Alibaba's business managers are looking for ways to get more money. That's understandable. But I think the way they achieve their objectives is downright shameful and need to be called out. … [Read more...]
Why First-Time Buyers Fall for Trading Companies in China
Let's say you are looking for a supplier in China to make your innovative product. You know that traditional sourcing agents are not the solution -- they simply don't have the ability to assist you with design reviews, engineering work, … [Read more...]
The 3 Types of Hong Kong Trading Companies
After working myself in a Hong Kong trading company a few years ago, and then observing my clients' suppliers, I have noticed a lot of similarities among these companies. I think we can distinguish between three types of trading … [Read more...]
Do Importers NEED Trading Companies to Buy in China?
A reader asked me an interesting question: I am really disappointed and fed up from the dishonest way of doing business: changing prices in the last moment, late deliveries and all the other tricks that were mentioned in your blog. In … [Read more...]
Chinese trading companies and their dirty little secrets
Before you read this post, I have to emphasize that some Chinese trading companies here--including Hong Kong--truly create value for their customers. What I wrote below does not apply to all intermediaries. But I observed it so many … [Read more...]
Trading companies and efficiency
Some large retailers purchase their goods directly from Asian manufacturers, who in turn buy the components and process them. That's about as "direct" as it can get. It allows buyers to avoid the margins of all kinds of … [Read more...]
8 Must-Follow Tips for Software Companies Developing a New Hardware Product
Software companies are often used to using an agile design approach (often SCRUM) to design and develop software products, and they wonder if they can carry over the approach to when they need to develop a new hardware product to support … [Read more...]
Auditing a Trading Company in China: What Checklist to Follow?
In some cases, it makes sense for an importer to work with a trading company and to count on them for managing developments and productions properly. Since a trading company is supposed to follow up on production and since … [Read more...]
2 Important Lessons From CHINESE Companies Seeking Higher Quality.
Recently I had interesting conversations with a few buyers, who work in Chinese companies, and who need to buy local products that satisfy a high standard. How do they do? Are personal relationships ("guanxi") key? Absolutely … [Read more...]
Buying through a trading company or an agent in China
I mentioned in several articles that trading companies are sometimes the best choice for small importers. And two people asked me to confirm/explain it recently. I think it depends on several factors, such as: Do you have time to … [Read more...]
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