Stock lot products in China are unbelievably cheap, but they’re not the defective items you might imagine. The low prices are due to factories overproducing or buyers canceling orders, leaving these products unsold for a long time. To clear out this excess stock, factories sell them to specialized wholesalers at 20% or even less of the original factory price. Many of the cheap, free-shipping items on AliExpress come from these sources.
In China, the largest inventory wholesale markets are in Yiwu and Guangzhou. Yiwu inventory wholesale market, also known as Wuai Market, is concentrated on one street, as shown below.
Wuai inventory wholesale market in Yiwu
Guangzhou’s inventory wholesale markets are also large, but unlike Yiwu, they’re spread across different areas. For example, toy and clothing inventory markets are in separate locations. To find them, you’ll need to search online in Chinese or ask the locals for info.
Guangzhou clothing inventory market-1
Guangzhou toy inventory market-1
The inventory wholesale markets offer a wide variety of goods, especially consumer products including clothing, shoes, leather goods, bags, accessories, small household items, toys, hardware, plastic products, and other daily necessities. The prices are incredibly low.
Here, many businesspeople from Africa, India, and the Middle East hunt for bargains. Some are very familiar with China, while others use translation apps to communicate with Chinese sellers. Let’s take a look at these incredible prices! Click to enlarge these pics.
Toys are sold by weight, less than $2/kg.
Clothing is sold per unit, $1-$2/pc.
a T-shirt for just $1
a hoodie for $2
a children’s outfit/skirt/sweater for $1.5
a pair of jeans for $1-$2
Socks are sold by weight.
A pair of sandals cost $1.
a pair of socks for 10 cents
A pair of sandals cost $1.
crocs for $1 per pair
A scarf/hat is sold at dozens of cents.
a scarf for just 15 cents
a cashmere scarf for 50 cents
a hat for 20-40 cents
a children’s hat for 50 cents
Accessories are sold by weight, starting at $1.5/kg.
hair clips for $2 per kg
nails for 80 cents per set
earrings for 10 cents per pair
a bracelet for 10 cents
a ring or necklace for 15 cents
silicone keychains for $1.5/kg
NB! Some stock is sold only by the full carton box, not by the kilogram. Higher-quality accessories are slightly more expensive. For example, the bracelet below is 40 cents/pc.
$4 per carton box
better-quality bracelets for 40 cents/pc
Bags and suitcases are sold per unit, $1-$5/pc.
a canvas bag for $1
a leather bag for $2-$3
a suitcase for $5
Sunglasses: less than $1/pair.
Mugs: $1/pc
a pair of sunglasses: 30-60 cents
Mugs: $1/pc.
water bottles for $1/pc
Makeup tools are sold by weight.
eyelash curlers for $3/kg
makeup brushes for $3/kg
powder puffs for $5/kg
Kitchenware is sold by weight or per piece.
tableware for $1-$1.5/kg
frying pans for $4/pc
spatulas: $1/pc (official site: $16/pc)
Stationery is sold by weight, starting at $1.5/kg.
ballpoint pens for $1.5-$2/kg
colored pencils for $2/kg
notebooks for $2-$2.5/kg
Most household items are sold at $1/pc.
craft ornaments for $1-$1.5/pc
portable fans for 70 cents/pc
portable warmers for $1/pc
LED lights for 30 cents/pc
Feeling tempted? 
But I have to be honest with you—stock lots come with large MOQs. Unlike regular products or custom orders where you can buy a few hundred or thousand pieces, stock lots are all about selling in bulk. Suppliers need volume to make profits. Plus, they typically prefer to sell the entire stock lot in one go—like 20k pieces—not in smaller quantities of a few hundred.
Many people, including my clients, have made money with stock lots. But I have to be honest—it’s not easy. Success usually comes from knowing how to pick the right products because they understand their local market well. Plus, stock lots require a lot of capital for inventory since the MOQs are large. It’s a capital-intensive business.
So, before diving into stock lot purchasing, you need to know:
The sales channels—street stalls, grocery stores, wholesale, etc.
The price range your target audiences prefer.
The types of products you plan to sell.
The ways to find reliable stock lot suppliers—compare prices, check reliability, and see if they can be long-term partners.
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Jingsourcing is a leading Chinese sourcing company that helps medium & small businesses import from China. If you’re interested in inventory product sourcing or see a business opportunity, feel free to contact us at any time.
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Excellent article 👍
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