What To Expect When Importing

Long Lead Times – Most overseas vendors won’t even begin making your products until you actually place an order and put down a small down payment to cover the cost of materials. Depending on the nature of your items, expect to wait anywhere from one to four months to get your products manufactured. Very rarely will any vendor actually carry any significant inventory so you must plan ahead. When we order the linens for our online store, the lead times are typically 3 months long so we really have to plan ahead and anticipate demand.

A Hefty Minimum Order – If you are ordering products to be manufactured overseas, expect to place a pretty large minimum order. Every manufacturer will have their own minimums but don’t be embarrassed to ask before ordering. If you are just starting out, take whatever you consider a large order and multiply that number by 10.

Payment Terms – Most if not all manufacturers expect to be paid by wire transfer. Usually, you have to put down a certain amount of money upfront to cover the initial costs and then pay the balance once the items are ready to be shipped. There are escrow services available to handle payment issues, but in general, transactions go much faster when there’s mutual trust between you and your vendor. Of course, you’ll have to establish this trust over time. Quality control – Quality will be an issue in the beginning. In general, it will take several iterations in order for you to get your products exactly the way you want them.

Language Barriers – Many vendors in Asia will not speak English very well. But as long as you keep your
communication along the lines of an email, things will go much smoother. Most vendors are able to read
English is much better than they can understand the spoken language.