EglConsulting

Eagle Consulting

Yes, we are experts at buying. We understand the China marketplace and we can help you in many buying situations in China. From novice to experienced, we have the perfect program for you
If you are an established import company with an existing purchasing program and experience in China sourcing, we help you gain better control over your sources
If you use agents currently but you want to deal direct with the factory
If you are new to buying in China and you want to deal with a Western company

China is a great place to source most things but where you will really see value is in products that have high labor content.
China is the world's leading manufacturer for electronics to clothing. There are few things that cannot be sourced from China

You do not have to buy big volumes in order to source from China. In some cases you can order as few as 25 pieces if you are testing a new market/product.
The more you order, the more you can customize your product. With bigger orders you can create your own designs and logos to a high standard of finish.

Compared to producing at home you can save up to 50% on production costs. Even with designing and prototyping costs are up to 50% cheaper in China.

The 3 main ways to source from China are the direct approach, the agent approach and the full service provider.

A direct approach involves your own staff implanted on the factory floor supervising production directly with the factory.
This gives you the highest level of control over quality but there is cost and overhead to consider when having your own staff co-located with production facilities.

The agent approach is a more common approach. An agent will have an office in the home country or in China or Hong Kong.
The agent will be a specialist in what you seek and will have existing relationships with Chinese manufacturers in that product category.
Due to the fact that it takes time to build relationships with a factory, their allegiance is mainly with the factory and the agent cannot quickly change factories if there is a problem.

A full service provider is an extension of your business. They represent your company in China and provide services based on your needs.
You should look for one with experienced staff who understands your needs, native Chinese sourcers in China with access to hundreds of factories and allegiances to none of them and a strong quality assurance program.
Finally there should be logistics support for shipping, customs and warehousing.
They should understand trade finance to facilitate payment terms.

If you used an agent or full service provider, chances are you could get credit on future orders, however if you went direct and used your own quality control, it is highly unlikely that you could get your money back.