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leonyu · February 6th, 2009

I am a Chinese and have been working for an American company for 3 years sourcing garments from China.

I have connections with many factories in textile filed and here is my opinion on finding good suppliers:

1. A good supplier should established at least 5 years ago and have export/import business for at least 3 years.

2. Employee in the factory should be more than 100.

3. Better find suppliers from Eastern China-provinces such as Shandong (this is the province I am in), Zhengjiang, Fujian, Guangdong. Those provinces are more developed and understand what customers need better.

4. Search the factory on GOOGLE and visit its website-if there are too many flashes, you have to re-consider before start cooperating.

5. Check the factory is private or state-owned, I suggest cooperate with private factories.

6. Send the factory samples and ask them produce accordingly-find as many problems as possible after receiving samples-NEVER say “your sample is great!” at the very beginning.

7. If possible and you are willing to, visit the factory and see the workshop, dining room and washing room. A good factory treat workers comperatively good (compared with factories in China).

8. Talk with the one speak English from factory and ask he/she several questions: how many employees, how many equipment, anual turnover and so on. If he/she can reply immediately, this person can help on export handling.

9. Tell the supplier what you need in details, Chinese suppliers can supplier products at any prices-if you want good quality, you MUST tell directly. And visit the factory before loading the first container-find problems with products and reject, then you would not need fly to China everytime before shipping date, come in the next 3 months and then 6 months.

10. To double insure products can finish before cancel date and quality, better find a local representative help you.

Chinese culture is very different from western countries, above are few suggestions but I wish can help.

moksha · February 28th, 2009

There are many good suggestions above, but here are some other recommendations...

I have been working with factories in China for many years and dealt with so many issues due to the communication barrier. Many factories think they can speak English, but they still have a hard time understanding your needs. Many will always say yes to everything and tell you they understand, but it takes a good relationship to trust everything is understood.

Shanghai area factories are generally better quality, but you will pay a higher price due to the fact that everything in Shanghai is more expensive (rent, labor, utilities, etc.). Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Fujian provinces are cheaper, but lack the experience of dealing with higher requirements from clients, so expect lower quality in general (though this is not always true). Some factories can do a wide variety of garments, but most specialize in something. For example many either mainly do knits or wovens. If they claim to do it all you are probably working with a trade company.

How to find the right factory??? It's really hard because there are tools like alibaba.com, which could be a great site except it's so full of scammers and trade companies. I suggest not even wasting any time with any contacts on that site unless they are a gold member (paid member), or a trust member (verified by the site). Most likely you will end up dealing with trade companies and that can have many problems. The person you deal with is no more than the middle man that promises to be able to handle anything you need, but probably has little knowledge in dealing with all the garments you would like to get manufactured. There is a lot of room for errors. Going between someone who maybe knows some broken English and possibly little about what you are wanting to manufacture, then waiting on them to find you answers, then actually doing as promised is a big accomplishment.

It's a hard task to establish a contact in China that is on the same page as you, and beyond that making sure there is a clear understanding of communication. I would be very weary of people claiming to understand you without asking many questions. Never send money unless you have verified these things, website, list of references, and ask the factory for a business license from the government. The business license will always have the circle stamp with a red star in the center. When you get a copy of the business license you can call the local gov offices and they will verify if its authentic. Remember everything in China can be easily faked, so don't be surprised to get a copy of a business license and find out its not real.

Hope this will help some who are looking at overseas manufacturing, remember I have spoke about China but many things apply to any other developing country. I work in the clothing industry in China and I'm willing to offer my advice if anyone is looking to manufacture in China and has questions.

darylmgx · March 11th, 2009

this is some goood isshhh... uhm how bout shipments do you need some special documents for that when entering the u.s or nah? and are you gonn save alotta if u get ur shirt from india or china? cus im trying to make ma shirt all made in america but if im gonn save alot buying from outside then ill prolli do that...

moksha · March 11th, 2009

Currently no quotas are required on textiles from China.

You will need to pay import duties to the US gov., and some broker charges...

- Duties are based on FOB invoice from China.
- The fabric weight does not matter, just fabric composition. For example 5.6oz vs 6oz cotton have the same rates.
- Cotton and organic cotton have the same duty rate.
- The same duties apply to all USA ports.

DUTY RATES

Mens knit t-shirts

100% cotton 16.5%
70/30 bamboo/cotton 16%
70/30 hemp/cotton 16%
50/50 cotton/poly 32%
51/49 cotton/poly 16.5%

Here is an example of a 1,000 t-shirt order I'm working on from Shanghai to Oakland, includes customs, duties, and shipping expenses:

Shanghai to Oakland - $40/CBM
25 boxes at 16x13x13 = approx 1.11 CBM

OCEAN FREIGHT:
Ocean Freight - $44.40
Documentation - $35
AMS Fee - $25
TOTAL: $104.40

CUSTOMS CLEARANCE:
Brokerage Fee - $85
Duty & Tax – at cost
Harbor Maintenance Fee – 0.25% of invoice value
Merchandise Processing Fee – 0.125% of invoice value
Messenger Fee - $15
Exam Coordination - $25 (if needed)
TOTAL: $115 (estimate excluding duties)

These are some other additional charges:

- Also file entry fee $125 at customs.
- Pier Pass and Clean Truck $8/cubic meter.

So this for this order the total expenses for shipping and customs is around $350, then add the import duties based on what kind of fabric is used for the t-shirts.

Seems a little overwhelming, but if you work with an experienced company its a fairly easy process. Hope this helps!

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