We are the age of information. All of it is readily available at your fingertips. And for many, the problem is no longer finding suppliers, but rather, qualifying suppliers. We previously wrote about how to verify factories (see China sourcing: How to verify factories). Since this blog, new importers continue to ask...
For years, many retail companies have been moving towards online stores and shopping, and the pandemic served to accelerate this trend. Being the end user, this meant new choices and new experiences, real multiple channels to buy merchandise. For businesses supplying these end users, omnichannel retail has become a hot...
We have been helping importers manage their China direct buying for 45+ years now and many that come to us for help share a common concern – pricing. However, one of the very first questions we ask new clients is – what is your target pricing? Many of them...
In this highly competitive world, there are many possible Chinese suppliers and manufacturers for your goods. It can be difficult to identify the “best fit” to meet specific needs and requirements when you buy direct from China. In an April 2019 blog, we addressed a similar issue: How-to Qualifying Suppliers...
A China sourcing agency is the best way to support a sourcing program: all your issues are addressed from placing orders to quality assurance to on-time delivery. But (there always seems to be a “but”) it requires an investment. How do we know all that? Well, we have one, obviously....
Recently, I read an article on QualityInspection.org, “The Danger of Choosing a ‘Cheap’ Chinese Factory.” The objective of most companies with China sourcing programs is to save money, it stands to reason that many importers are looking for cheap Chinese factories. But what happens when saving money becomes, in effect,...
As a China sourcing service provider, one of the questions I am asked most often is how to protect Intellectual Property (IP) when manufacturing goods in China. This scrutiny is justified: nobody wants their idea stolen by their manufacturer. Since China is the “supplier of the world,” it receives extra...
China has been heavy in the media lately, mostly because of the US-China Trade War. However, a recent article from the Economist’s Schumpeter blog caught our eye. In the midst of all the news on tariffs, this article, Chinese Firms are not all serial intellectual-property thieves, actually highlights some of...