35 suppliers, three delivery flows
Someone in China to find suppliers and issue one invoice as the seller for everything.
Air, forwarder handover, shared sea container
Client location
West Africa
Logistics mode
EXW, LCL, AWB
Service format
Project
Branded promo items, equipment and supplies
Intro
The client runs a chain of opticians in West Africa and was purchasing in China for the business — branded promo items and a varied list of goods and equipment. Most positions came as a sourcing file with reference examples. My part was to find the suppliers, work through the options with the client, and purchase once she approved. On the branded items, the same — plus the logo print coordinated with each supplier, sample by sample.
The order grew as it went: new requests with different shipping and commercial terms joined while the first part was already in progress. She stayed in control and confirmed each step — I executed on the ground.
Product range
Branded promo items 1 / 6
Calendars, pens, notebooks, bags, desk pads.
Optical store equipment 2 / 6
Lensmeter, auto ref-keratometer, display and storage units, stands.
Furniture 3 / 6
Bar, office and lounge chairs, sofas, outdoor chairs.
Solar and electrical equipment 4 / 6
Solar street lamps, home solar system, solar appliances, IP phones, office equipment.
Interior and décor materials 5 / 6
Decorative films, panels, plinths, artificial grass.
Lighting and equipment 6 / 6
Indoor and outdoor lights, ceiling fans.
Service scope
Sourcing 1 / 4
- Source and vet prospective suppliers
- Shortlist suitable items based on the client's references
Confirmations 2 / 4
- Clarify product specifications, availability and commercial terms with suppliers
- Arrange samples and confirm branding details with suppliers
- Confirm product selections and samples with the client
Execution 3 / 4
- Place confirmed orders
- Handle purchases as the seller of record
- Handle payments to multiple suppliers in different currencies and under different payment terms
- Manage supplier workflow and branded production
- Arrange targeted on-site goods checks
- Consolidate goods at the warehouse
- Manage warehousing
Logistics & export 4 / 4
- Arrange air freight and export customs clearance
- Arrange handover to the client's forwarder in Guangzhou
- Arrange LCL sea freight
- Handle China export customs clearance
- Prepare consolidated invoices and shipping documents
Outcome
Thirty-five suppliers managed across the whole order — from manufacturers down to single-item marketplace purchases. The goods left China in three flows. The urgent part — calendars and desk pads — went by air, another part of the branded items was handed over to the client’s forwarder in Guangzhou, and the rest shipped by sea — a container shared between two consignees, with a separate sub-bill of lading issued for the client’s part.
Each flow closed with its own document set;
Sea: the contract, one consolidated commercial invoice covering all its suppliers, the packing list and the sub-bill of lading.
Air: the contract, the invoice, the packing list and a copy of the air waybill.
FAQ
From one — that was the arrangement we agreed on from the start. The client wanted the whole China side closed through one counterparty: I purchased from each supplier under my own company and paid them on my side, and on paper she bought the goods from me. One contract, one consolidated commercial invoice instead of thirty-five supplier accounts. She knew the process behind it — the structure was her requirement, not a curtain. That’s the seller of record part of the job.
The container was shared. The carrier issued the master bill of lading for the box as a whole, and for the client’s share — 125 packages — a separate sub-bill of lading was issued. Her cargo travelled in a shared container but arrived as her own shipment, with her own document for import clearance.
Timing and terms differed inside one order. The calendars and desk pads were urgent, so that part flew. Another part of the branded items went through the client’s own forwarder — my side was the handover in Guangzhou. The rest had no rush and shipped by sea. The order kept moving instead of waiting for one container.
At a defined point in each flow. Air: dispatch from China, with the AWB copy provided after. The forwarder part: FCA handover in Guangzhou — from there it was in the client’s channel. Sea: export from China under the client’s instructions, closed with the document set for her import clearance. The destination side is always the client’s.
Anton Gora
Independent sourcing
and purchasing agent in China
and purchasing agent in China
Master’s degree in Sinology
In China since 2005
In China since 2005