Importing from China

Importing from China and mistakes you should avoid.

Most novice entrepreneurs who are starting a new business are usually hesitant to import their goods from China. This fear is common and understandable. After all, if you consider that you are dealing with a vendor who is more than ten thousands of miles away and speaks a completely different language. It is an intimidating act to pay someone who is in a completely different country. Especially if you have to pay them large sums of money.
There are certain myths that I would like to debunk from the start. The first myth is the idea that Chinese vendors cannot communicate in English. This is far from the truth. It is true that most of them cannot communicate in fluent English. However these suppliers usually have a salesman or a someone in the business that can speak in semi fluent English. Chinese suppliers are aware that a large amount of their goods are purchased by foreign entities. Therefore they understand the need to have someone that can communicate in English.

Importing from China will have you scammed

There are some people who like to pretend that Chinese suppliers are all scammers. This may be true about some suppliers that you find online. In every industry there are scammers. However this does not mean that every seller is a scammer.  If you conduct a bit of research on a certain supplier you will be able to find out if they are a scammer or not.

Always first purchase a sample when importing from china

When importing from China it is important to always ask for a sample. A sample usually helps you determine what kind of product you will actually receive. Sometimes the products being sold on Chinese e-commerce sites are not as described or depicted in the pictures.