When it comes to importing from China or any foreign country, there are 3 major stages that are critical to profitable importing. They are Research and Tender, Sampling and Contract Negotiation and Production and Delivery Management.
The first stage to importing is the Research and Tender procedure. This involves finding and qualifying appropriate manufacturers for your products. This stage marks the most critical part of the system for importing goods. If you wish to be successful at importing goods, you have to first lay the ground work. It is very easy to find factories on the internet, sites like alibaba.com and madeinchina.com can offer an importer a wealth of manufacturers for the merchandise you wish to import. But! The key point to remember when buying directly from associates of such websites is that often a few emails is not enough to decipher the good from the bad. When importing goods some critical questions and procedures need to be followed. In order to ensure your potential manufacture is not just another scammer, you will need to do appropriate background checks.
Some areas worthy of researching include:
- CREDIBILITY - Ask for testimonials of former clients.
- EXPERIENCE IN EXPORTING - Ask where they have exported to in the past? Are they capable of importing goods into more developed countries (higher quality standards)? e.g. Australia, Europe etc.
- QUALITY AND WORKMANSHIP - Can they demonstrate the most complex and high quality products they have produced?
- SERVICE ATTITUDE - How fast do they respond to your inquiries? What is the quality of their replies like?
- PRODUCTION CAPACITY - Are they to small or massive (e.g MOQ (Minimum Order Quantities)? Will they be suitable to handle bigger orders as your business expands?
- CAPABILITY TO FOLLOW DIRECTIONS - Ensure your potential suppler can understand and follow your instructions and requests.
- WILLINGNESS TO ADHERE TO QUALITY BENCHMARKS - Make sure that the supplier is committed to developing a long term relationship that includes ensuring your quality guidelines are meet whenever you are importing goods from them.
The initial step for importing goods is often where the most effort is required. Prior to investing in the sampling or production process, it is important that you initially manage the problems surrounding importing goods by making sure you have found a manufacturer that is trustworthy and right for your importing needs.
