
Do you want to import from China? Discover 7 key tips!
Imports from China are becoming more and more popular. Products manufactured in Asia are very cheap. This is a key factor influencing the high interest in importing them. It is worth remembering, however, that trading over such long distances is never important. It is therefore necessary to bear in mind a few basic guidelines.
1. Finding a reliable partner is the basis for
How to find a reliable supplier from China? The first solution is to outsource the import. This of course involves paying commissions, but on the other hand, the risk of making a mistake is reduced. There is also no need to worry about formal issues. However, more and more people rely on direct import. In this case, it is worth looking for a supplier through industry portals of various types. What is interesting, they usually check the reliability of manufacturers. The risk of knowing a dishonest partner is therefore reduced. In addition, you do not have to pay commissions, which significantly reduces import costs. In order to check the supplier's reliability, it is advisable to ask him a few questions, e.g. regarding the certificates he holds, etc., and to check the supplier's reliability.
2. the choice of mode of transport of goods
In this case, there are several possibilities of transporting goods - courier, sea or land. A courier is a good solution for limited weight shipments. However, it is not a cheap form of transport, although very fast. Air transport is only suitable for small-scale cargo. The advantage of this form of transport is speed. The last option is maritime transport by container. The cost is small, but the transport time is by far the longest. The choice in this case depends on the quantity and type of transported goods.
3. thorough control of the imported goods
Very many importers make a fundamental mistake and do not give due consideration to transport controls. This is very important, especially in the case of large supplies. Often during the inspection, for example, wrong marking of goods is revealed, e.g. lack of CE marking required in the EU. Of course, the type of control should depend on the type of goods ordered.
4. negotiating prices
Importers usually do not even try to negotiate payment terms and immediately accept the offer of Chinese manufacturers. Of course, the conditions they propose are favourable to one of the parties. The importer is often harmed. That is why it is always worth trying to negotiate. What is more, you should strive not to pay the full amount of the order before it is loaded, for example on a ship. Loading and its condition should first be confirmed by a suitable document.
5. Polish shippers better than Asians
Interestingly, manufacturers in Asia often want to include transport costs in the value of goods. It is not worth accepting this proposal. In most cases it is cheaper and much safer to cooperate with a Polish forwarder. They decide to transport CIF/CFR because the importer has no control over the load. Nor does it affect the choice of shipowner. In addition, he cannot choose a company that will take care of the port and warehouse service of a given order. Everything is imposed from above by a Chinese manufacturer. In practice, this causes problems in principle.
6. low price is not everything
When deciding to import goods from China, one should not be guided primarily by the lowest price. Meanwhile, many importers are still making this mistake and, at a low price, forget to check the manufacturer's reliability. In addition, it is crucial to check which Polish and European regulations are associated with importing a given product into the country. Here, of course, the level of duty is very important. It is also worth checking if there is no anti-dumping imposed on a given product. In fact, the total cost of imports is therefore made up of many different factors. The price of goods is only one of them and often not the most important. In any case, the claim that imports from China are the cheapest should be put to the shame today. Employees from the Middle Kingdom no longer want to work almost for free and their salaries are increasing significantly.
7. imports from China are in the interests of persistent and hardworking people
The days when imports from China were the true vein of gold are gone forever. You can continue to make good money in this way, but it really takes a lot of energy and time. This is due to the fact that, to a large extent, sales have now moved to the Internet. In the network you can buy basically everything, also from far away China. This is perfectly visible thanks to the growing popularity of websites such as Aliexpress. Many importers find it difficult to compete with this. That is why the margins for goods imported from China today are only between 5 and 15%, and not, as was the case 80-90% or even more years ago. Nevertheless, imports from China can be a really good business idea. This is a cost-effective option, but requires a lot of effort, time and energy. So what is worth importing from China? Certainly the Chinese electronics are still doing well. Today, it is not inferior in terms of quality to the products of Western companies, and at the same time it is much cheaper.