In the thread I posted a few minutes ago: Amazon FBA sellers MUST have their own website I promised to post a thread on the subject of protecting your brand from suppliers. I though the easiest way was to copy a chapter from my book Labels That Exploit because that exlains it in detail.
Chapter27. Protect Your Brand From Your Overseas Suppliers.
Wherever you source your products you will be open to the risk of competitors trying to copy what you are selling. Often they will do image searches in the hope of finding your product advertised by the manufacturer.
If you are buying locally in western countries the risk is greatly reduced, but if you are buying from China that risk is substantial. The business manufacturing your product will often disregard requests to refrain from publishing pictures of your branded or labeled product.
You can avoid that part of the risk by ordering all of your products without any brand or label. In what I call post − production labeling or branding the next step is to attach your brand or label after you receive the unbranded goods. In the previous chapters you will have seen that you have plenty of options from which to choose.
When placing orders with the manufacturer, don’t buy in your trading name. You can register a different business name for buying and importing, and not your use your trading or brand name. This will enable you to legally import the goods but you can then legally sell them under your trading name. You should not disclose your website address to them either.
Therefore, if you want to remain virtually anonymous to the supplier, your very first inquiry must be in a name other than your real trading name.
If your product requires compliance labeling, it might be possible in some cases to attach generic compliance labels in the factory, but without any brand displayed.
It is worth noting that in many cases it will be cheaper to label post-production than to pay what you would be charged by Chinese manufacturers. They have in their psyche the idea that they can make a little extra by charging for set up. For example, if you want direct printing on your product they will usually quote around $50 per color to set up. If you have good quality artwork, you will usually pay less than that per color to set up in your own country.
With many ways you can incorporate your brand, logo and URL in your product itself, you can save thousands by doing it yourself or subcontracting that work to a local. Think Laser, Pad Print, Screen Print, Engraving, Stamping, even Hot Iron branding.
Walter
Chapter27. Protect Your Brand From Your Overseas Suppliers.
Wherever you source your products you will be open to the risk of competitors trying to copy what you are selling. Often they will do image searches in the hope of finding your product advertised by the manufacturer.
If you are buying locally in western countries the risk is greatly reduced, but if you are buying from China that risk is substantial. The business manufacturing your product will often disregard requests to refrain from publishing pictures of your branded or labeled product.
You can avoid that part of the risk by ordering all of your products without any brand or label. In what I call post − production labeling or branding the next step is to attach your brand or label after you receive the unbranded goods. In the previous chapters you will have seen that you have plenty of options from which to choose.
When placing orders with the manufacturer, don’t buy in your trading name. You can register a different business name for buying and importing, and not your use your trading or brand name. This will enable you to legally import the goods but you can then legally sell them under your trading name. You should not disclose your website address to them either.
Therefore, if you want to remain virtually anonymous to the supplier, your very first inquiry must be in a name other than your real trading name.
If your product requires compliance labeling, it might be possible in some cases to attach generic compliance labels in the factory, but without any brand displayed.
It is worth noting that in many cases it will be cheaper to label post-production than to pay what you would be charged by Chinese manufacturers. They have in their psyche the idea that they can make a little extra by charging for set up. For example, if you want direct printing on your product they will usually quote around $50 per color to set up. If you have good quality artwork, you will usually pay less than that per color to set up in your own country.
With many ways you can incorporate your brand, logo and URL in your product itself, you can save thousands by doing it yourself or subcontracting that work to a local. Think Laser, Pad Print, Screen Print, Engraving, Stamping, even Hot Iron branding.
Walter
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