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• Source and Ship can help you to purchase high-quality and low-cost products from China and expand your business
• Let Source and Ship find the best Chinese factory and competitive product prices for you
• Get factory quotes directly without any hidden costs
• Let Source and Ship handle your Amazon FBA logistics shipping business

Source and Ship’s strength is to find high-quality Chinese factories for you and strive for competitive prices, grow with you and expand the commercial scale.

Chinese factories will always exaggerate their production and company strength. Factory audit can directly understand the factory’s true production capacity and quality level to ensure product quality and production delivery.

The product quality of the factory is not necessarily as he promised. Product quality inspection can avoid being deceived by the factory and suffering losses.

Leave Amazon FBA Prep to us, you can focus on Amazon promotion, better serve customers, and expand business scale.

Reasonably arranging the logistics method of goods to the Amazon fba warehouse is very important, it can help you save a lot of shipping costs, while ensuring transportation time.

We have helped many Amazon, eBay, Shopify sellers purchase, directly ship products to customers, help you expand your business.

Shipping usually takes 30-50 days to ship from China to all parts of the world. The transportation time is longer than air transportation, but the transportation cost is much lower.

Source and Ship provide you with very competitive air logistics prices. During peak sales season, air transportation is a very good model of transportation to ensure stable product inventory.

Source and Ship will be your best railway freight forwarder, formulating the best railway transportation plan for you, greatly reducing your logistics costs.

Source and Ship has 2+ years of door-to-door logistics service experience, we will provide you with the best logistics transportation solutions, tell us your needs, let Source and Ship

Whenever there’s a need to start a new business, there’s a question of locating the primary sources needed for it.

Either you try finding those by yourself or you hire a sourcing agent. But the question that remains is that; what is a sourcing agent?

A sourcing agent is the one that locates the product suppliers for your agent.

They speak the language of the suppliers that you want to buy from, thus giving you the edge of finding affordable products.

Since China is the biggest producer of the goods as cheaply priced goods can be attained from its market, you can hire a sourcing agent from China to help you in locating suppliers for your business needs.

As highlighted earlier, sources agents help you locate the products or the supplier you need for the products from your chosen market. If you’ve planned to buy any product, you need to narrate your requirements to the sourcing agent.

The agent will search the market of your desired location for manufacturers that can cater to your needs.

When they locate such a manufacturer or manufacturers, they will contact you so that you may choose any one that fits your requirements.

After the selection is made, the sourcing agent will help you negotiate in terms of the primary elements of the supply.

It can be working hours, quality, pricing, etc. The sourcing agent can also assist in ensuring the safe delivery of the prepared product by all standards.

Their primary services can include:

• Communicating and negotiating with suppliers
• Overseeing the production
• Updating you with the proceedings
• Arranging storage and shipping options in and from your preferred location
• Helping perform quality inspections

It is to remember that you don’t need to tell pay them for quality inspections if they’re working on commission. The sourcing agent will lose its commission if the product quality fails.

Here are the different types of sourcing agents that exist in the market:

These types of sourcing agents work completely on their own. One cannot find any history of their performance in advance.

Moreover, they usually have a small network too. You are most likely to be dependent entirely on them when you hire those for your sourcing needs.

Another drawback is that without knowledge of how they work, you cannot expect complete quality. Moreover, they can simply disappear in comparison to other big sourcing companies working in the market. There is a great chance of scamming.

You can call these as the agency that has multiple sourcing agents for themselves. These agencies keep several sourcing agents, each with their expertise at their disposal.

Depending on the clients’ demands they can opt for a sourcing agent that works in sourcing consumer electronics, beauty products, furniture, etc.

They have a stronger network and are experienced in finding the products you need to find for your business. However, they charge more for their services in comparison to independent sourcing agents.

These are the most expensive yet versatile types of sourcing agents. They provide a huge network of sourcing services, finding your suppliers from different markets.

In addition, they are also responsible for quality inspections, logistics, shipping, etc.

You can expect competitive in-house communication as well as choose to hand over them the responsibility for the entire process.

This can include finding the product, having it manufactured, and delivering it to Amazon Warehouse on time.

However, you’re strongly dependent on them.

There are several reasons that you can be needing a sourcing agency. Since Amazon sellers need products from different places, a sourcing agent can help you get familiar with your targeted market.

The primary reason for hiring a sourcing agent is that you need to get things done on time. A sourcing agent helps you get started with the suppliers right away.

You don’t need to go through the hassle of finding one or negotiating them with specifications on your own. The sourcing agent does that for you.

Another most important element that sourcing agents help you with is negotiation. They help you negotiate in terms of the specifications, making sure to maintain quality at the minimal pricing.

Here, a sourcing agent is the most needed since they are aware of the market, and know the common practices more fluently.

You get to access to a wider pool of network when you hire a sourcing company. They have worked with several manufacturers that may be the best fit for the goods you’re needing.

In such a way, they can help find a perfect supplier for your needs using their market experience.

Language does not become a barrier for you. When the time comes for negotiation, the sourcing agent helps in briefing the specifications for the product to your chosen supplier.

They also ensure that every important element regarding specifications is included in the brief.

Inspecting certificates and licenses from your chosen supplier is highly important, and that is what sourcing agents also help with. They inspect the language in which the licenses are issued, making sure that the supplier is working legally.

In doing so, the sourcing agents help you avoid scammers that may come up with fake names or agency licenses.

Thus, with the help of a sourcing agent, the risk of getting scammed by manufacturers is reduced significantly.

Keeping the above reasons to hire a sourcing agent in mind, here are some competitive elements that make a good sourcing agent:

The first thing for a good sourcing agent is their license. Like every business, you need to find a sourcing agent that is licensed. It means they have the legal jurisdiction to work as a sourcing company.

It also helps you in keeping a solid track of the agent as well by assessing their legal precedence. In case anything happens, you can use the license number to track them.

Having an experienced licensed agent is also important. The more experienced they are, the faster and more secure the processes can proceed.

Moreover, finding a sourcing agent that specializes in your domain is also important.

Since they will be working your selected product domain, you can expect timely services, high quality, and benefitting negotiations.

Previous projects, partnerships, and recommendations are important elements too. Similar to finding any contractor, you can also search for a sourcing company based on their recommendations. This will allow you to find the ones that are functioning superbly in terms of client collaboration.

A sourcing agent works as a medium of combination between you and your supplier. Therefore, you must find the ones that are fluent in the language of your chosen market.

You would want to have your sourcing company be located in the location of your preference. It would help you save traveling costs.

Moreover, in such a manner, the sourcing company will be able to keep you updated since they won’t need to arrange heft traveling programs.

The point of connecting with a sourcing agent is to gain access to a higher pool of market networks. The sourcing agent you’re hiring should have an effective communication network.

They should be accessible at all times and should help you find several suppliers from your preferred location.

Transparency is also important especially when you’re hiring a sourcing agent. You don’t want to have miscommunication in any aspect of the business. Whether it is the costs, production or any element.

Any sourcing agent must be of utmost transparency with their clients. If you face someone that avoids communication now and then, it’s definitely not a reliable source.

You should avoid bad sourcing agents or Red Flags while finding ones for your business.

If a sourcing agent contacts you with a reference from a factory, say no immediately. Since the factory is paying them for finding buyers, it is most likely that they will direct you towards the company that is paying them.

The catch here?

The supplier that is paying them may be producing inferior quality products. The sourcing agent will guide you to buy from them, ultimately taking their commission from both ends, and you’ll end up with poor products.

If the sourcing agent is working on commission and asks you to let them do quality inspections, it’s a red flag. Consider the scenario, the sourcing agents only get the commission when the final product is delivered to the buyer.

So if there’s a defect in the product, the buyer won’t accept it, and the sourcing agent won’t get their commission.

So why would a sourcing agent find defects in the products to lose their commission?

That is why it is recommended to avoid such sourcing companies.

A license is important. As highlighted earlier that every company needs a license to operate in the domain. That is why it is important to hire a sourcing agent that is licensed for the services they are offering.

You don’t need to hire a sourcing agent that takes a lot of time to find a supplier. That is important since your business has needs and everything should be carried out swiftly. The entire business is stagnant if the sourcing agent doesn’t find a supplier for you.

Moreover, if the sourcing agent is skilled and experienced, they will be able to locate suppliers for you instantly.

Since they have a wide network and been working in the domain for years, it should not take time for them to locate suppliers. If it takes, then it’s a red flag.

As highlighted earlier, a sourcing agent is a communication medium between you and the supplier. The primary motive of hiring a sourcing agent is to avoid miscommunication and have swift communication.

That is why if your sourcing agent has poor communication skills, it is better to go look for someone else.

Moreover, you need to find someone present in your desired location. If they are, then it’s a good indicator that they will be fluent in the language of your desired location.

With all the business costs, you need to strategize for the costs of your sourcing agent too. Here’s what you can expect to include:

Most of the sourcing agents work on commission. This commission isn’t fixed for everyone and depends on the quantity and the frequency of the order.

However, it usually lies in 2-10% (6% mostly). The commission fee will be higher for smaller orders.

For example, if you’re hiring an order of $1000, you’ll have to pay 10% ($100) for the commission. However, if you’re ordering for $50,000, you’ll have to pay $5000 (10%) for the commission or even less.

The commission is agreed upon as soon as the primary elements of the proceedings are completed. These include finding a supplier, relaying them your specifications, negotiating pricing and quality, etc.

One element to keep in mind while finding a sourcing agent is that they will work more if you pay more. They will find suppliers where they will get more commission. Hence, it’s better to negotiate beforehand.

Some of the sourcing companies often work on hourly rates. This type of model allows you to pay the sourcing agent based on the hours they’ve worked, irrespective of the deal with the supplier.

However, there come two major drawbacks in this model. One, the sourcing agent may take more time depending upon the search they need to make for finding a supplier. Second, they can charge for extra hours even though if they are not needed.

This is the primary reason why finding an hourly rate sourcing agent isn’t beneficial. You will not have any means to assess how long does it take for the agent to deal with their work. Using this, you can end up paying more for what its worth.

This is a simple way of negotiating the cost; the fee is decided at the beginning of the project. When the fee is decided, the sourcing company will do their research to find suitable suppliers for your needs.

The catch? They get paid even if you don’t choose any supplier provided by them. This means that there’s a chance that the sourcing agent won’t put maximum effort into finding a reliable supplier for you since they know that they will get paid either way.

Another payment method that you can adopt in this matter is the mixed payment method. This model comprises of the perks from the previous models. The buyer, which is you, will pay a flat rate fee until a certain amount.

When the order exceeds the threshold value, you can charge a commission on it. The use of the mixed payment method allows you to test the quality of the product that is offered by the supplier.

You can ask for a small amount, pay a little, and get the products made to see how good the supplier is.

Moreover, you can also use this method to see how well the sourcing agent is collaborating and communicating with you and the supplier.

You can follow the following seven steps for finding a viable sourcing agent for your business:

Here are the top sourcing company websites that you can refer to for finding yourself a reliable souring company:

One of the leading sites to refer to is Source and Ship. The company has an extensive network of sourcing companies especially from China, which helps them to arrange suppliers for their clients.

In addition, the company has been working quite proficiently in their domain and has ever since delivered unprecedented China sourcing consultancy.

Moreover, the firm is also offering Amazon FBA prep services that can secure your product all according to international standards.

This helps to minimize the overall quality check costs and results in the accurate production of the goods in the first place.

Established in 1995, Linc Sourcing is one of its kind. The company offers a wide range of services with effective Swedish management. The intriguing element about the firm is its specialized way of working and managing your budgeting.

Moreover, the company also monitors the flow of information from the suppliers, enabling competitiveness in every phase.

The quality is maximized with continuous quality assessment checks so that the clients won’t get faulty products.

Making importing goods from China easy for its clients, the company has been working for more than 11 years in the market of China itself. They have over a thousand clients and more than 5000 suppliers in their network.

This vast database allows the company to offer a competitive range of services, including product development, product sourcing, e-commerce sourcing, and much more.

All these features are supported by their in-depth analysis of the processes and assuring compliances in overall proceedings.

Ec4u Limited

One of the many leading names in the field of sustainable outsourcing is Ec4u Limited. The company is renowned for its sourcing and producing goods services.

Although their roots are in Europe their primary operations are occurring in Mainland China and Hong Kong.

Apart from that, the company is offering sustainable savings for its clients with increased productivity. Another element that makes them a favorable choice for the customers is their efficient proceedings with the suppliers.

It allows the firm to tackle local market challenges that are faced in locating China sourcing agents dropshipping for the clients based on their requirements.

Keen Sourcing

From factory audit to quality inspections and lab testing, Keen sourcing is the one to rely on. They are one of the leading brands that have been deemed as the best amazon seller’s sourcing partner.

The workability of the firm is superb. They deal with several parameters in the motion, such as regulatory compilation, factory audit, order follow up, logistics support, etc.

In addition, the firm also provides different types of sourcing services that can easily be chosen by the clients.

When it comes to experience, APM sourcing is the one to count on. With over a decade of experience working as a sourcing agency, they are offering stupendous services that the customers can rely on easily.

They also offer factory to warehouse services, managing the overall proceedings for their clients. They are specially referred to clients that need sourcing agents UK.

Imex Sourcing Services

With a diverse range of product sourcing agent services offered, and a competitive yet easy to understand the method, Imex sourcing is another platform that you can refer to.

They provide a competitive supplier research analysis that enables the selection and shortlisting of viable suppliers.

Moreover, they also ensure compliance workability and provide clients with efficient quality inspections too.

Guided Imports

Getting products from China may be a hassle but not with Guided Imports. The company claims to facilitate hundreds of businesses around the globe. Their organized logistics planning and sourcing services help clients get the best out benefit.

Moreover, they also provide a dynamic quality assessment protocol that enables real time performance analysis and safe delivery of the products.

From using qualified manufacturers to guaranteeing complete A-Z services, Maple sourcing is also one of the renowned sourcing companies to connect with.

One of the many intriguing elements about them is their way of dealing with cultural and language barriers.

Their workability makes it easy for the clients to gain access to the supplier pool in China. Moreover, their team ensures to follow quality assessment protocols that address quality inspections for the products at every level.

Offering cost reliable and complete supply chain management services, China2west is the brand that caters to its clients’ needs promptly.

The company uses quality control for their supply chain management processes, ensuring compliance authenticity.

In addition, they are also offering product development and assembly services alongside their primary sourcing services.

The company has been established in 2005 and has ever since added to its huge network database of suppliers in China. Moreover, they exhibit C2W standards that are personally monitored by their British directors.

For starting a business and finding a sourcing partner, you need to ensure that the one you’re hiring is competent.

This will allow you to get your proceedings sorted efficiently. Your sourcing partner is a viable asset for your business.

Therefore, you must put a similar effort into the selection of a sourcing agent as much as you’re putting in product selection.

Sourcing has been said to evolve from a traditional purchasing approach that was transactional where people and companies buy according to their instant needs, selecting freely from all the suppliers that can meet their immediate or futuristic needs.

Traditional sourcing was a business transaction where each procurement was treated as a distinct transaction. Sourcing agency enhances profits for suppliers, and recognized competition may boost the savings, this is termed occasional savings opportunity.

In fact, the supervision of the services and activities performed by the sourcing agent provide a benefit to suppliers because it provides access to more information regarding the production.

However, Purchasing goods and services from a foreign country might be difficult without the assistance of souring agencies. A successful sourcing agency will understand the nature of the marketplace.

This may include the roles of suppliers in the marketplace, the importance of purchasing goods and services relative to the entire market demand, the balance of demand and supply, availability and accessibility to raw materials, manufacturing processes, etc.

Knowing these will help an organization to prepare for futuristic changes that might occur in the marketplace. Strategic sourcing agency uses a strategic method of selecting appropriate suppliers; an approach is more aligned with the company’s competitive approach.

The present monetary atmosphere together with the economic condition is requiring companies to carefully look at their procurement procedure such as; purchasing choices and purchasing strategies, which involves buying and selling decisions and delivery process being a major concern.

In financial and economic crises, there would be competition with rival companies, which may compel the business management to take a cognizance look at their procurement systems for proper restructure.

An organization’s methodologies and ground plan for attaining a more efficient and effective corporate procurement vary from one another, and they are prepared according to the organization structure.

The global business is taking positive steps in other to maintain cordial relationships with their suppliers.

Most marketers are contented with procurement using sourcing agency especially in the areas such as collateral, promotional items, tools, training, etc. Sourcing agency remains one of the challenges for procurement since a huge amount of money is given to the agencies.

Marketing agencies have been grouped into different categories, some of which are:

• Research
• Event overseer
• Interactive
• Sports and entertainment
• Media
• Agency of record

All the categorization mentioned above are useful in sourcing and managing suppliers, as a different business body within corporations chooses their preferred agencies depending on the business area or geographical location.

The process for selecting the supplier is being driven by the relationship among the marketers from one company to another.

Creating a sourcing agency council with multi-functional activities such as Procurement, Finance, Entertainment, and Marketing can enhance decision making in every organizational setting.

Several methods can be used in sourcing agency spend; this depends on the competitive situation.

Procurement strategies are considered as basic administrative philosophies that involve the continual production of goods and services that are trusted by the customers and are delivered at the normal time.

Many factors are affecting procurement strategies practices, among which are; the periodic training programs for the staffs and the suppliers, Implementation of the knowledge acquired through this program has a long way to go, as it will lead to perpetual profits for both parties (the company and the suppliers).

In recent time, many changes have been recorded in both manufacturing industries and the retailers’ sector; among which is the changing environmental condition such as; modification of retail formats and globalization.

Manufacturing companies must operate in such a way that favor retailers and create a condition that increases their service while reducing costs.

The target of many companies is to develop efficient and effective procurement strategies to remain competitive, and this procurement strategy will not be effective unless it suits the needs of the business and maintains consistency between the company’s capacity and the competitive opportunity.

Many companies are aiming to develop a procurement strategy in other to remain competitive.

However, some procurement body has been influencing business decision-maker through a painstaking analysis of the supply base and understanding the needs, goals, and target of the business companies.

One of the main purposes of procurement is to reduce the procurement costs since many companies invest nearly half its sales revenue on the procurement-related resources.

The total activities from procurement to the customer account for the main strategic supply chain management. The ability to combines the purchasing activity and other business activities result in improving the quality of goods and services.

Purchasing professionals are aware of the importance of having an appropriate strategy for the business transaction to meet the needs of their company.

This is true especially when there is a risk of a long-term scarcity of the purchased products.

There are two major sources of costs in procurement literature, as identified by many scholars: the first one being the procurement prices while the second one is costs associated with the internal workflow of activities that complement the business transactions.

Procurement prices: This can be reduced when a company can maintain business relations with their suppliers. In fact, it has been suggested by the transaction-based explanation that a buyer may increase their ability to negotiate by using newly supplied materials and realizing savings in purchasing costs.

Procurement costs can also be reduced by the company’s ability to manage internal activities that complement transactions, which may include; inventory, delivery, billing, etc. effectively and efficiently.

Most of the companies implement different procurement strategies. Some of which are listed below:

• Optimized Supplier: Here, the company will optimally mix the vendors base on their ability to provide the best prices and terms. The process means that any supplier that is not capable of providing a quality service required is removed. This is the most commonly used procurement strategy.

• Total Quality Method: This method requires the sellers to offer error-free and high-quality service. The suppliers to ensure best procurement practices can use many tools example of which is six sigma.

• Managing risk: Since the suppliers could be from many countries, for instance, many companies obtain their supplies from countries like India, China, among others, so they are more concerned with the risk management of this supply chain.

The countries involved may offer their goods at a reduced price, but the disaster may hinder this privilege.

• Sourcing: since the whole world has been seen as a significant market, hence, sourcing agencies could be from any country, regardless of tribe or color.

• Green Purchasing: another common purchasing strategy for companies is green purchase, which involves recycling and procuring goods that have an adverse impact on the environment.

There are challenges facing procurement agents when implementing pre-qualification procurement, including very few or no technical experts, time constraints, cost implications, and standard-setting.

Some activities of a sourcing agent are identified below:

Conduct research on supplier: Many Sourcing agents handle the database of suppliers, it is on this database that the data such as names of the companies, their contact address and number, e-mail id, office address and address of the supplier are stored.

The sourcing agents carry out a thorough research on the suppliers’ products in other to make a suitable decision afterward.

Negotiate price: after the selection of suppliers, the sourcing agent will then discuss prices with the selected supplier.

Clear Communication: sourcing agency ensure clear communication with the suppliers. They are from different part of the worlds and communicate with the supplier according to his language.

For instance, the Chinese agent speaks with the suppliers in Chinese. Hence, there is no communication barrier between the company and supplier.

Shipping and transportation: Sourcing agencies work with freight companies. This company transports goods from the warehouse to the dockyard.

The use of auction is one of the most important factors influencing the business process because it has a direct effect on the performance of the business.

Many companies require skilled people to occupy the different position.

Nowadays, many of the companies are outsourcing the recruitment process to sourcing agencies to appoint a qualified candidate for a particular area.

Increased speed of hiring: sourcing agent can hire many people in a short period since they have knowledge and resources, which enhances their hiring process.

They can perform the task efficiently within a short time with better quality.

A sourcing agency verifies the quality of goods and services you are about to buy. They can even send their representatives to check the products at the warehouse of the supplier, and this enables the agents to determine if the quality meets international export standards.

Sourcing agency will guide the management in different market operations ranging from marketing analysis, transaction (buying and buying) decisions, content management, spending, and buying techniques.

Sourcing agency sets the standard for a company and its ability to develop, most especially in a recession and severe economic crises.

Sourcing agency helps in saving time without disrupting the investment strategies. For a competitive gain from large companies, middle companies and small companies in any market can gain benefit from procurement strategies for the required goods and services.

Strategic sourcing agency can be used to access suppliers, most especially the ability of the company to produce quality products.

Companies need to maintain a cordial relationship with the supplier, which can be advantageous if the companies judiciously use their resources.

Strategic sourcing agency includes; creating a sourcing strategy, selection of suppliers, purchasing of materials and maintaining relationships with the supplier.

Communication and Training: Communicating the new business processes, goals and strategies are very important. There are various ways of doing this; it can be done in staff meetings, road shows, through newsletters, and in marketing.

All the necessary information such as the new contracts and pricing information should be shared with the concern people worldwide to ensure advantage.

Suppliers also should be aware of the changes so that they can comply with and benefit from business process improvements.

Procurement staffs must be updated with what is happening in the business industry and within marketing department across the world.

The skill development is very crucial to enhance staff’s selling and persuasion. Procurement should also be flexible.

In a nutshell, procurement should be seen as a strategic tool in the value chain. It usually consumes a huge amount of money in a company’s cost structure most especially government agencies.

It can also be concluded that business organizations should ensure they employ competent employees as sourcing agents.

Finally, there should be a periodic analysis of the effectiveness of the company’s staffs and review of the company’s plan.