Sourcing Pet Products From China A Buyer Checklist

Establish Whether You Are Talking To A Factory

The first thing worth settling is whether the company makes the product. Ask for the plant size, the headcount and the equipment, and ask where the product development sits. Our own answers are 13,000 square metres in Wuhan City, 120 skilled workers, more than 100 sets of advanced automatic facilities and an in-house production developing team.

• Ask for the factory location, floor area and headcount
• Ask who does the pattern work and whether it is in the same building
• Ask what testing equipment is on site, by name
• Ask which markets the range already ships to, by country

Watch How The Supplier Handles What They Cannot Do

The most useful signal in a first conversation is how a supplier answers a question they should say no to. A supplier who agrees to everything has either not understood the request or is planning to solve it later at your expense.

• Ask for a lead time before giving the item and quantity, and see whether they invent one
• Ask for a certificate and see whether they name the document or send a wall of logos
• Ask them to copy a competitor product exactly and see whether they qualify the answer
• Ask what the trial price does not tell you about the volume price

Settle The Specification Before Price

Price without a fixed specification is not information. Get the item code, the material, the measurements and the packing format agreed first, then compare quotes. Every item in this catalogue carries an Item No that stays with the product, which is what makes a repeat order comparable to the first.

Test Before You Commit

A low minimum is worth more than a low price on the first order, because it converts a guess into data. Most items here carry a 10 piece minimum, which makes a five item trial across one category a fifty piece shipment.

• Trial inside one category so the results compare against each other
• Spread graded apparel across sizes rather than taking ten of one
• Judge on sell-through and returns together, not sell-through alone
• Repeat the winner against the same Item No so shipment two matches shipment one

A Good First Enquiry

The more of this you put in the first email, the faster and more accurate the answer comes back.