Many buyers want to find Chinese factories to get competitive prices and optimize their supply chains. There are actually many ways to find manufacturers in China. The challenge lies in spending the time and effort to filter through them. Today’s article will focus on the following aspects.
Where to find a manufacturer in china?
China wholesale websites
Whether you are a beginner or an experienced buyer, the most recommended way to find suppliers is through wholesale websites. Among them, Alibaba is always a good choice. It has the most comprehensive product categories and is very user-friendly. Of course, there are other wholesale websites like DHgate and Global Sources, but I suggest not spreading your attention across too many platforms. Focusing on just one, like Alibaba, is enough to find the manufacturers you need.
Trade Fairs
Many people will recommend coming to China to attend trade fairs like Canton Fair. However, I responsibly say that if you are a beginner, don’t come to China directly. It’s not just a small expense, especially when you don’t know what you want to sell, you’re likely to gain nothing.
The buyers at trade fairs are usually looking to expand their product lines or develop new products because many Chinese factories at these fairs are promoting their new products. Additionally, some large buyers who have been in business for many years already have their suppliers and attend the Canton Fair to visit them and look for new opportunities. From my experience in receiving customers over the years, this is typically the case. Beginners rarely come because it is indeed a significant expense for them.
Here are the details about the Canton Fair, which I have mentioned in great detail in my blog. You can click the link to take a look.
Jingsourcing
Jingsourcing is a leading sourcing company in China, located in Yiwu, collaborating with many local factories. These factories are difficult to find on Alibaba, especially small to medium-sized ones producing simple daily-use items, who offer competitive prices.
In addition to their own factory resources, Jingsourcing provides excellent services such as product customization (improving existing products), new product development, and customized packaging. No other supplier can match Jingsourcing in this regard.
- If you’re a beginner with no concept of factories or products, Jingsourcing can help you step by step.
- If you have a wide range of procurement categories, Jingsourcing can act as your purchasing department with their team support.
- If your supply chain is mature and you have many suppliers, Jingsourcing can help you manage them, oversee product production, and handle product quality control.
What are the features of the factory?
Generally located in industrial clusters
Manufacturers located in industrial clusters can offer higher quality products at more competitive prices. China’s industrial clusters are mainly located in the Yangtze River Delta and the Pearl River Delta. You can check the company profiles of manufacturers to find out their locations.
For example, if you’re looking for factories producing outdoor and playground toys on Alibaba, you’ll find that over 60% of suppliers are located in Yongjia, Zhejiang Province. This means that this place is a major production area for such outdoor toys, where you can easily find genuine factories with more favorable prices.
Relatively specialized product lines
One way to distinguish manufacturers from trading companies is to check their product categories. If a supplier’s product range is very diverse, then it is likely a trading company. This is because factories typically only produce one or a few similar products.
Factory's business scope
A factory’s business scope is usually indicated on its business license. If it includes words such as “production”, “processing”, and “manufacturing”, it is likely to be a factory. While a trading company is generally more focused on “selling”.
How to identify a good factory?
Identifying Issues During Communication
There’s no shortcut to determining if your factory is reliable. Relying solely on their basic store information or certificates isn’t reliable because it’s all self-reported. The only way is to initiate preliminary cooperation with the factory, communicate with them extensively, and discover any issues. If they’re deceiving you, most of the time you can uncover problems by asking for more information.
For instance, observe if they respond promptly during cooperation, understand your suggestions for product improvements, or immediately shift blame when problems arise. These details are not apparent just by looking at their store information.
Third-Party Inspection Agencies
Before formal cooperation with a factory, even for trial orders, if you’re unsure about the factory’s reliability, you can engage third-party quality inspection companies in China to conduct factory audits. You inform them of the areas you want them to focus on, and they’ll follow your instructions.
As Jingsourcing is also located within industrial clusters, it’s easy and efficient for us to audit factories. We’ve assisted many buyers in factory audits. If you need our factory audit services, feel free to contact us. If you’re interested in our factory audit cases, follow us on TikTok and Instagram.
How to deal with suppliers?
Compared to trading companies, if you can directly cooperate with factories, you indeed have the opportunity to get some good prices. But it’s undeniable that dealing with factories also comes with its fair share of troubles.
- When your purchase quantity is small, factories may not prioritize your orders and may react passively to your improvement suggestions.
- The salespeople at factories may be novices and not fully understand your product, leading to increased communication costs.
- Sometimes, due to language barriers, they may not accurately grasp both parties’ intentions.
- The service provided by factories may be inferior to that of trading companies. For example, if you want custom packaging, they may not pay attention to your requirements.
Communicating with factories can indeed pose many challenges, but as long as you maintain sincere communication, directly express your needs to the factory, and remain vigilant against overly cheap deals.
Whether it’s a factory or a trading company, never just place an order and forget about it. Even if your supplier promises everything, don’t expect them to adhere to all agreements without fail. Always communicate in real-time, or else when problems arise, you’ll be endlessly troubled.
