Shopify case study - importing glasses made $2400

[DWX]

There's another post about Green Tea. Well worth the read.

I've seen Corey post a few times in FB groups. He runs a lot more than this.

Yeah, that's a good read. I believe she private labelled the product?

 

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[Walter Hay]

Thanks for sharing. I'm curious what some of the others think about this article. @Walter Hay @Vigilante etc.. donation coming ur way. Thanks again.

I saw this thread when it started up and decided I would leave it alone. I don't make a habit of criticizing other people, but now that you have asked me to comment I will.

The author sets out the story and processes very systematically. It's a pity it has so many mistakes, some of which could cause followers of his well laid out step by step process to lose a lot of money.

Here are a few things I found in the Alibaba sourcing section:

• While there is no doubt that Alibaba is the biggest, they are far from the best. I think I have written enough on that subject in my AMA.
  
• The recommended process is to first contact any suppliers of the product without any attempt at determining their suitability, with due diligence waiting until you are ready to place an order. This potentially means a lot of time wasted on communicating with unsuitable suppliers.
• Then the author says you should ask what is the MOQ. That is a sure-fire way of having your inquiry ignored. It shows you to be an amateur.
• He saw his wish to order only 100pcs as a challenge because most listings state an MOQ of 500-2000 pcs. It is only a challenge for those who have not been shown or worked out for themselves how to negotiate orders much smaller than the stated MOQs.
• Then: "Here’s what my message looked like to nearly every supplier I contacted" followed by an email or contact inquiry form that screams amateur. It's no wonder he only received a small number of responses.
• Again he shows his lack of understanding of how to handle negotiating small orders, so he didn't proceed with those who quoted "really high order quantities." They might have been the best suppliers even for his small quantity, but he'll never know.
• After narrowing down the field of possible suppliers to 2, after several days of exchanges and questions from both sides, (a lot of time wasted there) he decided to do his due diligence.
• Wanting to deal with a manufacturer (quite correct) his first step is to visit the company profile section of their Alibaba listing to see if they are a manufacturer or a trader. Sorry, but this step is quite useless and potentially self deceiving. Most traders on Alibaba identify themselves as manufacturers. Toss a coin. That is as certain as believing what they say.
• Now he moves on to determining if the supplier is reliable, by looking for their Gold Supplier badge, and seeing how long they have been trading with that badge. Gold Suppliers go out of business and sell their name and Alibaba membership to newcomers, so you never know if they are long standing members or new this month. In any case as I have explained on my AMA Gold Suppliers are ordinary verified suppliers who have been willing to spend (currently) $699 to make people believe they are reliable and trustworthy. The only extra checking to qualify as a Gold Supplier in addition to the almost non-existent checking to become verified is that their check must be cleared when Alibaba bank it.
• He likes the security of dealing through Alibaba's Trade Assurance, but as I have explained in my AMA that system is full of loopholes plus the cost of a pre-shipment inspection that would roughly double the author's cost.
• But then .... he pays through Alibaba's Secure Payment system, which also is full of loopholes that are exploited by suppliers who don't want to refund. And they get away with it.
• Part of the due diligence performed is to check feedback on the supplier's Company Profile. Feedback is bought and sold, and Alibaba have been reprimanded by China's consumer protection watchdog for not cleaning up their act on feedback and many other serious failings.
• The statement that "most suppliers will refund you the sample cost once you place an order with them." is a bit misleading. You must have that agreement before placing your first order, but the freight component of that sample order price won't be refunded. Freight most often exceeds the cost of the sample.
• He states that after paying for the order: "Feel free to ask any questions about the production time and shipping time." That is a very important factor and should not be treated as an afterthought.
• Finally, he went to Aliexpress to buy cases for the glasses, saying: "AliExpress is similar to Alibaba, in that it’s a marketplace to find manufacturers, but in this case, you can purchase a smaller quantity or even just one item at wholesale prices direct from China." Aliexpress is Alibaba's retail site for westerners. You won't find many manufacturers there. As a matter of interest, I checked on another B2B site and found that he could have bought his cases direct from a real manufacturer for less than he paid on Aliexpress.

Well you asked me for a review. Like so many "experts" he might be brilliant at marketing but would appear to have only a sketchy knowledge of safe sourcing.

Walter Hay

 

[KLaw]

I saw this thread when it started up and decided I would leave it alone. I don't make a habit of criticizing other people, but now that you have asked me to comment I will.

The author sets out the story and processes very systematically. It's a pity it has so many mistakes, some of which could cause followers of his well laid out step by step process to lose a lot of money.

Here are a few things I found in the Alibaba sourcing section:

• While there is no doubt that Alibaba is the biggest, they are far from the best. I think I have written enough on that subject in my AMA.
  
• The recommended process is to first contact any suppliers of the product without any attempt at determining their suitability, with due diligence waiting until you are ready to place an order. This potentially means a lot of time wasted on communicating with unsuitable suppliers.
• Then the author says you should ask what is the MOQ. That is a sure-fire way of having your inquiry ignored. It shows you to be an amateur.
• He saw his wish to order only 100pcs as a challenge because most listings state an MOQ of 500-2000 pcs. It is only a challenge for those who have not been shown or worked out for themselves how to negotiate orders much smaller than the stated MOQs.
• Then: "Here’s what my message looked like to nearly every supplier I contacted" followed by an email or contact inquiry form that screams amateur. It's no wonder he only received a small number of responses.
• Again he shows his lack of understanding of how to handle negotiating small orders, so he didn't proceed with those who quoted "really high order quantities." They might have been the best suppliers even for his small quantity, but he'll never know.
• After narrowing down the field of possible suppliers to 2, after several days of exchanges and questions from both sides, (a lot of time wasted there) he decided to do his due diligence.
• Wanting to deal with a manufacturer (quite correct) his first step is to visit the company profile section of their Alibaba listing to see if they are a manufacturer or a trader. Sorry, but this step is quite useless and potentially self deceiving. Most traders on Alibaba identify themselves as manufacturers. Toss a coin. That is as certain as believing what they say.
• Now he moves on to determining if the supplier is reliable, by looking for their Gold Supplier badge, and seeing how long they have been trading with that badge. Gold Suppliers go out of business and sell their name and Alibaba membership to newcomers, so you never know if they are long standing members or new this month. In any case as I have explained on my AMA Gold Suppliers are ordinary verified suppliers who have been willing to spend (currently) $699 to make people believe they are reliable and trustworthy. The only extra checking to qualify as a Gold Supplier in addition to the almost non-existent checking to become verified is that their check must be cleared when Alibaba bank it.
• He likes the security of dealing through Alibaba's Trade Assurance, but as I have explained in my AMA that system is full of loopholes plus the cost of a pre-shipment inspection that would roughly double the author's cost.
• But then .... he pays through Alibaba's Secure Payment system, which also is full of loopholes that are exploited by suppliers who don't want to refund. And they get away with it.
• Part of the due diligence performed is to check feedback on the supplier's Company Profile. Feedback is bought and sold, and Alibaba have been reprimanded by China's consumer protection watchdog for not cleaning up their act on feedback and many other serious failings.
• The statement that "most suppliers will refund you the sample cost once you place an order with them." is a bit misleading. You must have that agreement before placing your first order, but the freight component of that sample order price won't be refunded. Freight most often exceeds the cost of the sample.
• He states that after paying for the order: "Feel free to ask any questions about the production time and shipping time." That is a very important factor and should not be treated as an afterthought.
• Finally, he went to Aliexpress to buy cases for the glasses, saying: "AliExpress is similar to Alibaba, in that it’s a marketplace to find manufacturers, but in this case, you can purchase a smaller quantity or even just one item at wholesale prices direct from China." Aliexpress is Alibaba's retail site for westerners. You won't find many manufacturers there. As a matter of interest, I checked on another B2B site and found that he could have bought his cases direct from a real manufacturer for less than he paid on Aliexpress.

Well you asked me for a review. Like so many "experts" he might be brilliant at marketing but would appear to have only a sketchy knowledge of safe sourcing.

Walter Hay

Thanks for taking the time to provide your feedback and opinion. While reading his step-by-step, I thought I recognized some inconsistencies with some of the standards you set in your AMA. No doubt one could combine your AMA with his step-by-step and significantly increase their chances of successfully sourcing.
It would be extremely interesting to see a follow up 6 months from now. The trials and tribulations of the gal that is now running the show would provide a ton of useful information.

Thanks again!

 

[samsara]

I saw this thread when it started up and decided I would leave it alone. I don't make a habit of criticizing other people, but now that you have asked me to comment I will.

The author sets out the story and processes very systematically. It's a pity it has so many mistakes, some of which could cause followers of his well laid out step by step process to lose a lot of money.

Here are a few things I found in the Alibaba sourcing section:

• While there is no doubt that Alibaba is the biggest, they are far from the best. I think I have written enough on that subject in my AMA.
  
• The recommended process is to first contact any suppliers of the product without any attempt at determining their suitability, with due diligence waiting until you are ready to place an order. This potentially means a lot of time wasted on communicating with unsuitable suppliers.
• Then the author says you should ask what is the MOQ. That is a sure-fire way of having your inquiry ignored. It shows you to be an amateur.
• He saw his wish to order only 100pcs as a challenge because most listings state an MOQ of 500-2000 pcs. It is only a challenge for those who have not been shown or worked out for themselves how to negotiate orders much smaller than the stated MOQs.
• Then: "Here’s what my message looked like to nearly every supplier I contacted" followed by an email or contact inquiry form that screams amateur. It's no wonder he only received a small number of responses.
• Again he shows his lack of understanding of how to handle negotiating small orders, so he didn't proceed with those who quoted "really high order quantities." They might have been the best suppliers even for his small quantity, but he'll never know.
• After narrowing down the field of possible suppliers to 2, after several days of exchanges and questions from both sides, (a lot of time wasted there) he decided to do his due diligence.
• Wanting to deal with a manufacturer (quite correct) his first step is to visit the company profile section of their Alibaba listing to see if they are a manufacturer or a trader. Sorry, but this step is quite useless and potentially self deceiving. Most traders on Alibaba identify themselves as manufacturers. Toss a coin. That is as certain as believing what they say.
• Now he moves on to determining if the supplier is reliable, by looking for their Gold Supplier badge, and seeing how long they have been trading with that badge. Gold Suppliers go out of business and sell their name and Alibaba membership to newcomers, so you never know if they are long standing members or new this month. In any case as I have explained on my AMA Gold Suppliers are ordinary verified suppliers who have been willing to spend (currently) $699 to make people believe they are reliable and trustworthy. The only extra checking to qualify as a Gold Supplier in addition to the almost non-existent checking to become verified is that their check must be cleared when Alibaba bank it.
• He likes the security of dealing through Alibaba's Trade Assurance, but as I have explained in my AMA that system is full of loopholes plus the cost of a pre-shipment inspection that would roughly double the author's cost.
• But then .... he pays through Alibaba's Secure Payment system, which also is full of loopholes that are exploited by suppliers who don't want to refund. And they get away with it.
• Part of the due diligence performed is to check feedback on the supplier's Company Profile. Feedback is bought and sold, and Alibaba have been reprimanded by China's consumer protection watchdog for not cleaning up their act on feedback and many other serious failings.
• The statement that "most suppliers will refund you the sample cost once you place an order with them." is a bit misleading. You must have that agreement before placing your first order, but the freight component of that sample order price won't be refunded. Freight most often exceeds the cost of the sample.
• He states that after paying for the order: "Feel free to ask any questions about the production time and shipping time." That is a very important factor and should not be treated as an afterthought.
• Finally, he went to Aliexpress to buy cases for the glasses, saying: "AliExpress is similar to Alibaba, in that it’s a marketplace to find manufacturers, but in this case, you can purchase a smaller quantity or even just one item at wholesale prices direct from China." Aliexpress is Alibaba's retail site for westerners. You won't find many manufacturers there. As a matter of interest, I checked on another B2B site and found that he could have bought his cases direct from a real manufacturer for less than he paid on Aliexpress.

Well you asked me for a review. Like so many "experts" he might be brilliant at marketing but would appear to have only a sketchy knowledge of safe sourcing.

Walter Hay

Thanks @Walter Hay

Walter's AMMA ---> GOLD Sharing my lifetime experience in export/import. Product sourcing specialist..

 

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[ExCubeCommando]

I
Well you asked me for a review. Like so many "experts" he might be brilliant at marketing but would appear to have only a sketchy knowledge of safe sourcing.

Walter Hay

Perfect timing Walter!

I read this thread, then the article, and just finished your book. Let's say, I did catch a few 'discrepancies'.

While I'm anxious to get started, I don't want to shoot myself in the foot in the process. I'm spending pretty much all my free time studying, but I'm also getting restless not having a working store operating. I've been wasting too much time learning to create Wordpress sites for content articles geared toward affiliate links. That's okay though, it's all a learning process, and I haven't spent too much money related to the learning.

I don't want to waste time, but at the same time, I want to avoid stupid mistakes. Mistakes will be made, but the fatal ones I would like to avoid!

 

[AllenCrawley]

Thanks for taking the time to provide your feedback and opinion. While reading his step-by-step, I thought I recognized some inconsistencies with some of the standards you set in your AMA. No doubt one could combine your AMA with his step-by-step and significantly increase their chances of successfully sourcing.
It would be extremely interesting to see a follow up 6 months from now. The trials and tribulations of the gal that is now running the show would provide a ton of useful information.

Thanks again!

Am I correct in assuming you will be taking action on the information in this thread? I'd be interested in seeing a progress thread from you.

 

[KLaw]

Am I correct in assuming you will be taking action on the information in this thread? I'd be interested in seeing a progress thread from you.

At one time, didn't you and another member offer some type of paid program to help others in this type of business?

 

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[AllenCrawley]

At one time, didn't you and another member offer some type of paid program to help others in this type of business?

Not me.

 

[KLaw]

Not me.

My bad. I must have you mixed up with another. But, to answer your q...i may start up something on the side. Right now, my main focus is on setting up a licensing deal. But, e-commerce definitely intrigues me.

 

[sWALK90]

For some reason i didnt get any of these notifications lol... whats wrong with the fourm? I only got the one where someone liked my posted

 

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[RHL]

Those needing a 'step by step' no longer have an excuse

Aaaw, man!