In order to keep costs down and prices competitive, over the past few decades many retailers and wholesalers have imported products direct from China. Whether you’re working directly with manufactures, trading companies, or exporters, buyers all throughout the retail chain have partnered with suppliers overseas. “The problem,” says Dave Goldfarb, founder of iChinaCo, “is you have no idea who you’re dealing with.”
Making a Connection
Goldfarb has worked as a distributor in the pet industry in the United States for over 30 years. “15 years ago I started importing products direct from China. I kept coming across so many problems,” says Goldfarb. “A lot of exporters advertise themselves as factories, when in fact they are a trading company, so you’re paying a markup without even realizing it. Another problem we run into is people pretending to be manufacturers. They take your order and then disappear.” When working with companies overseas, it is not always easy to figure out whom you are talking to. There are many reputable manufacturers, traders, and exporters. But unless you’re going to China to meet with these companies directly, it’s not always easy to tell. Even then, says Goldfarb, “You may be just set up to view someone else’s company. It’s the Wild West of retail.” He explains, “Due to rapid growth,” of the export business in the Chinese economy, “laws are struggling to keep up. It’s every man for themselves.”
China Company Reports
To help importers and online sellers who are sourcing directly from China, Dave developed iChinaCo. iChinaCo offers made-to-order and custom reports on Chinese businesses. There are three levels of reports available, offering information such as the company’s registration number, location, what year they registered in, social credit score code, the products they manufacture, history of ownership, intellectual property information such as what copyrights they own, annual report information, and more. All of this information is regularly collected by the Chinese government and stored in a public database. iChinaCo take the information, translates it into English, and places it into an organized, easy to read report. Goldfarb continues, “iChinaCo reports are especially helpful if you are using import resources such as Alibaba.”
Dave says it’s possible to get similar information from other companies. But, “They all do so much advertising, it is hard to tell the facts,” says Dave. “We don’t take any advertising and we don’t editorialize. Our reports are straight facts.” Reports start as low as $150. Custom reports are also available. “To spend $150 to know who you’re dealing with is worth it,” says Dave,” especially if you are looking to place larger orders.” For more information visit www.iChinaCo.com.
iChinaCo
www.iChinaCo.com