Recently I saw a few friends based in France. One of them said “maybe I should get this manufactured in China, and do a quick market test.”

Would it really be quick? Only in their dreams.

I had to explain a few basics about Chinese manufacturing. Here is a rough timeline for the would-be importer:

• Finding a supplier and choosing a product from his showroom (or explaining to him what we want): 3 weeks if there is a relevant trade show at the right time, and up to 3 months for uncommon products or complex projects.
• Receiving a perfect pre-production sample in hand: from 2 weeks in the best case, to 6 months or more for customized developments.
• Getting the prices, the delivery terms, and (hopefully) the contract agreed on: up to 2 or 3 weeks without the project moving forward at all.
• Receipt of components, production, packing and shipping: seldom under 4 weeks. And it can suddenly balloon if quality issues are found and must be repaired.
• International transport, customs clearance, domestic delivery: more than 3 weeks in Europe and in the US.

Add everything up, and it takes 4 months to manufacture a new product in China.

Fortunately, the turnaround time is down to 2-3 months for repeat orders with good suppliers. But don’t count on it until you find yourself in this situation…