Is Your Company Ready to Buy Wholesale from China?

Here at China Plains and in my career, I've met a lot of different companies that want to buy wholesale, (or as I will call it from now on, outsource) from China directly. The ones that get the most benefit from it usually have a few things in common. One of those is being right-sized. Let's call it the Goldilocks scenario:

1. Too Small: If you're starting your business out of your garage, you do not have the time or money resources to work with a China factory directly. Most likely, you do not have the resources to hire a company like China Plains to do it for you either. Furthermore, you're probably not buying product in large enough volume, to achieve low per-unit transportation costs. You can order 100 lamps from a China for cheaper price than you can in the US. But transportation can run in the $5-10 range, per lamp! At lamps, this number would drop to $1-$2. In this case, try to find a domestic wholesaler. Make sure they back their quality by offering free or nearly-free returns. 

2. Too Large: Very large companies, on the other hand, have entire departments or even a China-based office to do their outsourcing. They have in-house resources to make sure they're dealing with reputable factories. More importantly, they have a process to ensure these factories make the product with the right specifications and features, and have adequate QC in place. If your a Fortune 1000 company, you won't need a company like China Plains to do your outsourcing for you. However, we may be able to help with strategic consulting under our Relationship Management services. 

3. Just Right!: If you're in between these sized companies, then you have the resources to make sure your importing partner does a medium to long term project necessary find the best factories, at the best price, and that your product is constructed correctly the first time, with quality assurance procedures that ensure each shipment meets your quality requirements. You are probably ordering at a large enough order volume (1000+ units, $10,000+ order volumes & revenue) to achieve lower transportation costs. Most likely, your company has been doing all or part of the manufacturing and assembly in house. Possibly you are working with a US-based 3rd party for final assembly. Maybe you are already buying direct with China factories for some or all of your components. Perhaps you also have heavily customized parts, or only a single current supplier that can supply those with the specifications you need to make your product work reliably. In all these cases, a good outsourcing partner can offer effective management consulting of your outsourcing process. They can understand your products, find reliable suppliers, and understand the QA processes needed to make sure your product is made correctly. 

Find out more about our services on Outsourcing Management and Product Sourcing, or Contact Us for more information if an outsourcing partner is the right option for you.