China is now considered to be one of the largest economies in the world.
Although the cost of manufacturing in China has seen a rise in recent years, the country is still the cheapest location for retailers and manufacturers to source goods or parts for their products.
The simplest and most cost-effective place to start looking for wholesale distributor and parts and component suppliers in China is on the Internet. Simply do an online search through engines such as Bing or Google. B2B sourcing platforms like Alibaba, Global Sources, and Made-in-China.com are also a great place to comb through for suppliers and parts. These sites contain thousands of retailers and suppliers, and you can streamline your search criteria and increase the number of potential sources by filtering your results to include only those entries labelled as a gold member, verified supplier, onsite supplier, or accredited supplier. A review system also offers some insight into a supplier’s legitimacy. Some B2B sourcing platforms employ endorsed service provider lists and supplier blacklists. For example, Alibaba maintains a list of banned members to help filter out bad suppliers from the good ones. Some sourcing sites offer special services as an added protection for buyers. For example, Global Sources has credit-check services and supplier-capability-assessment services that provide key business information from suppliers including company status, production capabilities, and product quality reviews.
Social media, while not necessarily ideal, can also be a platform to identify potential supply companies. Not all wholesale distributor in China have a social media presence, but this medium can be a good source for feedback or reviews for potential suppliers. Practice caution when relying on such platforms and remember to do your own research and due diligence as the information provided in these channels are unverified. The reviews are often anecdotal and sample sizes may be too small to be dependable.