Most Chinese suppliers are fighting to get a share of the export business. Their margins are often quite slim because of intense pressure on prices. However, the situation is not always as simple as one may imagine. The exporters of a given … [Read more...]
How to deal with laboratory tests?
I received a message from a potential client who is starting to import garments into the US. I broke it up in different parts, and I inserted my responses below. It might be helpful to other importers wondering how to comply with their … [Read more...]
Internal quality control in Chinese factories
Many Chinese suppliers tell 'white lies' to their customers. They think it is the safest and easiest option. They also think foreign buyers don't suspect it, simply because they are far away and "they don't know how production works". I … [Read more...]
Traveling to factories in China
I spend about half of my time traveling, most of the time to industrial areas in China. These days I am a city I had never heard of, in Guangxi province. There was no airport close to my destination point, so I came with a night bus and I … [Read more...]
Using penalties effectively
Some importers can afford to conduct business in a friendly way with their Chinese suppliers. I am thinking of buyers who give regular orders to a few stable vendors, who don't work under intense timing pressure, and who enjoy a large … [Read more...]
Corruption of quality inspectors
This week my company had a booth on a China Sourcing Fair. I noticed that some questions/remarks came back regularly. A few days ago I wrote about importers who ask us the contacts of good factories. Another hot topic was how easily a … [Read more...]
Contacts of “good factories”
These days I am exhibiting on a trade show (China Sourcing Fair in Hong Kong). Every time I attend a fair to find new clients, I am amazed by the number of buyers who say “Oh, so you visit factories all over China… You must know some … [Read more...]
Managing urgent shipments in China
For some importers, everything (i.e. development, production, and shipments) is always done under intense timing pressure. Nothing can be done about it--it is imposed by their market. So, how can they ensure quick production in … [Read more...]
Four simple steps for starting to do quality control
Some importers have been buying from China for many years, and yet they have never done quality control in a professional manner. The science behind inspection protocols seems complex--nearly intimidating. Buyers don't know where to start, … [Read more...]
Risks of cancelled orders
I was talking with the boss of a trading company in Suzhou (Jiangsu province) earlier this week. I was actually doing an inspection for one of my clients from Canada. We were talking about the North-American market, and she told me that … [Read more...]
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