How to Find Reliable Suppliers or Manufacturers for Your Product?

Finding reliable suppliers is a critical step in global sourcing. They are your partners and deeply affect your business future.

Picking the wrong one can cause troubles: delays, poor quality, lost money, reputational damage, and IP theft… Please work with the right one early to protect your money and brand!

When finding a reliable partner, you'd better make tailored strategies based on what kind of sourcing you need. Such as for existing products, building a brand, or bringing a new idea to life.

This comprehensive guide will tell you how to find suppliers for these three needs. Let's dive in!

Global Sourcing VS Local Sourcing

Recently, a new topic has been hot in the retail and e-commerce industry: Global sourcing vs. local sourcing, which one is better?

All right, no absolute answer here like air freight vs. sea freight - which is best. Whether global sourcing or local sourcing, they both have their own strengths and specialize. Comprehensively consider what is most important for you is it cost, delivery speed, or product quality, before you decide.

We write a simple table to help you compare global and local sourcing:

Tip: China is a great choice for global sourcing for overseas retailers.

How to Find Suppliers for Your Existing Products

Why do you need to find new suppliers for existing products? This is because you can always search better manufacturer. They may be able to improve your margins, solve quality issues, mitigate supply chain risks, or scale production volume. In summary, never stop to large your supply network.

Key Vetting Criteria: Focus on Efficiency & Comparison

For existing products, you already have the full product production process or specifications. So it's unnecessary to negotiate too much again, such as prototyping and ODM/OEM, just focus on these points:

• Benchmarking: MOQs, unit price, total cost.

• Quality: If the new supplier match or exceed the quality current one?

• Logistics: Can they ensure faster shipping or a higher on-time delivery rate?

• Responsiveness: If the new one is better in communication and bounce?

• Stability: Can they offer reliable services in long-time?

Please thoroughly test new suppliers before switching to them. If you change them rashly without checking, you may cause mistakes and lose money.

Tip: Change over in steps or run a parallel period.

How to Find Suppliers or Manufacturers for your Brand

A strong brand can make more profits and keep customers loyal.

If you want to build your own brand more than a product, you should make more effort in finding suppliers or manufacturers.

This sourcing is called private labeling or product branding: Through making special packaging or changing some features to fit your brand and attract customers. So you should not only deeply understand your niche, but also plan the market.

Key Vetting Criteria: Focus on Customization & Brand Alignment

For product branding suppliers, quality, consistency, and flexibility are important. Production capacity and shipping speed can be sacrificed as long as they can meet the needs of customization and brand alignment.

So we suggest you vet these angles:

• Customization Capability: Can they accurately master your needs in specific logo, packaging, and labeling?

• Communication ability: Do they have a fast and clear reply?

• Brand Protection: Are suppliers trustworthy, and will they protect your brand image?

• Quality Control: Can they inspect products in the whole service from sourcing to shipping?

Red flags specific to branding: Inadequate documentation and records; unclear quality control; high employee turnover; outdated equipment, excessive defects, limited traceability, unstable supply chain, and less bounce…

How to Find A Manufacturer for Your New Product Idea

New product development brings the most benefits. Once you successfully develop a popular new product, you will earn countless margins and strong brand influences.

Meanwhile, the highest risk accompanies you throughout the entire process from idea to product. You have to manage:

1. Market Research and Needs Analysis

2. Prototyping and Sample Testing

3. Mass Production and Process Monitoring

4. Warehousing, Shipping, and Logistics

Note: Many new products fail out because of early mistakes. As soon as possible learning and planning each step can stop these.

Key Vetting Criteria: Focus on Capability & Partnership

Different from product sourcing and branding, new product development is a long-term business. So the capability and partnership are critical to finding a manufacturer. With our deep understanding and cutting-edge insights, you can evaluate them through these dimensions.

Expertise and Experience: Only strong technical and rich expertise can develop new products perfectly.

Prototyping Capacity: Quick prototype designing and sample making are beneficial for you to follow the product trends.

Credibility and Reliability: Terrible manufacturers will leak your creativity and IP.

Scale and Manufacturing: Product development needs a full and solid supply train.

Tip: Always ask for samples and do a small test order first.

Where to Find Trustworthy Suppliers or Manufacturers?

Whether you need product sourcing, product branding, or new product development, here are the same three methods to find reliable suppliers and manufacturers.

On-site Procurement: Visit Markets or Attend Fairs

The traditional way to find suppliers is sourcing in person. In China, the Yiwu Market and the Canton Fair are highly recommended.

When you arrive at a market, you cannot only communicate with real manufacturers face-to-face, but also directly test their capacity, responsiveness, and product quality.

The Canton Fair is not to be mentioned. As the biggest import and export trade show in China, it has established trade relations with 220+ countries and regions around the world. The accumulated export volume has amounted to about 1.5 trillion+.

Online Market: Sourcing from Alibaba

With the increasing development of e-commerce, online sourcing is a new trend in the retail industry. You can find different reliable suppliers through it.

Alibaba, the biggest Chinese e-commerce company, offers a large number of reliable suppliers. You can connect with suppliers anytime, anywhere, even if you are thousands of miles away. It makes finding manufacturers easier.

Note: Since there are so many suppliers in China, the quality of their products varies. It is recommended that you cooperate with "gold suppliers" certified by Alibaba.

Partner with EJET Procurement for Reliable Suppliers

The last and most effective way is hiring a China sourcing agent. If you want to succeed in the retail or e-commerce industry, working with one manufacturer is not enough. You need a rich supplier network and a strong global logistics system.

All right, a China sourcing agent, like EJET Procurement, can help you deal with everything, including these. We offer all-in-one solutions and customized services for you from sourcing, branding, packaging, testing, paying, shipping, to delivering. If you partner with us, you can enjoy 100% quality inspection, 15% cost savings, and a 98% on-time delivery rate.

Are you ready to grow a product business with EJET? Contact our sourcing experts for a free consultation!

FAQ

Q1: How can I Find a Good Legit Manufacturer?

A:

1. Check the manufacturer’s history and experience.

2. Ask for samples and test their products.

3. Look at their certificates and quality checks.

4. Visit the factory or use a trusted agent like EJET.

5. Read reviews and ask for success cases.

Q2: How to Find Legitimate Suppliers?

A:

1. Visit markets and trade shows.

2. Use trusted e-commerce platforms.

3. Get tips from business contacts.

4. Work with sourcing partners like EJET Procurement.