Archive of Category: Optimal Cost
April 2, 2026
As we emerge from the Covid-19 supply chain nightmare and dust ourselves off, we note that some companies were able to react immediately to market opportunities. They placed orders and planned deliveries, secure in their knowledge that their supply chain will deliver. Those companies did really well when the market...
January 15, 2026
You often hear that “business is about people” and you know full well that having good people is the key to China supply chain management. The question is how do you find good people? How do you manage them? One tantalizing option that exists today but was not available only...
November 27, 2025
Given the current climate surrounding China, various factors have caused importers to ask if sourcing from China is still the right choice for their supply chain. Uncertainty due to tariffs/Trade war, rising labor costs and COVID-19 have sparked a lot of concerns. Is it time to search for China sourcing...
November 20, 2025
One common dilemma importers often face is the decision of whether to hire a China sourcing agent or a China sourcing agency. You hire people to get results. But hiring is a big investment of time and resources. To get a good return on that investment, you need to find...
November 6, 2025
We’ve all heard the saying, “The greater the risk, the greater the reward.” Although the risk/reward concept makes sense in most cases, let us not exaggerate. Sourcing and procurement is a risky and complex process in and of itself. If you want to reap rewards from buying directly from China,...
October 30, 2025
“Oh my gosh! These are not what I ordered! This is terrible!” Such things are often heard when some importers who buy direct from China receive their goods in their warehouses. How do such things happen? It is likely because they did not have clear quality specifications in place. A...
October 23, 2025
If you’re sourcing from China, you understand the importance of management and you are probably already evaluating your systems and processes on a regular basis to ensure that they are running optimally and according to your plans and your vision. (If you’re not, you really should.) SWOT stands for “Strengths,...
October 9, 2025
Experience: “Knowledge and skill gained while doing something” (MacMillan). Experience is a fun topic. In politics, those who have a lot of it worry they are too old, and those who don’t have enough argue it is not important. Kissinger is 100 years old, is his experience valuable? You decide. ...