China Suppliers

[jdwintx]

I've been searching for some unique bag/purse/misc. ornaments and items such as buckles/clasps/concho's, rivets, etc. that most of us use daily. To date, there are very few suppliers of those items that I have found in the US. In my searching on the net most of the manfacturer/suppliers of those items are located in China. I was wondering if anyone has dealt with some of the companies that you can find on Alibaba.com or some other manufacturer. The majority of the companies of course deal in bulk sales, but there are some that the minimum quantities are pretty low for an order. I was wondering if some folks might be interested in possibly going in on an order or if anyone as I said has used these companies. As far as I can tell, these are the same items that Tandy, Ohio Bag and others sell and of course with their mark up.

[Crimson]

I called up the below company before and understand that they do not require minimum quantity for most items contrary to what is listed on their website.

You might want to check with them, they have operators who can understand English.

http://www.gets.cn/

[jdwintx]

Thanks Crimson, I'll check it out. Here is the link to one of the places I was looking at though. http://gzhsmetal.en.alibaba.com/product/502161308-209784746/Fashion_Metal_Made_Bag_Ornament.html , there are literally hundreds of them though. As you can see they have basically all of the purse/bag making hardware. And on the page above you can see that they have a minimum order (although it looks like there is no MOQ for in stock) of 1000 pieces and the price ranges from 5-15 cents. So at best it would be $50 dollars and at worst $150. That is substantially cheaper than even buying at wholesale prices here from the major suppliers if you can find the items you want. The problem is that I don't think any of us need 1,000 ornaments laying around but I thought maybe if some folks were interested we could possibly do a large group order on several things and then split them up, plus if we developed a relationship with a reputable company it might help lower quantity levels. Even not when you can purchase rivets at .002 to .005 cents apiece buying several thousand of them is very inexpensive vs. paying retail or wholesale.

John

[david116]

Hi,jdwintx you have a good idea,maybe i can do business with you, some of hardware factory beside me. but you need give me products picture,so that i can find the correct products. my family factory is a metal products company, we don't supply what you want,but i know who produce.

[jdwintx]

Thanks David, I'll PM you with some info after the holiday.

[Sylvia]

I've been searching for some unique bag/purse/misc. ornaments and items such as buckles/clasps/concho's, rivets, etc. that most of us use daily. To date, there are very few suppliers of those items that I have found in the US. In my searching on the net most of the manfacturer/suppliers of those items are located in China. I was wondering if anyone has dealt with some of the companies that you can find on Alibaba.com or some other manufacturer. The majority of the companies of course deal in bulk sales, but there are some that the minimum quantities are pretty low for an order. I was wondering if some folks might be interested in possibly going in on an order or if anyone as I said has used these companies. As far as I can tell, these are the same items that Tandy, Ohio Bag and others sell and of course with their mark up.

I don't know if this would help any but back in the 70s we often saw a purse clasped with a simple leather loop and a toggle on a string. I know there are custom guitar knob makers in the USA. I bet you could do some sweet talking and get them to forge you some clasps and buckles.

This guy is who I was thinking of... but there may be more

http://www.creepypewter.com/guitarstuff.html

[veedub3]

Thanks Crimson, I'll check it out. Here is the link to one of the places I was looking at though. http://gzhsmetal.en....g_Ornament.html , there are literally hundreds of them though. As you can see they have basically all of the purse/bag making hardware. And on the page above you can see that they have a minimum order (although it looks like there is no MOQ for in stock) of 1000 pieces and the price ranges from 5-15 cents. So at best it would be $50 dollars and at worst $150. That is substantially cheaper than even buying at wholesale prices here from the major suppliers if you can find the items you want. The problem is that I don't think any of us need 1,000 ornaments laying around but I thought maybe if some folks were interested we could possibly do a large group order on several things and then split them up, plus if we developed a relationship with a reputable company it might help lower quantity levels. Even not when you can purchase rivets at .002 to .005 cents apiece buying several thousand of them is very inexpensive vs. paying retail or wholesale.

John

You forgot to include a few other fees associated with importing. The shipping which can be extremely expensive, and the Custom Duty/Taxes on the items once the items arrive in the US. Custom Officials have been coming down hard assessing fines because overseas sellers have been marking shipments as "samples" or "gift" so that the buyer avoids paying taxes. Regardless of the amount you bring into the US, if it is a commercial item that will be sold, you must pay the taxes on it at the time of entry. If they open the package, and determine the item is commercial when it is marked as "gift" or "samples", they will hold the package, and assess their own value to it. If you want the package released, you will have to pay whatever amount they assessed, and I can assure you that it will be much higher than if the seller just filled out the paperwork correctly.

I am new to this forum but not new to the business side of importing. I have been importing from around the world for 12 years, I am in Asia at least 4 to 5 times a year. I have a line of leather goods manufactured in Guangzhou, China, and I import the leather in from Argentina. Once the items are completed, I have them sent to my store in Central America where they are sold. However, I also bring goods into the US regularly and I can tell you that to ship 1000 pieces will be at a minimum of 2 to 3 times what you paid for the items. Then once your package arrives, cross your fingers and pray to whatever GOD you believe in that it is something you can use. It is a fact that Alibaba has many, many scammers posing as reputable businesses, and are known for sending boxes of garbage just to get a tracking number to prove they shipped the item. What is in the box is your word vs theirs. Not trying to scare you but do a simple Google search and you will find some interesting stories. Also, don't get me wrong, I have found some great contacts through Alibaba, but once you add in all the fees in addition to the cost of the item, the price doesn't look all that different based on buying the items stateside. Not to mention, buying them locally, if there is problem, you can get a refund, it is rare that you will get a refund from a seller on Alibaba. Usually they will just stop answering your emails, or they tell you they will make it right on your next order, but that would require placing another order, and there is no one you can contact to assist with it. Don't be fooled by that "Gold Supplier" status they have on their either, that is just there to dupe the uneducated. If you choose to proceed with this, this is how I would go about it; contact the supplier and request a price list and ask do they provide samples. I personally would never order 1000 pieces on my first deal with an overseas supplier. (By asking for samples, your initial investment will be small, you will probably get an amount that you need and don't need others to go in with you, and you will get to see the quality of the items you are getting, which is extremely important.) Also ask if they will accept Paypal. Some don't..they require a bank wire transfer which is another expense. If they do accept Paypal, request that they send a Proforma Invoice to your Paypal address, instead of you simply sending them the money through your Paypal account. This way if something goes wrong, Paypal knows that you were paying for goods, and may assist in getting your money back when filing a dispute. You wire the money, the bank can't help. This happened to me after dealing with a supplier for nearly 2 years. I wired the funds, and the supplier up and moved. Vanished with my money, and we had a good working relationship.....or so I thought!

I can go on forever but I think this is enough food for thought. If you have any questions feel free to drop me a msg as I am always happy to help.

Good luck with it all!

Katrina

[bubbaisaboerboel]

I'm new to this site but agree with veedub, I owned a rim and stereo shop and was lured in to the "China" items! I think my worst luck was getting an amazing deal and product on my first order with one company and then got taken by a few others! There are great deals to be had but i would urge to use Pay-Pal and dont spend over $500 A distributor i used here in the states made small orders to one "China" company a few times then when he made a large "multiple cargo containers" order they up and vanished! And the saying "you get what you pay for" is unfortunate but true! Good luck!

[yexing button]

www.jinyulibutton.en.alibaba.com

we are a manufacturers.