As an International sourcing company, we know all the ins and outs of product sourcing. Our holistic commercial product sourcing services assist businesses by delivering exceptional service and providing well-made products through a simplified sourcing process.
To help you understand our service, we’ve answered the following frequently asked questions.
Q: What is Product Sourcing?
A: Product sourcing is finding dependable suppliers in the market to purchase and/or manufacture quality items for your business.
Q: What does a sourcing company do?
A: A sourcing company handles the entire process of finding suitable manufacturers, overseeing production and (if necessary) arranging delivery of the goods to your business.
Our on-the-ground team ensure the appropriate and dependable manufacturers are used, taking the hassle and unknowns out of a company trying to source goods directly.
We provide product sourcing services by locating qualified suppliers, creating prototypes, negotiating contract conditions, performing quality control during manufacturing, and arranging global delivery. Through our unrivalled access to manufacturers, we can combine supplier resources, saving you time and money.
Q: How are qualified suppliers found?
A: We use our extensive manufacturer network to find the most suitable manufacturer for your sourcing order. Our criteria of qualification involve checking that the source matches your specifications before negotiating the best pricing and contract conditions. We will also verify that the manufacturers have all of the necessary permits to export goods outside of the country and to their final destination, as well as meeting any other criteria your business may have.
Q: What happens before and after an order is confirmed?
A: Before an order/design is confirmed we’ll provide you with a quote from a qualified supplier that details your product specs. We’ll provide you with mock-ups of what the final product will look like. We’ll always require the customer’s approval before sampling and production is done.
After you’ve confirmed the order and are happy with the design, we’ll ask for a deposit to commence your order’s production. The production process varies from product to product but will generally take 3-5 weeks.
Q: When can I see samples or prototypes of the product?
A: Samples can be made before entering full-scale production for you to inspect. A member of our team will also provide an in-depth quality check report to ensure that the product meets your qualifications. Once you have confirmed that you are happy with the quality and specifications, we can then enter full-scale production.
Q: What kinds of products does your company source for?
A: We mainly source for consumer goods due to our proximity to the largest wholesale market in China. According to the Government of China’s official data, there are around 70,000 booths, with more than 1,700,000 different kinds products.
These products are from more than 210,000 Chinese suppliers.
For other products that do not have competitive prices in this market, we source them from other cities. For example, we source electronics from Shenzhen city and furniture from Foshan City.
Distance is never a problem, you will still get the product in time.
Q: Does your company know all industries/companies well?
A: We have sourced many different kinds of products. However, we cannot be experts in all industries.
For a fact, everyone has his/her knowledge blind area.
Whenever we get a new product, we learn from it and contact experts from either the factory or supplier. With this kind of cooperation, we ensure the entire sourcing process is efficient.
Q: How do you search for suppliers in China?
A: We do a comprehensive online search. Our company collects this information via Chinese search engine and business portals.
The Meilin team evaluates and assesses each supplier by doing a thorough inspection of every product they offer. We then filter good suppliers who can then send us their quotation and sample products.
Offline: We have also accumulated many factory resources from the local city, wholesale markets, trade fairs, friends’ introduction etc.
Q: How can you start cooperating with us? Is there any limit?
A:Just tell us what products or services you need. We will then take you through a step-by-step process on how to get it faster at the best market price.
Even new importers find this to be an easy process. For more information, please check how we work page.
There’s a MOQ per item. It is $500.
When your order total amount is > $2000, then MOQ amount per item can be lower.
Q: How do you guarantee the quality of goods when they arrive at your warehouse?
A: When goods arrive to our warehouse, we open every box to check quality, color, quantity, size, and take HD photos for you to confirm. For some customized orders, we start the quality control process during production.
We ask the manufacturer to send us samples from the bulk production process.