Important Tips On How To Import From China
By Jeffrey Leong
To many, the experience of importing goods from China is both exciting and terrifying. On one hand there is huge potential for making money from reselling the goods purchased from China for that they are indeed very cheap. But on the other hand, language and cultural barriers present a great difficulty to the overseas buyers. The main thing that every overseas buyers worried is payment; questions such as how do I pay; will my goods be shipped after payment is made; keep bothering many buyers.
The issue lies in the fact that most Chinese wholesalers will only accept Western Union and wire transfer payments. If possible, they prefer cash. These are not secure payment options so it must be treated with extra caution. However, the main reason why these are the only payment options accepted by the Chinese is because these are the only payment methods available to many Chinese in China. Getting a credit card in China is an extremely difficult task with a lot of government regulations and strict criterion to adhere to. Without credit card, it is impossible for them to have a Paypal account.
Despite the risks involved with using Western Union and wire transfer, these are the methods you have to use if you want to import from China. To minimize this risk, our advice is to start with a fairly small shipment so you would not stand to lose too much money if everything falls apart. After trust has been established, you can gradually build up your order over time. On the whole, most Chinese suppliers are genuine and hard working people who want to establish a long-term relationship with their customers. They need the business, so it’s unlikely they’ll try to deliberately screw you up! Another big issue for buyers importing from China is communication. It can be extremely daunting trying to negotiate complex business issues when language is the barrier.
To get around this problem, we always ask a new contact for their MSN or QQ address and chat with them online. Usually, all young Chinese are very friendly and they enjoy talking to people who speaks English as this helps them improve their English too. You may have to bear with them on the slow typing skill but yet this is an effective way of allowing you to know your supplier more instantly.
With communication now established, you can proceed to ask questions and get them to send you pictures of stock and so on. Once you’ve built up a good relationship with them, you can then ask them to send you a sample before your order. For any genuine company, this usually isn’t a problem and it allows you to see the quality of the product before placing an order. If the product is an inexpensive item, the seller normally send it to you for free but it is understood that you would have to bear the shipping charges. If it is an expensive item such as a laptop or a TV, you would have to pay for the item.
One thing we haven’t talked about so far is quality. This can be another major concern for sellers who often have difficulty telling whether a brand name product is genuine or not.
In our experience, the vast majority of brand-name goods that come from China are either replicas or faked. We strongly recommend that you assume that this is the case in the first instance. eBay is currently cracking down heavily on people selling fakes and it is not an area of business we suggest you get into!
Generally, we find that Chinese suppliers are best suited for cheap generic goods (they are manufactured there so you won’t find cheaper anywhere else!) that can be sold at higher rates in the Western countries. For example, some of the latest trends are pocket bikes, scooters and generic electronic goods. These goods do not have to have a brand name in order to sell well and they can be purchased wholesale at very good prices if you are serious about importing from China.
This should give you a heads up if looking at dealing with wholesale suppliers in China! Remember, always keep an open mind, ask questions and do your research!
Visit www.chinaclub2u.com to see how we make your buying experience in China easier and less hassle!