While importing from China may seem like an easy way to make a fortune, the process is filled with potential pitfalls. Even a small mistake can lead to significant losses in both money and time.
Here, experts from various fields, including e-commerce mentors, international freight forwarders, and e-commerce tool providers, 3PLs share their advice. We hope their services and suggestions can help you.
1.Mistakes When Choosing Products
Nicole Martins Ferreira
The content marketer for Oberlo, Nicole is an eCommerce expert and entrepreneur with strategic thinking and detail-oriented personality.
“The biggest mistake people make when choosing products is not looking at data. You can get interesting insights by looking at popular Facebook ads to know if people engaging with the ad genuinely want the product or not.
You can also find data points like order volume and performance in the past 30 days and six months on Oberlo. Google Trends is also a popular way to check to see if a product is gaining popularity or declining to help you determine whether or not you should sell it.”
Bea Tanese
Public Relations Specialist here at ShipMonk – a 3PL that helps small and medium-sized businesses flourish by bundling software and fulfillment into a neat, easy solution.
Jared Vineyard
Jared Vineyard is the Content Manager for Universal Cargo, a freight forwarder with over 30 years of international shipping experience and a blog that is well-recognized and influential within the industry.
“A common mistake is selecting a product based solely on its perceived marketability rather than personal passion. While it’s important to choose a product that will sell, relying only on market trends without genuine interest makes the process much harder. Opt for products you are knowledgeable and passionate about to improve your chances of success.”
2. Mistakes When Buying on Chinese Wholesale Websites
Greg Mercer
Greg Mercer founded Jungle Scout in 2014. Since launched as the first Amazon product research tool, it has been carved as the go-to tool for novices and power-sellers alike.
“One of the biggest mistakes that most new sellers make when researching products is the failure to properly identify and track competition. The best way to do that is to look for reviews, listing quality scores, and relative keyword prices using tools like Jungle Scout’s web app.
For wholesale products where you’re mostly competing on price, the same applies. Your best advantage is always going to be in what you can buy a product for, so be sure to properly calculate all your costs and research the Buy Box price before listing a competitive product.”
Steve Chou
Steve Chou runs a site called My Wife Quit Her Job, where he talks about the entrepreneurial story he’s gone through and shares his insights and knowledge on how to build a high-growth business and coaching practice.
“The biggest mistake that I see new e-commerce entrepreneurs make is negotiating heavily on price without taking into account the potential loss of quality.
Whenever you successfully negotiate a decrease in pricing with a supplier, your work is not done. You need to make sure that there will be no compromises or shortcuts in production.
The best way to prevent quality fade is to create a very detailed quality control checklist that specifies every last detail of your product. Make sure you hire an inspector that will examine your goods as they are produced in addition to at the end.”
Jimmy Rodriguez
The COO & Co-founder of 3dcart, helping internet retailers by developing strategies. He works with businesses of all sizes to help them succeed in selling online.
“One of the biggest mistakes entrepreneurs make when buying wholesale from China wholesale website is a lack of quality check before placing an order.
Once you get your inventory there is no guarantee that it will be up to par and by the time request and refunds are discussed, you will have a lot of unfulfilled orders or a large stock of inventory collecting dust that can’t be sold.
The best way to do this is to visit the manufacturer and see their facilities, other products, and samples of your product. However, if you don’t have the resources to head to China, then it is best to at least get multiple samples delivered to you. This may take more time, but it can help you avoid a potential wholesaling nightmare.”
Ricky Hayes
The Founder and CEO of Debutify, the all-in-one eCommerce toolkit, including everything brand owners need to build, launch, and scale a profitable Shopify store.
“Using tools like Alibaba allows you to brand your products, customize them, and ship them right to your warehouse with the vendor you are working with. Here are the common mistakes to avoid:
- Don’t just choose the first supplier you find on Alibaba, get multiple quotes and multiple samples of the product to verify the quality.
- Always buy the smallest batch first to save money and reduce tariffs otherwise you may be hit with unexpected expenses and delays.
- If you have a new product to market make sure you have an NDA in place to protect your product from theft.
- Don’t use air freight for large orders as the cost of the freight will be very expensive.”
3.Mistakes When Selecting Suppliers
Steve Burg
The Head of Growth at CurrencyTransfer–– a financial technology and services company providing tailor-made technology-based solutions.
“When finding suppliers for an existing product or a new range, never focus solely on price. The cheapest option is not always the best, as quality is crucial.
It’s important to find a balance. A reasonably competitive price combined with good quality is more likely to lead to success.”
Rieva Lesonsky
The CEO for SmallBizDaily –focused on help entrepreneurs and small business owners start, run and scale their own businesses.
“Many Americans rush into business with China without proper due diligence.
“When looking for suppliers, ask friends and entrepreneurs for recommendations. Before traveling, research potential suppliers online and speak with them via Whatsapp (many Chinese businesspeople speak English) to verify their legitimacy. Ask for a virtual tour of their offices or factories.”
Richard Lazazzera
The owner of abetterlemonadestand– an online ecommerce incubator that helps make each of those thousand decisions easier.
“Not all suppliers on sites like Alibaba are the same. They can be manufacturers, wholesalers, or trading companies, and many new entrepreneurs don’t understand the impact on their profits.
Manufacturers create products and offer the best prices. Wholesalers and trading companies sell products from manufacturers, adding markups that reduce your profit.
To identify your supplier type, ask for their business license. The “Business Scope” section will indicate whether they are a manufacturer, wholesaler, or trading company. Manufacturers usually share their licenses readily, and reluctance to do so is a red flag.”
Caitlin Johnson
The content manager at DropShipLifestyle –an online eCommerce coaching program helped more than 10,000 students to success by leveraging the power of drop shipping.
“Many products are made in China, but branded ones often have fewer defects than generic products. While China produces high-quality goods, drop shipping generic items can lead to higher defect rates and customer dissatisfaction.
Expect some items to be defective or not match product photos, leading to returns that you’ll bear the cost for, hurting your profits.
Instead, build relationships with domestic suppliers. Using local suppliers reduces shipping times to 3-5 days, resulting in happier customers and better reviews. Choose a niche, build a store, identify competitors, and contact their dropship suppliers to get approved to sell their brands.”
“Many buyers come to us to develop their personalized glass bottles. I’ll show you three mistakes they often make:
At the project’s initiation, there was a lack of detailed communication with your supplier regarding the size, height, diameter, purpose, and budget for the bottles. So, the supplier couldn’t fully grasp your ideas, leading to multiple sampling attempts that failed to achieve your desired outcome. Please remember that effective communication helps great sourcing experiences and saves your time.
For beginners, try to avoid developing brand-new bottles because mold fees can be more than $3,500, and the MOQ is at least 50,000, which is not very friendly for startups. You can choose existing bottles from the supplier, and customize your logo on them, and the MOQ can be as low as 5,000.
Never trust suppliers’ product images blindly. Often, what looks the same in pictures can differ significantly in quality. It’s wise to get a physical glass bottle sample in your hand to assess color, defects, joint lines, and decoration quality.”
Tricia Newman
The owner of mymiraclebaby.com– a platform to share tips and guides on baby products.
“China is a leading supplier of household items, including baby products and clothes. Here are quick tips for selecting safe and reliable baby gear from China:
- Ensure the manufacturer complies with safety regulations and is registered under children’s product manufacturing.
- If the manufacturer also makes other items, do further research.
- Check the brand’s reputation for quality, especially for products impacting health.”
Rush
The Founder and CEO of Sell The Trend, a leading all-in-one dropshipping platform designed to help anyone start dropshipping in the fastest, easiest, and most affordable way.
“Let’s discuss two common pitfalls dropshippers face when importing from China. First, not thoroughly vetting suppliers. Low prices can be tempting, but without researching a supplier’s reliability and product quality, you risk ending up with poor-quality goods or no goods at all.
Second, not considering shipping times and costs. Many dropshippers underestimate how long it takes for products to reach customers, especially with standard shipping. This can lead to frustrated customers and negative reviews.”
4.Mistakes Before Massive Production
Daniel Workman
The founder of Worlds Top Exports –an educational portal designed to share key business metrics and insights that empowers researchers to monitor the pulse of global trade.
“Many businesses fail to conduct rigorous pilot projects or trials before committing to mass production with external suppliers, leading to costly product flaws and missed deadlines, as seen with Bombardier in Canada.
Mass production requires formal trade documentation signed by both parties before work begins. A clear contract should define deliverables, delivery dates, quality control, and financial penalties for non-compliance.
While trade documentation is typically in English, Chinese suppliers may require a translated version. Consider cultural and time-zone differences that can affect communication.
Carefully planned pilot projects can identify potential issues early, preventing costly mistakes during mass production.”
Kseniya Pinkova
The marketing manager at Ecwid– an e-commerce platform with 2 million users worldwide helping to easily create a bold online store and start selling anywhere online or in-person.
“Be sure to do the calculations right as inventory management is critical for your success. Carry too much stock and you risk losing money. Carry too little and you’ll struggle with order fulfillment.
To estimate the approximate volume for your first massive production, study average industry conversion rates. With the traffic of 5,000 visitors/month and 1% CR, you’ll probably make 50 sales. Anything between 20-50 items would be enough to stock.”
Mike Michelini
The host of the Global From Asia podcast– a community of cross-border business experts. Help the world learn more about international business.
“I rushed production of a product based on a similar sample – not an EXACT production sample – and ordered containers of it to send to the client – a distributor in the USA. Later the paint on the table would melt in the heat and the sticker would come off.
The USA distributor said that it was my fault – but actually, they didn’t want to wait until the production sample was ready and didn’t want to spend the $300usd express shipping for another product sample to be sent.
Lesson – spend the extra time and money to get an exact sample and have it signed off. Especially if any modifications are made on it.”
5.Mistakes When Shipping Products from China
Austin Wong
The SEO and digital marketing for Schumacher Cargo Logistics –an international vehicle shipping and overseas relocation company.
“One mistake people make when shipping products from China is they don’t account for any costs beyond the overseas transport. During this process, issues like customs inspections can happen on both sides of the ocean. If your goods are inspected it can cost a few thousand dollars per container.
Mistakes like errors on paperwork can also cost thousands and cause delays in receiving your goods. Even if it is unlikely, it is best to be prepared and understand events like these do occur when shipping.”
Thanks for sharing the information with us to much appreciated
You have some great insight into what it takes to be successful sourcing. I’d like to wholesale socks from China to my Australia. what are the taxes that I have to pay? Thanks for any answer.
Hi Jamie, I have sent an email to you. Please check it.