What do you think of Chinese suppliers?

[Maks]

Hello guys,


hope I've put this in the right forum section, anyway... My name is Maks, I'm 18 years old guy from Europe and I'm trying to get into e-commerce business so I'm here to ask you for some advice and experiences. So basically I found a few good products to sell and I wanna contact Chinese suppliers to drop ship and that's why I'm asking this. I'm gonna open a progress thread to tell more about the whole thing but this is what I worry about the most itm. Here's to the question:

Do you think getting a drop ship deal with Chinese supplier is a Good/bad idea?

Let's say I find a supplier on Alibaba or Ebay and send him a PM if he'd be willing to dropship for me. I know it's possible on ebay, but I don't know if alibaba's suppliers dropship. What are your experiences with them? Do they package nicely and without some Chinese pictures, are they fast enough with shipping, etc. I read that I should stay away from Chinese suppliers but on the other hand some guys say they are okay. I might be asking too much since probably depends from supplier to supplier but I'm curious in general.

Another thing that I can't figure out is like how can they ship some items on ebay for free? Like I see a knife for $2 and free shipping. How is this possible that they offer free shipping? Normally if I wanna send a package from EU to let's say Pakistan or even EU it's costs me a fortune and eats my margins alive.


Any help'd be really appreciated!

In case I wasted your time, here's at least something related to this topic you might enjoy:

 

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[ljb7]

Don't do drop shipping with Chinese suppliers ever. You just can't rely on them. As for the cost, suppliers create these products for penny's, and then use really low cost shipping to get it across to the customer. However, the thing they can't compete with is time, their shipping takes weeks, yours can take days.

Anyway, I suggest you read all the importing and e commerce .. Ecom man, biophase and Walter Hay have and continue to provide great value on these subjects.. Search their profiles, scour their posts and get going!

 

[Kak]

Drop shipping individual items from China is going to have little to no margins, the freight cost will be very high per unit.

This sounds more like money chasing than value creation to me.

 

[Maks]

@ljb7 ok, will follow your advice. Thanks!

@Kak Yeah you're correct it is money chasing but I can't see crating value in drop shipping like except in case you see creating value as knowing customers pain points, better customer service, more user friendly site etc. I'm new to all this and that's why I'm here asking for your help. I just ordered TMF so probably I'll understand more as I read through it.

Anyways thanks again for the comments gonna dig into the ecom man posts now and hope to see you guys in my progress thread.

 

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[Kak]

@ljb7 ok, will follow your advice. Thanks!

@Kak Yeah you're correct it is money chasing but I can't see crating value in drop shipping like except in case you see creating value as knowing customers pain points, better customer service, more user friendly site etc. I'm new to all this and that's why I'm here asking for your help. I just ordered TMF so probably I'll understand more as I read through it.

Anyways thanks again for the comments gonna dig into the ecom man posts now and hope to see you guys in my progress thread.

When it comes to money chasing, I think we have all done it at some level and have some experience with it. My thoughts on the topic are very simple... Unless you are actually providing real value you will not make real money.

It is actually way easier to make money when you start from the value side of things. Build a foundation, try to figure out what the market is begging for and commit to it.

 

[Maks]

When it comes to money chasing, I think we have all done it at some level and have some experience with it. My thoughts on the topic are very simple... Unless you are actually providing real value you will not make real money.

It is actually way easier to make money when you start from the value side of things. Build a foundation, try to figure out what the market is begging for and commit to it.

Ohh yeah I totally get it! Yes, my dream is to find a need, get an idea, make a prototype, brand it, sell it, etc. I already have lot's of ideas BUT every time I wanted to execute it I needed capital which I didn't have to make more products so I quit but I have it in the back of my mind.

Right now my main and only goal for the next year is to get $500-1k/month to pay my expenses(I kind of desperately need the money ). I think this is possible with drop shipping and also it's the only method I know that can bring in money in a year or so, even though it's chasing money. Like I said I don't need big bucks but I need the money and I need it to be online since I don't have the time to work in some warehouse for $500/month.

I don't know what kind of impression I made with this post like some money chaser or something but yeah 1k/month, online, one year. I think it's possible and that's all I want itm.

 

[Kak]

You can make 3-4 grand a month waiting tables pretty easily....

 

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[Maks]

You can make 3-4 grand a month waiting tables pretty easily....

OK I don't think this is true in my country but maybe it is so I won't argue but the point is I need the money to be online because I want to move to SE Asia(Cambodia/Vietnam/Thailand)-obviously because you can live there with 1k/month. It's because I need to move out of this house and out of this country but this is another topic not related to this thread so please even though it's chasing money it's the only option I see right now.

 

[integrity]

OK I don't think this is true in my country but maybe it is so I won't argue but the point is I need the money to be online because I want to move to SE Asia(Cambodia/Vietnam/Thailand)-obviously because you can live there with 1k/month. It's because I need to move out of this house and out of this country but this is another topic not related to this thread so please even though it's chasing money it's the only option I see right now.

Starting a successful business is not about meeting your wants and needs. It's about meeting the wants and needs of the people around you.

The more wants and needs of others you fulfill, the more successful you will be.

Just something I thought was worth pointing out.

 

[Maks]

Starting a successful business is not about meeting your wants and needs. It's about meeting the wants and needs of the people around you.

The more wants and needs of others you fulfill, the more successful you will be.

Just something I thought was worth pointing out.

Yeah I get it and will try to implement it in drop shipping like better customer service, better FAQ, better descriptions and instructions of use etc. I think this is fulfilling the customers needs. I just don't see the point of dropping the whole idea of drop shipping because it's money chasing if there is some money to be made(I believe). I will commit to long years of hard work to provide real value later in life but right now even though it's against TMF I need some "quick" money.

 

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[Deleted15476]

Dropping from china makes no sense.

No margin like the fellas above said.

Shipping to a fulfilment center like Amazon would work. Suppliers are good if you vet them right.

 

[Kak]

OK I don't think this is true in my country but maybe it is so I won't argue but the point is I need the money to be online because I want to move to SE Asia(Cambodia/Vietnam/Thailand)-obviously because you can live there with 1k/month. It's because I need to move out of this house and out of this country but this is another topic not related to this thread so please even though it's chasing money it's the only option I see right now.

You missed the part about chasing money not working...

Chasing money is no ones only option. Better FAQ and descriptions is not more value. You are thinking in terms of yourself. The customer is not going to care.

If you can make ten dollars drop shipping like you intend to I will be completely suprised.

 

[Kak]

Sorry off my game.. Wrong thread.

 

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[Steve Corcoran]

When it comes to money chasing, I think we have all done it at some level and have some experience with it. My thoughts on the topic are very simple... Unless you are actually providing real value you will not make real money.

It is actually way easier to make money when you start from the value side of things. Build a foundation, try to figure out what the market is begging for and commit to it.

This is too true for most to handle... Even me. I was money chasing for so long, never actually made any because I would not commit to anything. You also will never feel satisfied with money chasing or at least I never did. Real value could mean you loose money on your product/service for a while well you build up infrastructure and value.

 

[Ninjakid]

Take some friendly advice from an old man.

If you're short of money, sell some crap you don't need. You can also get a part-time job, or offer a service; the latter being far more entrepreneurial.

If you're taking on a task like E-commerce because you think will be easy money, you're going to tear your hair right out of your head. Building and maintaining an e-commerce site is a big task, and not worthy of something you're going to half-a$$ on.

So try some of those options I suggested, and build the thing you really want to build like it's the only thing that will save the world from an impending zombie-apocalypse.

If answer to your question, Alibaba is quite reliable, and eBay is hit and miss. Make sure you check out the guy's ratings on eBay.

 

[ddzc]

Hello guys,

hope I've put this in the right forum section, anyway... My name is Maks, I'm 18 years old guy from Europe and I'm trying to get into e-commerce business so I'm here to ask you for some advice and experiences. So basically I found a few good products to sell and I wanna contact Chinese suppliers to drop ship and that's why I'm asking this. I'm gonna open a progress thread to tell more about the whole thing but this is what I worry about the most itm. Here's to the question:

Do you think getting a drop ship deal with Chinese supplier is a Good/bad idea?

Let's say I find a supplier on Alibaba or Ebay and send him a PM if he'd be willing to dropship for me. I know it's possible on ebay, but I don't know if alibaba's suppliers dropship. What are your experiences with them? Do they package nicely and without some Chinese pictures, are they fast enough with shipping, etc. I read that I should stay away from Chinese suppliers but on the other hand some guys say they are okay. I might be asking too much since probably depends from supplier to supplier but I'm curious in general.

Another thing that I can't figure out is like how can they ship some items on ebay for free? Like I see a knife for $2 and free shipping. How is this possible that they offer free shipping? Normally if I wanna send a package from EU to let's say Pakistan or even EU it's costs me a fortune and eats my margins alive.

Any help'd be really appreciated!

In case I wasted your time, here's at least something related to this topic you might enjoy:
View attachment 8558

I would re-visit your business model, this won't work. Why? You can't beat the chinese prices so how are you going to build a feasible cash positive business by dropshipping directly from China?

how can they ship some items on ebay for free? - They use China Post Mail which costs next to nothing and it's extremely slow.

If your stuck on the dropshipping business model, I highly suggest hooking up with a distributor or wholesaler in your country and negotiate a drop shipping deal with them.

I would never ship anything from China direct to the consumer because of the below:

1. If you use anything other than China Post Mail like DHL or UPS, you'll be losing money on every order
2. If you use China Post Mail, a lot of customers will be yelling at you because they're unpatient and want the product yesterday, not in 3-5 weeks. Plus your pricing wont match what they offer for the same product on ebay and aliexpress

I highly suggest reading the threads by @Flyleaf He was making a killing with a dropshipping method, but he thought OUTSIDE THE BOX. He also never dropshipped from overseas.

Cheers,
Dan

 

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[Maks]

Wow, you guys are amazing. I'll follow your advice so you didn't waste your time. Now to reply to your responses let me first clear up some things.


I have some money right now so that's not a problem. I have one more year of school so this is the perfect time to focus on earning money I think since I have like 30 hours/week available to invest in whatever I will choose. BUT after my final exams I intend to move to SE Asia(because it's cheap and I know people with $600/month living there). I have to move because I have to move out of this house. You could say get a job and move to another city, yes it's true BUT why not move to Asia and start a new life, see the world etc. I don't want to live in this country anymore. It's the best opportunity I'll ever have. So now I hope you understand why my business has to be online based and waiting tables or something is not an option.


Another thing. I know real money comes from fulfilling a need and problem solving in form of crating a product or offering a service. But I also know that in order to do that you need like 3-5 years of hard work. Now, I only have one year of hard work available.


So I might have been a bit lazy in previous posts in explaining what quick money means to me. It means working hard on a business for a year. I know I'll have to invest a lot of time into whatever I'll decide whether it's drop shipping or importing or affiliate marketing or whatever. I know it'll take like 4 months to find a product, get a supplier, build a site then probably fail and do it all over again and maybe after like 6 months of work get my first sale. I know that and I'm willing to put in the work. So yeah, @Ninjakid I know E-commerce is not easy money so I’m not going to half a$$ it and thanks for the advice about suppliers. I think it's possible to make 1k/month online in a year if you work hard and smart so now I hope you see that I'm not going for a quick buck here.


Now that you know where I’m coming from here’s what I was thinking about the whole thing:


I could build a site and do some affiliate marketing and fake it till I make it but that’s not working I guess. So my next thought was importing.


Importing from China and warehousing in my room and then reselling on ebay/amazon is not possible because shipping across EU is expensive and reselling just in my country isn’t either because it’s like one million citizens here so the market is not big enough. My next thought was importing and warehousing in some fulfillment center which I still think is an option like @Edotthekid said. Probably you need to be self-employed or have a company for all this but my best friend has it so I could work on it through his company if needed.


@ddzc thanks for recommendation and to answer your questions:


Another thing that crossed my mind was drop shipping. I listed a few ways to do it.

1. Find a product and a supplier on ebay, test the market, order samples etc., make a site with shopify that looks like it’s specific to that niche, give the product a perceived value (like I mentioned, better instructions, photos, FAQs, customer service…) so the customer will actually think my item is better than the crappy one from a Chinese guy and consequently I can sell it for more (I hope). If I’d use Chinese drop shipper with China Post Mail I’d get big margins but probably less sales but I’d state clearly that it’ll take 3 weeks for the item to get there but I think some people would still buy it. Like I buy books on Amazon all the time and wait for them 3 weeks.

2. Another option would be finding a product on Alibaba and selling it on Amazon/Ebay. Now, I could do this via importing to a fulfillment center like I said before or drop ship from a supplier again with China Post Mail. For example I saw a product on Alibaba for $5 that’s selling for $43.99 on amazon. What if I offer it for $23.99 and slow shipping. Like there will be still people who’ll buy it for less and just wait a couple of weeks. It says this item is sold by amazon fulfillment so I guess someone is already doing it but he’s only selling in USA because I can’t order it in EU so maybe someone from EU would be willing to wait 3 weeks to get it. Like you see where I’m going with this. I can’t understand that using Chinese Post Mail could kill so many sales-but even if it does I don't need that many sales.

3. Drop shipping from a local supplier wouldn’t work because I could only sell in my country which is too small to do it I think.


That’s it. I think importing to a fulfillment center could be the best option but I can’t see that drop shipping like I described could be that bad. Remember I need $600/month. That’s selling two items/day if I get $10 margins with slow china shipping and if I have like 10 items listed that I drop ship I could get two sales per day I think.


So here was my thought process and now I’m open to criticism. I feel like you guys, especially @Kak perceive me as some lazy spoiled 18 year old who’s chasing money and I don’t want it to be this way so I’m here to change that.

 

[Ninjakid]

@Maks If you're serious about it and you have a will to make it happen, then yes, $1K a month is a very possible goal. Learn as much about the industry as you possibly can.
Good luck, man.

 

[Kak]

Wow, you guys are amazing. I'll follow your advice so you didn't waste your time. Now to reply to your responses let me first clear up some things.


I have some money right now so that's not a problem. I have one more year of school so this is the perfect time to focus on earning money I think since I have like 30 hours/week available to invest in whatever I will choose. BUT after my final exams I intend to move to SE Asia(because it's cheap and I know people with $600/month living there). I have to move because I have to move out of this house. You could say get a job and move to another city, yes it's true BUT why not move to Asia and start a new life, see the world etc. I don't want to live in this country anymore. It's the best opportunity I'll ever have. So now I hope you understand why my business has to be online based and waiting tables or something is not an option.


Another thing. I know real money comes from fulfilling a need and problem solving in form of crating a product or offering a service. But I also know that in order to do that you need like 3-5 years of hard work. Now, I only have one year of hard work available.


So I might have been a bit lazy in previous posts in explaining what quick money means to me. It means working hard on a business for a year. I know I'll have to invest a lot of time into whatever I'll decide whether it's drop shipping or importing or affiliate marketing or whatever. I know it'll take like 4 months to find a product, get a supplier, build a site then probably fail and do it all over again and maybe after like 6 months of work get my first sale. I know that and I'm willing to put in the work. So yeah, @Ninjakid I know E-commerce is not easy money so I’m not going to half a$$ it and thanks for the advice about suppliers. I think it's possible to make 1k/month online in a year if you work hard and smart so now I hope you see that I'm not going for a quick buck here.


Now that you know where I’m coming from here’s what I was thinking about the whole thing:


I could build a site and do some affiliate marketing and fake it till I make it but that’s not working I guess. So my next thought was importing.


Importing from China and warehousing in my room and then reselling on ebay/amazon is not possible because shipping across EU is expensive and reselling just in my country isn’t either because it’s like one million citizens here so the market is not big enough. My next thought was importing and warehousing in some fulfillment center which I still think is an option like @Edotthekid said. Probably you need to be self-employed or have a company for all this but my best friend has it so I could work on it through his company if needed.


@ddzc thanks for recommendation and to answer your questions:


Another thing that crossed my mind was drop shipping. I listed a few ways to do it.

1. Find a product and a supplier on ebay, test the market, order samples etc., make a site with shopify that looks like it’s specific to that niche, give the product a perceived value (like I mentioned, better instructions, photos, FAQs, customer service…) so the customer will actually think my item is better than the crappy one from a Chinese guy and consequently I can sell it for more (I hope). If I’d use Chinese drop shipper with China Post Mail I’d get big margins but probably less sales but I’d state clearly that it’ll take 3 weeks for the item to get there but I think some people would still buy it. Like I buy books on Amazon all the time and wait for them 3 weeks.

2. Another option would be finding a product on Alibaba and selling it on Amazon/Ebay. Now, I could do this via importing to a fulfillment center like I said before or drop ship from a supplier again with China Post Mail. For example I saw a product on Alibaba for $5 that’s selling for $43.99 on amazon. What if I offer it for $23.99 and slow shipping. Like there will be still people who’ll buy it for less and just wait a couple of weeks. It says this item is sold by amazon fulfillment so I guess someone is already doing it but he’s only selling in USA because I can’t order it in EU so maybe someone from EU would be willing to wait 3 weeks to get it. Like you see where I’m going with this. I can’t understand that using Chinese Post Mail could kill so many sales-but even if it does I don't need that many sales.

3. Drop shipping from a local supplier wouldn’t work because I could only sell in my country which is too small to do it I think.


That’s it. I think importing to a fulfillment center could be the best option but I can’t see that drop shipping like I described could be that bad. Remember I need $600/month. That’s selling two items/day if I get $10 margins with slow china shipping and if I have like 10 items listed that I drop ship I could get two sales per day I think.


So here was my thought process and now I’m open to criticism. I feel like you guys, especially @Kak perceive me as some lazy spoiled 18 year old who’s chasing money and I don’t want it to be this way so I’m here to change that.

I don't think you are spoied or lazy. You are deeply misguided. Even this post is off the rails a bit... Affiliate marketing? That's money chasing.

Think about it this way, can you one day sell your company?.. If you can answer this question honestly with the word YES you might be on to something.

I think the get rich quick schemes are a natural beginning to many real entrepreneur journeys so let us know how it goes when you decide not to listen to us.

 

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[vap3]

he has a point though with some people are willing to pay much much less, if they don't mind the 3 week shipping. If the customer is informed, and he is getting a discount by waiting, I don't see the issue.

 

[ljb7]

he has a point though with some people are willing to pay much much less, if they don't mind the 3 week shipping. If the customer is informed, and he is getting a discount by waiting, I don't see the issue.

People are impatient. I'd rather pay for something and get it tomorrow rather than waiting a few weeks just to save a few bucks.

Not to mention people have higher trust for a seller in their country vs a seller in China for example.

 

[ddzc]

Wow, you guys are amazing. I'll follow your advice so you didn't waste your time. Now to reply to your responses let me first clear up some things.


I have some money right now so that's not a problem. I have one more year of school so this is the perfect time to focus on earning money I think since I have like 30 hours/week available to invest in whatever I will choose. BUT after my final exams I intend to move to SE Asia(because it's cheap and I know people with $600/month living there). I have to move because I have to move out of this house. You could say get a job and move to another city, yes it's true BUT why not move to Asia and start a new life, see the world etc. I don't want to live in this country anymore. It's the best opportunity I'll ever have. So now I hope you understand why my business has to be online based and waiting tables or something is not an option.


Another thing. I know real money comes from fulfilling a need and problem solving in form of crating a product or offering a service. But I also know that in order to do that you need like 3-5 years of hard work. Now, I only have one year of hard work available.


So I might have been a bit lazy in previous posts in explaining what quick money means to me. It means working hard on a business for a year. I know I'll have to invest a lot of time into whatever I'll decide whether it's drop shipping or importing or affiliate marketing or whatever. I know it'll take like 4 months to find a product, get a supplier, build a site then probably fail and do it all over again and maybe after like 6 months of work get my first sale. I know that and I'm willing to put in the work. So yeah, @Ninjakid I know E-commerce is not easy money so I’m not going to half a$$ it and thanks for the advice about suppliers. I think it's possible to make 1k/month online in a year if you work hard and smart so now I hope you see that I'm not going for a quick buck here.


Now that you know where I’m coming from here’s what I was thinking about the whole thing:


I could build a site and do some affiliate marketing and fake it till I make it but that’s not working I guess. So my next thought was importing.


Importing from China and warehousing in my room and then reselling on ebay/amazon is not possible because shipping across EU is expensive and reselling just in my country isn’t either because it’s like one million citizens here so the market is not big enough. My next thought was importing and warehousing in some fulfillment center which I still think is an option like @Edotthekid said. Probably you need to be self-employed or have a company for all this but my best friend has it so I could work on it through his company if needed.


@ddzc thanks for recommendation and to answer your questions:


Another thing that crossed my mind was drop shipping. I listed a few ways to do it.

1. Find a product and a supplier on ebay, test the market, order samples etc., make a site with shopify that looks like it’s specific to that niche, give the product a perceived value (like I mentioned, better instructions, photos, FAQs, customer service…) so the customer will actually think my item is better than the crappy one from a Chinese guy and consequently I can sell it for more (I hope). If I’d use Chinese drop shipper with China Post Mail I’d get big margins but probably less sales but I’d state clearly that it’ll take 3 weeks for the item to get there but I think some people would still buy it. Like I buy books on Amazon all the time and wait for them 3 weeks.

2. Another option would be finding a product on Alibaba and selling it on Amazon/Ebay. Now, I could do this via importing to a fulfillment center like I said before or drop ship from a supplier again with China Post Mail. For example I saw a product on Alibaba for $5 that’s selling for $43.99 on amazon. What if I offer it for $23.99 and slow shipping. Like there will be still people who’ll buy it for less and just wait a couple of weeks. It says this item is sold by amazon fulfillment so I guess someone is already doing it but he’s only selling in USA because I can’t order it in EU so maybe someone from EU would be willing to wait 3 weeks to get it. Like you see where I’m going with this. I can’t understand that using Chinese Post Mail could kill so many sales-but even if it does I don't need that many sales.

3. Drop shipping from a local supplier wouldn’t work because I could only sell in my country which is too small to do it I think.


That’s it. I think importing to a fulfillment center could be the best option but I can’t see that drop shipping like I described could be that bad. Remember I need $600/month. That’s selling two items/day if I get $10 margins with slow china shipping and if I have like 10 items listed that I drop ship I could get two sales per day I think.


So here was my thought process and now I’m open to criticism. I feel like you guys, especially @Kak perceive me as some lazy spoiled 18 year old who’s chasing money and I don’t want it to be this way so I’m here to change that.

My personal opinion...go for it, learn, experience and grow. Many wantrepeneurs write out similar plans like yours and do jack shit with it. I say execute and gain some real life experience. Trust me, you'll learn a lot from it.

 

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[vap3]

i already have an idea after reading this thread ho ho ho, but first let me finish my 1st e-commerce store before jumping on this bandwagon!

edit: i know canada just had a good meeting with china negotiating in 2 billions worth of trade fees... is canada the next destination for importing heaven?

 

[Maks]

Hey, thanks for the responses. Basically I can't help myself, I'll try to execute the above plan in next months and see how it goes. If I fail I'll start listening to your advice in 2015 Will keep you updated