time to get a real feel for the people you might be working with in the near future. However, if you’re not prepared for your visit, you could miss out on making the most of your trip. We’ve offered some tips for traveling to China in the past….

During my work in China sourcing industry for about 20 years, I’ve met many procurement professionals. I noticed that qualified procurement professionals have 5 attributes in common. 1. Excellent communication skills The procurement department often finds itself at the crossroads between multiple stakeholders: suppliers, customers, management, sales, etc. (If you need help identifying your company’s stakeholders, check out this article.) Excellent communication is essential. A procurement professional must be able to express him or herself clearly in writing and in conversation. Of course, a good communicator must also be able to listen in order to better understand the needs and perspectives of colleagues and suppliers. 2. Savvy negotiation skills This skill goes hand in hand with communication skills. The ability to negotiate doesn’t just refer to the ability to get something at the cheapest possible price; negotiations usually involve conversations about quality, delivery date, future relations, and more. A good negotiator knows…