One of my friends works as a sourcing agent for a few European buyers. He tries to do things the right way: he refuses any money or favor from the factories, and he conducts QC inspections at a professional level.

One of his clients imports a single product line, from a single supplier. Prices are high and quality is not satisfactory, but the purchaser likes his contact with the supplier. My friend is just supposed to check quality and make communication easier. He has offered to search and to audit a few new factories, to get better results, but the importer does not want to pay for it: “we don’t have the budget for that”.

After two years of frustration, my friend has decided to source and audit new factories, for free. Or, I should write, with no upfront cost for the purchaser. The trick is, the new factory will give 10% of all orders to my friend, without telling the importer… Who, in the end, will still benefit from it, because prices are still lower and quality will be better.

This story sparked a discussion about purchasers, with my friend. Some of them are mature and know the rules. Some are not quite experienced yet, but are willing to learn. And others will not open their eyes and their ears — they are just dumb.

What to do when you help a dumb purchaser who won’t change his ways?

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Related reading: The different kinds of sourcing agents