Buying in bulk, from China

[Henry-F]

maser_spyder said:

EINSIGN said:

Anyone going to the Canton fair in October?

Was supposed to be there in April, along with a tour of our factories, but bloomin' Iceland put paid to that plan.

I was supposed to be out in Asia as well at that time but got scuppered by the Ash, not to the Canton fair but to see existing suppliers in China and Taiwan. Bloody frustrating when you suspected all the time that it was a bit of a farce banning the flights but just another one of the things you have to deal with.

As has been said already make sure you go into the Asian market with your eyes wide open. It isn't the same as dealing with a UK, European or American supplier. There's a language, cultural and business canyon to cross and plenty of sharks waiting to have a tasty chunk out of you. Even if you go into the market not looking to get the lowest possible price you still feel as though you are swimming against the tide.

For a few bits it probably isn't worth the hassle. You need to allow time, energy and budget to source products. Even when using an Agent, (in fact probably especially if you're using an agent). One of the things we come across all the time are supposed manufacturers who are actually just agents trying to place work.

Henry

[noob]

Goochie said:

An export agent in China or and import agent in the UK?

Export in China. I did google but I´m not sure which is reputable and which isn´t (and who deals in small orders).

[dreamz]

Dick Dastardly said:

That's what I love about PH. Advice that would cost £000's from a consultant in the real world gets given away here for free, and from people who've actually been there and done it.

seconded!!

i've got a brill idea. everyone loves ipods. everyone loves mp3 players. so why not make some cheap ones in china and get them shipped over?!

in all seriousness to the above plan - roughly - how much would they cost with around 4gig memory but preloaded with something? a basic player with a screen which says what audio is playing...

[odyssey2200]

dreamz said:

Dick Dastardly said:

That's what I love about PH. Advice that would cost £000's from a consultant in the real world gets given away here for free, and from people who've actually been there and done it.

seconded!!

i've got a brill idea. everyone loves ipods. everyone loves mp3 players. so why not make some cheap ones in china and get them shipped over?!

in all seriousness to the above plan - roughly - how much would they cost with around 4gig memory but preloaded with something? a basic player with a screen which says what audio is playing...

Alibaba.com is your friend.

[dudleybloke]

i wouldn't bother with the mp3 player idea.
about 4 years back britain was flooded with cheap 4gig mp3/mp4 players and netto ended up selling then for about 20 quid.
I'v found that people either use their phone as an mp3 player or buy an ipod.

[Goochie]

noob said:

Goochie said:

An export agent in China or and import agent in the UK?

Export in China. I did google but I´m not sure which is reputable and which isn´t (and who deals in small orders).

Drop me an email with the type of product you're looking for and the quantities you're after. The quantity issue is often one where people come un-stuck but having someone in CHina to help is a great help.

You also need to consider import duty, shipping costs and VAT, all of which will be added to your shipment. Normally you'll have to pay about 50% with order and the rest once the goods are on the boat.

Basically speaking, import duty will be around 3%.

Your cost will be approx as follows:

Cost of goods + Import duty (2 to 3 %) + Any freight admin charge (£20 ish) + Freight charge (£300 for a 500kg pallet) + VAT.

[themonkbro]

noob, that sounds like typical scammer tactic to me, offering free shipment. Also hope it isn't branded mobiles you're thinking of buying, cause it'll either be fakes, or worse you won't get your goods after payment.

For some reason many people thinks that they can buy genuine iphone etc for cheap in China, but the truth is in China they cost even more then anywhere else in the world.

[cqueen]

I've just had this quote for shipping, could someone explain what all these different terms mean? i.e. CBM, FCL, HQ?

Thanks...

[i]Pls find the price as follows

For bulk-cargoCabout USD10/CBM from shenzhen to Felixtowe
For FCL, about USD1970/20GP USD3700/40GP USD3800/40HQ from shenzhen to Felixtowe.[/i]

[maser_spyder]

cqueen said:

I've just had this quote for shipping, could someone explain what all these different terms mean? i.e. CBM, FCL, HQ?

Thanks...

[i]Pls find the price as follows

For bulk-cargoCabout USD10/CBM from shenzhen to Felixtowe
For FCL, about USD1970/20GP USD3700/40GP USD3800/40HQ from shenzhen to Felixtowe.[/i]

CBM = Cubic meterage (volume of the goods).

FCL = Full Container Load (you'll pay for a full container whether it's full or not).

HQ = A tall 40' container. 40' container comes in 'standard' size, or 'HQ' size, which is a little bit taller, so has more volume.

20' = 33CBM actual volume - 28CBM recommended load volume

40' = 67.5 CBM actual volume - 58CBM recommended load volume

40'HQ = 76CBM actual volume - 66CBM recommended load volume


You estimate less because unless you're very lucky, your goods will not fit from the floor of the container to the very top, across the whole length and breadth of the container itself. There will always be a proportion of wasted space, however hard you try.

For the goods you were looking to purchase, this isn't a FCL, so you'll be on part-load (expensive on fees). Also add port fees, admin charges, and UK shipping in to these costs. £600 - £1000 FCL depending where you are in the country.

[mat13]

maser_spyder said:

EINSIGN said:

Anyone going to the Canton fair in October?

Was supposed to be there in April, along with a tour of our factories, but bloomin' Iceland put paid to that plan.

Will be there if I get chance, but unlikely unless my search for staff is fruitful!

what sort of staff are you looking to hire?

[maser_spyder]

mat13 said:

maser_spyder said:

EINSIGN said:

Anyone going to the Canton fair in October?

Was supposed to be there in April, along with a tour of our factories, but bloomin' Iceland put paid to that plan.

Will be there if I get chance, but unlikely unless my search for staff is fruitful!

what sort of staff are you looking to hire?

European business development. Fluent in German/French/Spanish/Italian and/or/all.

[mat13]

maser_spyder said:

mat13 said:

maser_spyder said:

EINSIGN said:

Anyone going to the Canton fair in October?

Was supposed to be there in April, along with a tour of our factories, but bloomin' Iceland put paid to that plan.

Will be there if I get chance, but unlikely unless my search for staff is fruitful!

what sort of staff are you looking to hire?

European business development. Fluent in German/French/Spanish/Italian and/or/all.

Bit out of my league then, im looking for sales/rep work, not getting enough reward where I am now for the work I put in and the business I generate so want to move on.

[cqueen]

maser_spyder said:

cqueen said:

I've just had this quote for shipping, could someone explain what all these different terms mean? i.e. CBM, FCL, HQ?

Thanks...

[i]Pls find the price as follows

For bulk-cargoCabout USD10/CBM from shenzhen to Felixtowe
For FCL, about USD1970/20GP USD3700/40GP USD3800/40HQ from shenzhen to Felixtowe.[/i]

CBM = Cubic meterage (volume of the goods).

FCL = Full Container Load (you'll pay for a full container whether it's full or not).

HQ = A tall 40' container. 40' container comes in 'standard' size, or 'HQ' size, which is a little bit taller, so has more volume.

20' = 33CBM actual volume - 28CBM recommended load volume

40' = 67.5 CBM actual volume - 58CBM recommended load volume

40'HQ = 76CBM actual volume - 66CBM recommended load volume


You estimate less because unless you're very lucky, your goods will not fit from the floor of the container to the very top, across the whole length and breadth of the container itself. There will always be a proportion of wasted space, however hard you try.

For the goods you were looking to purchase, this isn't a FCL, so you'll be on part-load (expensive on fees). Also add port fees, admin charges, and UK shipping in to these costs. £600 - £1000 FCL depending where you are in the country.

Thanks for that! So what happens if my order is only about 5cubic meters? What is the definition of 'bulk cargo?'. Going by the quote, 5 cubic meters 'bulk cargo' would = £50? What are the other fees involved?

Another question What if I order 5 m/cube of one product from a manufacturer, and 10m/cube of something else from another manufactuere and so on. Can I get them all these seperate items put together in the same container?

Many thanks for the help!

[maser_spyder]

cqueen said:

maser_spyder said:

cqueen said:

I've just had this quote for shipping, could someone explain what all these different terms mean? i.e. CBM, FCL, HQ?

Thanks...

[i]Pls find the price as follows

For bulk-cargoCabout USD10/CBM from shenzhen to Felixtowe
For FCL, about USD1970/20GP USD3700/40GP USD3800/40HQ from shenzhen to Felixtowe.[/i]

CBM = Cubic meterage (volume of the goods).

FCL = Full Container Load (you'll pay for a full container whether it's full or not).

HQ = A tall 40' container. 40' container comes in 'standard' size, or 'HQ' size, which is a little bit taller, so has more volume.

20' = 33CBM actual volume - 28CBM recommended load volume

40' = 67.5 CBM actual volume - 58CBM recommended load volume

40'HQ = 76CBM actual volume - 66CBM recommended load volume


You estimate less because unless you're very lucky, your goods will not fit from the floor of the container to the very top, across the whole length and breadth of the container itself. There will always be a proportion of wasted space, however hard you try.

For the goods you were looking to purchase, this isn't a FCL, so you'll be on part-load (expensive on fees). Also add port fees, admin charges, and UK shipping in to these costs. £600 - £1000 FCL depending where you are in the country.

Thanks for that! So what happens if my order is only about 5cubic meters? What is the definition of 'bulk cargo?'. Going by the quote, 5 cubic meters 'bulk cargo' would = £50? What are the other fees involved?

Another question What if I order 5 m/cube of one product from a manufacturer, and 10m/cube of something else from another manufactuere and so on. Can I get them all these seperate items put together in the same container?

Many thanks for the help!

$10 per CBM seems far too cheap, sorry. On that basis, a full 40' container would only cost $760, and it's a lot more than that (see your own quoted rates!).

To 'mix and match' containers, you'll need an agent in China. We do this with some of our products, the only (easy) way to do it is with local staff, who deal with the factories directly for you.

[Wheelrepairit]

maser_spyder said:

Fluent in German/French/Spanish/Italian and/or/all.

I know whereabouts those countries are,does that count.

[cqueen]

maser_spyder said:

$10 per CBM seems far too cheap, sorry. On that basis, a full 40' container would only cost $760, and it's a lot more than that (see your own quoted rates!).

To 'mix and match' containers, you'll need an agent in China. We do this with some of our products, the only (easy) way to do it is with local staff, who deal with the factories directly for you.

Ok so doing some quick numbers...

Approx £800 for shipping will get me a 40'FCL. and to fill a container with 58m/cub I would need to buy £7k worth of stock + Vat + fees etc.

Hmmm wanted to start small :-(

[noob]

Cheers for the help Goochie. I found out that my sisters flatmate is chinese and she comes from Shaghai. So does the company that was offering the goods. I sent an email to sales rep and askes if it´s ok if I send someone to pick the phones up. Rep didn´t reply to this email (usually replied in an hour)

[maser_spyder]

cqueen said:

maser_spyder said:

$10 per CBM seems far too cheap, sorry. On that basis, a full 40' container would only cost $760, and it's a lot more than that (see your own quoted rates!).

To 'mix and match' containers, you'll need an agent in China. We do this with some of our products, the only (easy) way to do it is with local staff, who deal with the factories directly for you.

Ok so doing some quick numbers...

Approx £800 for shipping will get me a 40'FCL. and to fill a container with 58m/cub I would need to buy £7k worth of stock + Vat + fees etc.

Hmmm wanted to start small :-(

£800 won't get you a 40' delivered. More like £3000+ (minimum).

One thing you will need to deal with the far east is cash I'm afraid. You can't start an import business with only £8k.

[cqueen]

maser_spyder said:

£800 won't get you a 40' delivered. More like £3000+ (minimum).

Bad times

There must be an alternative to shipping 5m/cube rather than a 20' container?

[maser_spyder]

cqueen said:

maser_spyder said:

£800 won't get you a 40' delivered. More like £3000+ (minimum).

Bad times

There must be an alternative to shipping 5m/cube rather than a 20' container?

Yes, you talk to somebody like me, who has containers coming in all the time, and ask for a bit of extra space, us of my office staff in China, and use of my VAT deferment account, and years of expertise.