The Source Code

Determining “Best Fit” Suppliers

  

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This may seem obvious but the most important step in creating a successful sourcing venture is partnering with a supplier that is best fit for your organization. What that means is, finding a supplier that can consistently deliver on your optimal business requirements for price and quality. Not an easy find, especially when trying to identify potential suppliers by delving through 200 plus pages of manufacturers on alibaba.com.

To provide you with a little context we’ve been sourcing from China for over 10 years, been through more than 500 factories and have only approved (GCP Approved Suppliers™) 34 to buy from. This is because partnering with a best fit supplier requires a lot more then receiving their “best” price and placing an order. It entails creating a methodology for identifying potential suppliers, then measuring each element of their facility (management team, equipment, factory history, etc.) before ultimately denying or approving them.

Since a best fit supplier will be unique to each organization or product, there is no one size fits all formula. However, there are some tips, signs and thought processes you can implement to cut the clutter.  This information should not only help you quicken the identification process but also significantly reduce the likely hood of trying to qualify or partnering with the wrong supplier down the road.

1. When viewing potential suppliers online assume they are all trading companies until proven otherwise.
2. Look for suppliers that list the address of their production facility. If they don’t they’re probably a middleman.
3. Focus on suppliers that have a demonstrated history of exporting. Doesn’t have to be to North America, you just want to be sure the factory is familiar with the process it takes to get products ready for export.
4. During your first contact (usually through email) ask product and production specific questions like: minimum order quantities, applications their product is suited for, lead times etc. The longer their response times take usually indicates the supplier is either not proficient or inexperienced.
5. A supplier’s English (polished or broken) is not a reflection of their production skills and/or capabilities.
6. Small or frequent communication errors (like not answering your questions or steering conversations off topic onto other products) at the start of your relationship are almost a sure tell signs of larger (potential deal breaking) communication problems to come.
7. Depending on how risk adverse you are, you may want to shy away from suppliers that don't have samples of your desired product promptly accessible. Products not on hand usually indicates the supplier doesn’t deal with that product often and may have trouble meeting your requirements.
8. Lastly, after you’ve created your short list of potential suppliers, ask to see their certificate of registration to ensure they are a legally registered company in China.

That’s it for today. Stay tuned for the next weeks post.

(For more than 10 years, GCP Industrial Products has successfully offered its customers a unique sourcing process that allows them to save money, streamline their supply chain and grow with new products. Our plans are to continue to grow based upon mutually beneficial relationships and the quality of our products and services to our ever growing customer base. To contact us please click here or phone 1-888-893-5427. Thank you.)