Sourcing and trusting a Chinese manufacturer?

[Liamh121]

Hi guys,
Am currently in the process of sourcing a Chinese manufacturer to produce wristbands for one of the businesses. We have resorted to using Alibaba and are finding it difficult to verify the fakes from the genuine businesses and really don't want to be ripped off. The initial order will only be for around £300 but we are on a low budget and want to get it right. Does anybody have any tips?

Many thanks,

Liam

 

[hemibag]

Hi, I am in China, I know most of them are genuine businesses regardless of that it is whether a silver/gold member or not, if you choose silver or gold member you will cost more on your goods but safer normally.
there are many small factories are genuine businesses too, and cost less, but it is hard for foreigners to find them, if you have friends in China, then let them give you recommendations.

 

[keytop]

Hi guys,
Am currently in the process of sourcing a Chinese manufacturer to produce wristbands for one of the businesses. We have resorted to using Alibaba and are finding it difficult to verify the fakes from the genuine businesses and really don't want to be ripped off. The initial order will only be for around £300 but we are on a low budget and want to get it right. Does anybody have any tips?

Many thanks,

Liam

Choose and visit the suppliers directly,Or place a small order to check the quality.

Here is Soros Chen from guangzhou,China. Who work for several importers from Euro as their buying agent, Just like their “eyes” and “ears” in China.
Any related business problem, Will try to give you some advice.

 

[PhilipWest]

Create a form that asks the potential vendor about their business with a request for photos etc

The other alternative is us a company with a HK office.

 

[kim_il_sung]

I've been in the same position as yourself, and as has been mentioned most of the suppliers are genuine.

What was more of an issue than fake suppliers was poor quality suppliers. I ordered sample batches of a particular low cost electronic product (decorative lights) from five Chinese suppliers and out of the samplestwo were top quality, one was of reasonable quality, one was poor quality and one did not work at all - so my advice would be to request samples before putting in a complete order, or attempt to source from a UK manufacturer/distributor.

 

[AlibabaTalk]

Hi Liam,

Thanks for your question. We’d like to reassure you that at Alibaba we’re always working hard to tackle unfair practices on our marketplace. We’ve developed a number of policies and procedures to tackle fraud, and systems of authentication and verification, including our Gold Supplier membership scheme.

Of course, it’s very important to conduct due diligence before you make an order with a new supplier. Hiring a local inspection is a solution. We understand that it will incur extra costs but this can ensure that you are happy with the quality of the products you received. The other suggestion is to order the sample first before you make bulk purchasing.

We recently launched our Product Inspection Service, which means you can find a local inspection agency to check out the products for you before you make the order. You can find the information here: http://bit.ly/AlibabaInspection

You can read more about Safe Trading on Alibaba in this section of our website. http://uk.alibaba.com/knowledge-centre/safe-trading.html

Kind regards and happy trading,

The Alibaba.com UK Team