QualityInspection.org

Quality Assurance, Product Development, and Purchasing Strategies in China

  • Home
  • Articles
    • How To Manufacture A Product In China (without losing your shirt)? [Importer’s Guide]
  • Best Of
  • About Us
  • Contact us
X

Don't miss a post

It's easy to subscribe to our newsletter where you'll receive weekly updates for professional importers and manufacturers on better understanding, controlling, and improving manufacturing & supply chain in China, India, Vietnam, and beyond.

Sourcing From China Part 1: Sourcing Suppliers, Vetting Them, & Developing A Backup [Podcast]

September 3, 2021 by Adrian Leighton

Sourcing From China Part 1: Sourcing Suppliers, Vetting Them, & Developing A Backup

In this episode… Renaud talks about sourcing with Adrian in this episode. Specifically, how to handle sourcing from China yourself. He shares tips on deciding the best fit for your business, where to search for potential suppliers, how to vet them once you have found a list, and how and why to develop a backup supplier. This is part 1 of the sourcing journey, and stay tuned as there are more to come..!   Just hit the play button to start listening..! Listen to the episode right here … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Sourcing New Suppliers Tagged With: Alibaba, due diligence, finding a new supplier, podcast, sourcing from china, sourcing new suppliers, sourcing tips, trade shows, vetting suppliers

Which China Sourcing Option Is Best For You? [Podcast]

August 6, 2021 by Adrian Leighton

Which China Sourcing Option Is Best For You? [Podcast]

In this episode… Renaud and Adrian discuss your 4 China sourcing options: commissioned agents, trading companies, third-party service providers (like Sofeast) who provide sourcing as a paid service, and doing it yourself by going direct to manufacturers, including their pros and cons. Renaud also provides some insight into what exactly it takes to source directly from Chinese manufacturers yourself and shares some best practices for you to consider.   Just hit the play button to start … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Sourcing New Suppliers Tagged With: buying from china, podcast, sourcing agents, sourcing from china, sourcing new suppliers, sourcing tips

How To Validate Your Supplier’s Factory’s Production Capacity (From Abroad) [Podcast]

January 8, 2021 by Adrian Leighton

How To Validate Your Supplier’s Factory’s Production Capacity (From Abroad) [Podcast]

You can't visit suppliers in China due to coronavirus. How can you validate their production capacity without going on-site? As we head into 2021 travelling to see suppliers in Asia, in particular China, remains difficult for most buyers due to coronavirus restrictions. Even if you can travel, you face the risk of transit and a long mandatory quarantine period in a hotel before you're even able to conduct your business, so most buyers are staying at home for now. However, before placing an … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Supplier Management Tagged With: due diligence, factory audits, factory visits, production capacity, Sourcing, sourcing tips, verifying supplier capacity

Winners! Our Top Manufacturing Articles & Videos Of 2019

December 31, 2019 by Renaud Anjoran

Winners! Our Top Manufacturing Articles & Resources Of 2019

As 2019 draws to a close it's a great time to sit down and look at some of our most popular blog articles and resources from the last year. We also hope that you'll stumble across some great topics that you'd otherwise have missed. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Good Articles Tagged With: advice, manufacturing articles, sourcing tips, Tips, tips for importers

New Importer from China? Beware the Credulous Foreigner Syndrome!

December 2, 2019 by Renaud Anjoran

Managing Chinese Suppliers: Beware the Credulous Foreigner Syndrome

After about 40 years of openness, and about 15 years of 'direct trade' without Hong Kong trading companies, one might expect that foreign buyers take more precautions when dealing with Chinese suppliers. And, to be sure, some buyers do pay attention to risks. They have heard a few horror stories. They have read about common misconceptions, typical pitfalls, assumptions to avoid, and best practices for supply chain management. Unfortunately, it seems that a majority of people who haven't … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Supplier Management Tagged With: buying from china, China, China manufacturing, sourcing from china, sourcing tips, tips for importers

How a China-Based Buying Office Can Add Value

October 29, 2019 by Renaud Anjoran

How a China-Based Buying Office Can Add Value

If you source and buy consumer goods from several suppliers in China, your experience probably looks like this: Some suppliers are good, some are not so good and not improving When there is a quality issue, it is much better to detect it while the goods are still at the factory... and yet, sometimes, that factory plays the "do nothing and wait" game -- it means they do a very light sorting job and tell you "all is good now", simply because they don't want to do rework and discard some … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Supplier Management Tagged With: buyers, buying office, importers, optimized sourcing, Sourcing, sourcing from china, sourcing tips

China Sourcing: Does Your Sales Contact Really Work At The Factory?

September 2, 2019 by Renaud Anjoran

China Sourcing: Check if Your Sales Contact Really Works at the Factory

When I meet someone who has recently started working with Chinese companies, I often urge them not to make any assumptions. One of the most common 'discoveries' buyers make is... that they haven't been working with a factory directly when they thought they were. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Sourcing New Suppliers Tagged With: common problems with Chinese suppliers, sales contacts, Sourcing, sourcing from china, sourcing tips, supplier management, trading companies

24 questions to ask during a Chinese factory visit

July 3, 2012 by Renaud Anjoran

Factory

If you spend time in a factory visit, don't just record the information given to you. Prepare your questions! Here's what you should be asking during a Chinese factory visit... … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Sourcing New Suppliers Tagged With: chinese factories, chinese suppliers, factory visits, new factory, questions to ask Chinese factories, sourcing suppliers, sourcing tips


Weekly updates for professional importers on better understanding, controlling, and improving manufacturing & supply chain in China.

This is the official blog of Sofeast.com.

This blog is written by Renaud Anjoran, an ASQ Certified Quality Engineer who has been involved in chinese manufacturing since 2005.

Hit the button below to get in touch:

Contact Us!

Subscribe to our email newsletter

Connect with us

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
sofeast
sofeast
sofeast

Latest Articles

  • 7 Key Product Tests You Need To Use
  • UL Certification: Does Our Product Need It?
  • A Logical Development Roadmap for New Hardware Products
  • How did Apple build a winning supply chain in China?
  • CES 2023: Explore the Technology WE found Interesting.

Categories

  • Quality Control Tips
  • Sourcing New Suppliers
  • Supplier Management
  • New Product Development
  • Process Improvement
  • Ethical Sourcing

Archives

© 2023 QualityInspection.org