How To Consolidate Products From Multiple Sellers In China?  

In our business over the past few years, we have encountered many buyers who need to source various products from different suppliers.

In this way, they can get better prices than if they cooperated with a trading company.

However, in this way they have to face another problem – high shipping costs.

As we all know, it is expensive to ship from each supplier in China individually because each shipment has a basic shipping fee.

If you ship all of your purchases individually without combining them, you have to pay this base shipping for each shipment, which is expensive, especially if many different suppliers are involved.

So how to solve this problem? That’s the topic of this article.

Best way to lower shipping cost when buying from China

When you source products from different suppliers in China, the most cost-effective way is to combine goods from different suppliers into one batch and deliver to your location.

This way you only need to pay the base shipping and customs fees once,

Additionally, international shipping costs tend to be structured such that the heavier or larger the cargo, the lower the shipping cost per kilogram or cubic meter.

And the more products you have, the cheaper shipping methods you can choose – air or sea.

This is a key consideration for your business, especially if your profit margins are low.

The minimum weight requirement for air freight is 21KG.

The minimum weight requirement for sea freight is 100KG.

For example, if you import 5 different products from 5 suppliers, each 20KGS, you can consolidating them and shipping them together by air or sea freight.

Otherwise, because the weight of each shipment cannot meet the requirements of air and sea freight, you have to pay for 5 international express charges separately.

Shipping by sea will be about three times cheaper than express, which is so tempting.

Generally, you can simplify this process in 3 ways.

Work with a freight forwarder

One solution is to find a freight forwarder with its own warehouse, which can then be used to consolidate the goods.

Usually the freight forwarder will consolidate the goods for free.

A freight forwarder can usually provide you with the following services.

• Warehousing
• Quality inspection service
• Label service
• Consolidation service
• Flexible Shipping Methods
• Professional customs clearance service

The disadvantage of this solution is that freight forwarders are not very good at sourcing products and dealing with suppliers.

So when working with them, you must communicate the shipping address, packaging method, box weight and volume, etc. with all suppliers yourself, so that you can know all the costs of the entire project before placing an order.

If you are good at these, then this solution is definitely for you.

Ask one of your suppliers to combine shipping for you

The second solution is to ask one of your suppliers to consolidate the shipment for you.

If you have a good business relationship with a supplier and buy from them frequently, my suggestion is that you can ask your supplier about this.

They probably have warehouse space and will let you use it.

If you have multiple suppliers, you will talk to the person closest to your shipping port. Then you can ship other products to their factory.

Some suppliers may not even charge you to use warehouse space if it’s only for a few days.

Your only additional cost is shipping from other supplier to this consolidated factory/warehouse.

If you do not have long-term cooperation and trusted suppliers in China, this solution is not feasible for you.

Use a sourcing company to consolidate shipments

The last and most worry-free solution is to use a sourcing company.

Sourcing companies can help you store your shipments for free until you receive them all so they can repack them in a box and ship them out with more reasonable international shipping rates.

In addition to free warehousing and repacking services, you can also enjoy the following benefits.

① Buy products at cheaper local prices than foreign customers.

Souricng companies are experts in product purchasing, and their core competitiveness lies in negotiating more favorable purchase prices.

② Lower minimum order quantity.

Since purchasing companies have been in the sourcing business for a long time, they can often get lower minimum order quantities from the supplier.

③ Know all costs of the import project in advance.

The purchasing company will help you to check all possible charges before you place an order, including the cost of the product, shipping costs within China, international shipping costs and any other charges that may arise.

④ Quality inspection.

After receiving the goods, you can entrust your sourcing agent to conduct quality inspection.

For most daily products, a general look at the products will solve everything.

Once the quality problem is found, your sourcing agent can timely return and replace the goods for you.

If the problem is found after you receive them, then it will be difficult for you to ask for compensation and the cost of shipping the goods back to China is very high.

⑤ Flexible shipping method.

To get the best shipping price for you, the purchasing company will choose the most favorable shipping method according to the quantity of your goods.

And purchasing companies have long-term cooperation with freight companies, they can often get better shipping rates.

⑥ Professional customs clearance services.

Although purchasing companies are not experts in shipping, but they can provide a range of services from sourcing products to shipping to your door, including customs clearance and taxes.

To cooperate with a purchasing company, you need to pay a service fee for it, usually 5%-10% of the order amount.

If you are not good at product sourcing, supplier negotiation, product freight accounting, etc., cooperation with a sourcing company is your best choice.

But some sourcing companies won’t take orders under $5,000 because it’s not profitable for them.

If your purchase is for a small amount, you can ask SourcingArts for assistance, SourcingArts is happy to assist customers of any amount.

And SourcingArts is happy to help you buy from 1688, Taobao, AliExpress or any other online shopping platform.

After watching this video, have you found the most suitable solution for your business?

If you still have any questions, please leave a message below or send an email to support@sourcingarts for help.