SUPPLIERS
Finding a factory in China is not the finish line
Why “we have our own factory” and “we can make it” are only starting points in finding the right manufacturer.
Field notes.
Articles drawn from real work in China — not just sourcing or shipping, but how the whole process actually behaves. Less a guide than a way through the maze of myths about doing business with China: what affects cost, risk, and timing, and where buyers tend to misread the situation.
No magic formula, no overnight wins — just field notes and practical takeaways for doing real business with China, whether you’ve been buying here for years or are planning your first order.
EXPORT
Why is my Chinese supplier asking for a freight forwarder after I already paid them?
Why the supplier expects your side to handle the export declaration, even after receiving payment.
DECISIONS
Can you receive our USD, and just pay our suppliers in China and handle the export?
Why paying suppliers on behalf of a client is a documented purchasing operation, not just a money transfer.
EXPORT
Should I use a standalone consolidation warehouse in China or let my forwarder handle it?
When separate warehousing makes sense, and who should manage the goods before they enter the freight process.
EXPORT
Between the suppliers and shipping from China
The coordination, checks, repacking and consolidation work that turns individual purchases into one shipment.
SUPPLIERS
How to choose a reliable sourcing agent in China — what to check before you commit
Who actually handles the work, how the agent is paid, and what evidence supports their claims.
DECISIONS
A proforma invoice does not hold a deal
USD 34,600 paid in advance, goods never shipped, and the limits of a proforma invoice.
PRACTICE
Why you won’t hear “guaranteed” from me
Why reassuring promises need clear conditions, limits and accountability behind them.
DECISIONS
Being right was available
A prepaid order, a client changing his mind, and a supplier refund resolved down to the last cent.
PRACTICE
What answering for your own words costs in numbers
A motorcycle, a Bill of Lading correction and the real cost of standing behind your commitments.
SUPPLIERS
Why bigger orders break reliable suppliers
How scaling up an order can expose limitations that were invisible during smaller purchases.
PRACTICE
Why “we agreed” is not enough in China sourcing
Why verbal understandings become fragile without clear records and assigned responsibility.
PRACTICE
China isn’t a theatre play. It’s a system.
Understanding business signals and actual movement instead of relying on appearances and etiquette.
DECISIONS
The sourcing decisions in China that quietly turn expensive
How seemingly minor purchasing decisions accumulate costs, delays and risks.
PRACTICE
What China sourcing advice gets right — and what it skips
Why factory visits, relationships and business dinners do not tell the whole story.
SUPPLIERS
In China sourcing, confirmation is the easiest thing to find
Why quick replies, attractive prices and reassuring answers do not necessarily mean an order is under control.
EXPORT
Before you pay a supplier in China, make sure you can export it from China
Why export requirements must be checked before a good price becomes a paid order.
SUPPLIERS
Looking for the “Top supplier” in China? You’re chasing a myth
Why the right supplier depends on your particular requirements, not a universal ranking.
EXPORT
Battery-powered goods from China: where shipping reality shows up
The transport requirements and documents that can change how battery-powered goods leave China.
SUPPLIERS
Are you sure the factory you’re visiting in China is a real one?
Staged factory visits, intermediaries presenting another company's production and the evidence behind ownership.
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