Want to know where all your favorite online boutiques are sourcing clothes from? Tired of signing up to pointless webinars that don’t actually provide direct links to fashion distributors and wholesalers? Well guess what – the team at ‘No Barrier Growth’ have the inside scoop!
Whilst many rely on B2B sites such as ALIBABA, ALI EXPRESS,GLOBAL SOURCES, CHINA BRANDS, Taobao and LA Fashion District. –
These sites are filled with trading companies or third parties, rather than direct manufacturer information. Now don’t get us wrong, Alibaba is still the leading B2B site when it comes to sourcing. However sourcing products and apparel online does come with some disadvantages.
A common theme is ordering samples that look completely different in person in contrast to what you see online. Not to mention how time consuming it can be filtering out and sending emails back and forth to vendors.
But that’s enough about sourcing right now, lets get straight into where online retailers and boutique’s are finding the hottest season trends.
Cities such as ‘Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Yiwu, have become prominent districts for sourcing apparel at super cheap prices. If you think you’re getting a bargain when your favorite fashion brand has a 50% off sale, then think again!
Buying wholesale in China is a seller’s dream! I remember the excitement on my face when I entered the fashion districts and wholesale malls, seeing first hand how inexpensive everything was. I couldn’t believe the same items sold by well known fashion brands for $50-$100 cost no more than a fraction of the price. In fact the majority of apparel only cost between $5-$9 per item when bought in bulk.
It started to make sense why so many online fashion retailers and boutique store owners were reluctant in sharing their vendor information as it’s one of their secret gold mines.
The best part about Guangzhou is the easy access to thousands of wholesalers and
You get the chance to inspect factories, form meaningful business relationships with vendors, and also sneak previews of next seasons trends.
The main wholesale fashion districts in Guangzhou are in Tianhe, Liu Hua, Hongmian,
You can also venture out to more wholesalers that produce higher quality garments or even other wholesalers that sell shoes, bags, sportswear or wedding dresses. Simply jump on the bullet train from Guangzhou Central Station to Shenzhen which takes about an hour.
Sourcing trips to China allow you to inspect the legitimacy of suppliers and wholesale
Although flying hundreds of miles away from home to source clothing may not be for everyone, it is one of the secrets to finding reputable clothing vendors.
Not only will traveling allow you to stay ahead of competitors and get your hands on the latest products, but as your business continues to grow you’ll learn how to hire a team of on-the-ground fashion buyers to do the job for you.
We highly recommend retail owners to visit Guangzhou at least once. You get the chance to find wholesalers that may not be listed on B2B sites such as Alibaba or Global Sources and this, in theory, is one of the ‘trade secrets’ that many won’t tell you.