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Sourcing products from AliBaba.com may not be the best thing to do



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Sourcing products from AliBaba.com may not be the best thing to do

Sourcing products from AliBaba.com probably isn't the best thing to do after you read though this discussion.  Now if you've been keeping up with all of my posts, I know there's a lot lol, you may have come across a couple discussions where I mention that I've been working on a physical product.  Well I still am and I was set back slightly because of one simple reason... Shipping costs Sourcing products from AliBaba.com may not be the best thing to do

I was all set up and ready to go, I just needed one more thing and I could get everything started up.  I had sourced every other item I needed and I actually have them sitting in my basement, but I wasn't satisfied on the last item I needed.  I purchased a few through Alibaba.com because I basically paid for a single piece and paid the shipping cost to get the item to my house so I could check it and test it out prior to investing more money into it.  I found the product that I really liked and I was ready to purchase at least 100 of these things, but then it felt like I was hit out of nowhere when it came to the shipping cost.  Now to get the samples to my house from China it cost me around $15, which isn't a bad price.  I then wanted to get 100 of these things and quickly realized that the shipping of $15 was standard for EACH ITEM!  Most places you purchase from you will pay a base shipping price and it doesn't increase much for each additional item.  With Alibaba.com you have to pay the standard price for every single item that is shipped to you, which is insane.

So I was shopping around on Alibaba.com because their prices were extremely affordable and that's what I needed in order to be competitive with my competition.  Purchasing from them let me drop the cost per item drastically and I was going to take over my niche, but then I got hit with the $1,500 shipping cost for 100 of the products I needed....  Basically I could just go down the street and purchase 100 of these for the same price that it would cost me to get them from Alibaba, and I would have them right away and not have to wait 3 weeks to get the product.

Now I still can make a really nice product with just purchasing what I need from the USA and having it either shipped to me for a small fee or just going out and purchasing it from the store, but my profits per item won't be as high Sourcing products from AliBaba.com may not be the best thing to do  I have a really good strategy in place to take over the niche, but it will take a longer time frame since I'll have to invest much more money into it creation of my product.


I did find out that if you had a shipping container in China it's much cheaper overall to get something delivered to you because you're paying a basic standard fee to ship the one container.  But that would require a much larger investment to either rent or buy a container and ten you'd have to pay at least $5,000 to ship it to your location.  Sure these containers can be huge and hold a ton of inventory, but can you afford to fill it and then ship it?  Probably not Sourcing products from AliBaba.com may not be the best thing to do  I tried working out a deal with the manufacturer and just getting them to ship the items to me at the cheapest rate that didn't require a shipping container, but they said they only do express freight for smaller items (insert face palm here).  I know there are loads of shipping options, but they just don't want to send them that way because they won't make money on the shipping costs grrrr.  Well, that's my assumption at least lol.

What I needed was around $2.50 a piece through Alibaba.com and around $5 to $7 if I bought in in the USA where I live.  The shipping per piece through Alibaba was roughly $15 which would mean each piece would cost me $17.50.  Now if I purchase them in the USA where I live, and where the prices are higher than China, it would cost me $5 to $7 per piece and $5 to ship.  If I purchase each item through Alibaba.com the shipping is $15 for each piece while shipping in the USA had a type of sliding scale that reduced the overall shipping per piece the more you got.  I could actually get 100 of these through Alibaba.com for $1,750 or I could get them through a manufacturer in the USA for under $1,000 Sourcing products from AliBaba.com may not be the best thing to do


For this simple reason, the freight shipping requirement, is why it isn't always a good reason to source your products through Alibaba.com Sourcing products from AliBaba.com may not be the best thing to do  I did months of research to find the right products and I don't know why I never thought of asking the shipping costs of 100 or even 1,000 of these specific items Sourcing products from AliBaba.com may not be the best thing to do


In Conclusion:
I'm still going to launch my physical product, it will just take a little longer to do since I have to invest more money into it.  I will have to start the whole sourcing process over for the last piece, which should take a few weeks, and then I should be good to go Sourcing products from AliBaba.com may not be the best thing to do  You should always get the lowest price paired with the highest quality of a product if you plan on launching something of your own, but it isn't always easy to do.  I've found out that AliBaba.com isn't the best place to do this and I hope you don't waste your time like I did Sourcing products from AliBaba.com may not be the best thing to do



Remember to follow me!
https://www.seoclerks.com/user/Razzy


Thanks!

Razzy

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Tronia
Oh damn, I am sorry for your setback Razzy. But I can tell that you're still as determined as ever and that's the right way to go about it. A minor step backward doesn't mean that you can't take two big steps forwards in the future!

I don't have any personal experience with using Alibaba.com but I do know how quickly the shipping costs can add up. It is absolutely crazy when you do the math. Launching physical products can be very hard - many people don't realize how such margins (shipping/selling value of the product) can impact and slow down the whole process.

I really do wish you the best of luck though and maybe someday we will see your product everywhere in the shops?? Sourcing products from AliBaba.com may not be the best thing to do



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Everett
Yes, Razzy always seems to be on the wagon rather than following it. However, I don't think a setback will cause him to fail, but more so rather seek other ways of doing what he wants, very clever man he is! I do often wonder where he gets all these bright ideas from as I don't have time to think on this scale.. or maybe I am just lazy? lol



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Makefort
Every setback is just another lesson to be learned. Learn from mistakes, fix them or find a workaround.

As for ideas, I guess we all need some motivation from time to time. Research what is trending, how certain people changed some things and used them to their own advantage. There are many great videos out there if you need motivation. And, I don't mean the "Just do it" sort of videos Sourcing products from AliBaba.com may not be the best thing to do



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Corzhens
This reminds me of one order that I bought in an online store. I didn’t know that the product would be coming from Hongkong. When it was delivered to our home, there was a tax that was charged. We had to pay it otherwise the product will be returned and that will entail more costs. It was just fortunate that the seller agreed to remit the amount that we paid for the tax. Now I always ask the store where the goods will be coming from. It’s better to be clear on that instead of paying more for the ordered product.



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Everett
I don't trust Alibaba due to many scams and low quality products that are sold on there, not to mention all the fake products that marketplace has as well. I would try to find another provider, or even team up with a factory of sorts to get the item you will need. Not sure what the exact niche you are trying to dominate, or items that you are trying to sell but maybe you can start a business relationship with the factory that sells said item? You could possibly buy in bulk, and get the item shipped to you at a fraction of the cost that Alibaba has on the items you need.

Just be very careful, as I'm sure you're already aware, not all products from there are of good quality. I would stay far away from that marketplace as I could get. This is sometimes my downfall when trying to sell products as well. I'm just to cautious about what quality I would get, and all the factors that relate to selling online.



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Robbie626
Thank you for the heads up with the scams and fake products. I did not know what alibaba was and I will stay away from them. Do you know any alternative or service you recommend?



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RedVelvetJuliet
Sorry about your struggle. I know all too well the struggles of international shipping. They always overcharge you for anything, but you are not letting that stop you. You are playing with the cards that you were dealt. I think you'll go far. Good luck. Everyone should be cautious of sketchy websites like Alibaba.



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Makefort
I have always kept away from Alibaba for some reasons, unknown even to me, it just felt wrong. Guess my instincts were right about it. Sorry to hear you are having problems. Alibaba is one of those sites that look too promising, and on the internet, whatever is too promising, usually means its not promising at all.



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Lyudmilka7
I appreciate you sharing this because it never came up to me either about checking the shipping cost. I'm so sorry this happened to you, hopefully this will be beneficial for anyone reading.



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simplymh
I have seen that site but I do not like purchasing large amounts especially not being able to sample the quality in advance.



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milan009
I never shopped from AliBaba but I feel sad because you faced such problems. I was thinking of shopping from there but after reading this, i can't take any chances. thank you.



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vinaya
This article is an eye opener for me because I was also thinking to purchase for Alibaba. I was interested in alibaba because of the price. Normally on alibaba, you have to purchase in bulk. The product description clearly mentions minimum purchase x items. Since I have never purchased anything from Alibaba yet, I did not know they charge exorbitant shipping fees. I have made purchases from Chinese sellers on ebay, they offer free shipping even if you are buying just one product.



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overcast
Dropshipping seems to be the option that works out with the Aliexpress and Alibaba. Only issue is that often the orders may not turn up. And the shipping issues may occur. In case of alibaba and express dropshipping option, you don't have to take the inventory in your own home. It goes directly to customer if you choose dropshipping.



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thart
Thank you for reminding us about something like that. Amazon and ebay the most trusted sites, you can purchase from there.



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joegirl
Thanks for this! I have read a lot about drop-shipping and one of the sites outlined to purchase from was Alibaba. But doesn't the same thing apply to all sites like these? And another thing is, alternatives to Alibaba does not seem to have a variety like they do. I really want to explore this business line but I guess I still have a lot of homework to do.



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zeedollar
Wow, thanks for stopping me at my tracks, i was about venturing into physical products that i will be sourcing from alibaba, but after reading what you wrote here i think i will be having a rethink. So apart from alibaba, is there any other websites you could get quality products and still have a good shipment price. What do you think of aliexpress? have you tried them?



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overcast
I think alibaba and aliexpress are good sources. I don't know if there are any other sources which are safe. You can see that some of the sources on aliexpress may tend to have some issues with quality too. You can see that some of the products purchasing local is lot better. So I think it'd be reasonable to go with the local if possible. That's one reason I think you have to do some checking online or offline if that works out before selling.



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mybarya
Sorry, but I think I'm missing something here. I thought the whole point of drop shipping is for the seller to avoid inventory costs, and pass on shipping costs to the buyer. I understand that there is a high risk of returns from low-quality products and unknown brands which you chose to mitigate by importing the products yourself so you could inspect them personally before shipping them out to the customer. But this nullifies the advantage of drop shipping, especially when you source your products internationally.

But then I guess that's the lesson learned.



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augusta
Sorry for all your troubles and struggles and thanks for sharing so we could always learn than experiencing same.This is one setback that always keeps me away from online purchases.It comes with so many problems ranging from tracking your purchase, to your order not processed, to sending you orders you never requested.This is really a pain in the ass



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AmieBotella
Not all the time on ebay is a good service and not all the time on Alibaba is high priced shipping cost. Some sellers in Alibaba offer free shipping too. When selecting for a supplier in Alibaba, use the ones with Trade Assurance and always check the shipping fee per bulk order. You can talk to some sellers/suppliers for discounts and other deals. Not all of them are bad products and not all of them are deceitful sellers. At the end of the day, research a product and the suppliers. Compare them with others. Sometimes even in Alibaba, the main supplier has an account there and the bulk buyer also have an account there selling the same item. You just have to have the energy to comb through all the suppliers of the same product.

Also, please note that you are looking for a product that costs so low that you are not willing to buy from your country, therefore, do not expect that the quality will be the same. Again, I'm going to say that not all products from China or Alibaba is of poor quality. After all, most probably than not, the items sold in your market is made in China too. It's just that it passed quality control.



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jaymish2
I feel it's unfair to single out AliBaba like that. Please note that AliBaba is a marketplace with various manufacturers/suppliers. You need to find the right supplier. China is best for people who want to buy in bulk.People who want to buy in thousands and in millions. This is not the best place for people who want to source just a few products.It makes no economic sense because the profit made from the sale won't cover the shipping cost. Like with anywhere in the world you have to do homework and find a supplier whose costs work for you. That doesn't mean that the supplier you have rejected has a problem.



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Corzhens
Just today, we have purchased a garden hose that is made in China. The tag price is 200 pesos and the delivery charge is 100 pesos. Isn’t that outrageous? The cost of delivery is 50% of the price of the item? That is how cheap commodities that are made in China. Fortunately, that online store is a local one. But what if the store is in China? The cost of delivery might even be higher than the cost of the product.



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