We buy in China the way an owner would
Five divisions, one method. We audit the factory before the first order, seal a golden sample, inspect while the line is running and release your balance only when the AQL report is clean.
- Factory audit
- Golden sample
- During-production check
- AQL 2.5 / 4.0
- Loading supervision
Six steps, and none of them can be skipped
Every importer who has lost money in China skipped one of these. Usually the second, sometimes the fourth.
Brief and specification
We turn your product into a spec a Chinese factory can quote without guessing: materials, tolerances, finish, packaging, certification and the market it ships to. An ambiguous spec is a price increase waiting to happen.
Shortlist and factory audit
We shortlist three to five manufacturers, verify the business licence and export history, and walk the floor. Trading companies posing as factories are eliminated here, before they cost you a mould.
Quote, negotiate and sample
We negotiate in Mandarin against a landed-cost target, not a factory-gate price. Then we pull samples, and we do not approve the one the factory hand-built for the photo.
Golden sample and contract
The approved sample is sealed, photographed and referenced in a bilingual purchase contract with the AQL level, the packaging spec and the penalty for substitution written into it.
Production and inspection
A check at roughly 30% of output, then pre-shipment AQL sampling with photographic evidence. Your balance payment moves after the report, not before it.
Consolidation, freight and customs
We consolidate several suppliers into one container in Guangzhou, cut the export documents and book the vessel, the aircraft or the train. One landed cost, one point of contact.
Padel & racket sports
Rackets, balls, courts, bags and grips. We know which press runs 3K carbon well, which one cuts corners on the EVA density, and which factory can hold a balance point within five millimetres across a run of two thousand units.
- 3K / 12K / 18K carbon
- Fibreglass & hybrid
- EVA soft–hard
- Shore A test
- Pressurised balls
- Court structures
Sports & outdoor
Fitness accessories, training equipment, team sports gear and outdoor kit. The failure mode in this category is material substitution: the sample comes in TPE and the bulk run arrives in recycled PVC. Material certificates and a during-production check are what stop it.
| MOQ | 500 – 2,000 units depending on tooling |
|---|---|
| Lead time | 30 – 45 days after sample approval |
| Certification | EN 71-3, REACH, Prop 65, material safety data sheet |
Home & living
Kitchenware, tableware, storage and small household goods. Unit prices are low and SKU counts are high, so the money is made or lost in carton design, cubic efficiency and consolidation. We optimise the box before we optimise the price.
| MOQ | 1,000 – 3,000 units per SKU, lower on stock designs |
|---|---|
| Lead time | 25 – 40 days after sample approval |
| Certification | LFGB or FDA food contact, migration test, coating report |
Textiles & apparel
Performance fabric, knitwear, uniforms and accessories, worked from your tech pack. Bulk fabric is approved before cutting, because once the roll is on the table nobody is going to stop the line for a shade difference you will notice and your customer will return.
| MOQ | 300 – 1,000 pieces per colourway |
|---|---|
| Lead time | 45 – 60 days including lab dips and bulk approval |
| Certification | OEKO-TEX, REACH, fibre composition and care-label test |
Consumer electronics
Accessories, audio and small devices out of Shenzhen. Here the product is easy and the paperwork is hard: the certificate has to match the exact model, the exact battery cell and the exact charger, or the pallet stops at customs and the certificate becomes worthless.
| MOQ | 500 – 2,000 units, higher with custom firmware |
|---|---|
| Lead time | 35 – 50 days plus certification lead time |
| Certification | CE, FCC, RoHS, UN38.3 for lithium cells, MSDS |
Three inspections, and the last one holds your money
Inspection is not a certificate you buy at the end. It is a schedule that starts when the first tooling is cut and ends with a photograph of your container being stuffed. The balance payment is the lever, so it moves last.
The answers before you ask them
Do you charge a commission on the factory price?
We work on a transparent fee, either a percentage of the order value or a fixed monthly retainer for recurring programmes. The factory invoice is shown to you as it is. A sourcing agent whose income is hidden inside the unit price has no reason to negotiate it down.
What is the smallest order you will take?
It depends on the category and whether tooling is involved. A padel racket on an existing mould can start at 300 units. A custom kitchenware SKU usually needs 1,000. We tell you the real MOQ, including the one the factory will accept if you are willing to pay for the setup.
Can you work with a factory we already found?
Yes, and often that is the most useful thing we do. We audit them, renegotiate on your behalf, run the inspections and handle the freight. You keep the supplier relationship and you stop being the one who has to fly there when something breaks.
Who owns the mould and the design?
You do, and we write it into the contract in Chinese. If you paid for the tooling, the mould is yours and can be moved to another factory. Without that clause it stays where it was cut, and the factory knows it.
How do payments work?
The standard structure is a deposit against the signed contract and the balance against a clean pre-shipment report. We do not recommend paying the balance against the bill of lading alone, and we will tell you when a factory pushes for it.
What happens if the inspection fails?
The factory reworks, sorts or replaces, at their cost, and we re-inspect. Because the balance is still unpaid and the report is photographic, this is a conversation about a schedule, not about who is telling the truth.
Do you handle certification?
We manage the testing with an accredited laboratory and check that the certificate matches the model, the components and the destination market. We do not accept a certificate the factory produced for a different SKU, which is the most common shortcut in electronics.
Can you ship to my door and clear customs?
Yes. We quote FOB, CIF, DAP or DDP. On DDP we handle destination clearance and duty through our agents, and the price you approve is the price you pay.
Send us the product and the target price.
We come back within two business days with a shortlist, an indicative unit cost and the freight to your port.
Send a sourcing brief