Amazon FBA Product Sourcing Guide in China for Beginners

Fulfillment By Amazon, or FBA, is when you allow Amazon to handle your storage and shipment. About half of FBA sellers make at least five-thousand dollars a month. 

If you want to be successful on Amazon, you need to understand sourcing and China is the best place for buy cheap products.

This FBA sourcing guide will provide you with what you need to find amazing products.

Where to Source Products for Your Business

Where you source your products depends on your selling strategy.

Your selling strategy impacts how you source products. Keep this in mind when deciding how to build a reselling business on Amazon.

There are four different sales strategies you can use:

• Online or retail arbitrage
• Private label sales
• Wholesale 
• Dropshipping

Below, you’ll find definitions of each sales strategy and how each strategy impacts how you source your products.

Retail and Online Arbitrage 

Arbitrage is when you purchase goods at a discount and resell them for more online.

Retail arbitrage specialists find products at physical storefronts while online arbitrage sellers find products from online marketplaces. 

Private Label Products from Manufacturers 

Sellers of private label products have third-party manufacturers make products ‌they put their branding on.

You can speak with local manufacturers or find items through eCommerce manufacturer databases like Alibaba or made in china.

Wholesale Suppliers 

Sellers in wholesale bulk buy products from known brands for resale.

Reaching out to known companies and using online databases can help you find verified suppliers. 

Dropshipping

Sellers who dropship resell products they never see from third-party suppliers.

Excellent dropshippers are talented marketers and customer service experts.

Using popular aliexpress can help you find profitable products. 

Amazon Product Sourcing Tips  

How you sell impacts how you source, but there are good sourcing tips that apply across various sales techniques.

Knowing the best practices of Amazon product sourcing can save you a lot of time and money.

Below, you’ll find some tips related to some of the more common mistakes new FBA sellers make.

Note each of these as you narrow your supplier search and work on finding the best product source.

Do Your Product Research

Before buying, be sure to check the demand and competition for products you are interested in.

If you analyze product sales and profitability, you will be able to more easily find excellent products.

Amazon product research tools like AMZScout will save you a lot of time and money. 

Get Samples

Be sure to get a product sample before you decide to buy a product in bulk.

Samples tell you more about quality control, which is essential if you want to reduce your return rate.

Suppliers unwilling to provide you with samples are not worth the trouble.

Negotiate a Good Price

Buying commercially means you can often negotiate to get a better rate.

Unlike standard retail, speaking to a representative from the supplier can save you a lot of money.

There is no harm in trying to get a better deal, so do everything you can to save money.

Choose the Right Shipping Method

How you sell will also impact how you ship.

With online arbitrage and private label selling, you will ship the products to yourself first.

Under dropshipping, you don’t see the product, so the cost and handling of shipping comes from your supplier. 

Otherwise, ask if your supplier ships directly to Amazon.

FBA sellers can save time and money by having products go directly to a fulfillment center. 

Calculate All Your Fees

Before you hire a supplier, you need to calculate your potential profit.

Start by finding your break-even point, or the point where your production costs equal your revenue.

From there, you can find out how many more products you need to sell for profit. 

Conclusion

Product sourcing is (literally) the beginning of your Amazon business.

If you can’t find quality products, you’ll have to deal with high return rates and unsatisfied customers.

Whether you are a new or veteran seller, you’ll want to do everything you can to sell quality products. 

With the tips above, you’ll be able to find an amazing supplier and product. You deserve success.

Go out there and build the next great Amazon business.