Suppose you plan to purchase neckties, bow ties, silk scarves, pocket squares, and other neckwear products from China and sell them on e-commerce platforms such as Amazon. Then you can read this guide carefully; it will save you time and money.
1. Before you start looking for a tie maker, you should know a few things about tie
Before beginning to buy ties, you'd better be familiar with ties. You can learn about various ties through Google, YouTube, and other channels, including but not limited to the following options:
*Tie production process
*tie structure
*Factors Affecting Tie Price Purchasing
*How to judge the quality of the tie
If you can't find relevant learning materials, you can learn through our YouTube and Blog.
Quick Links:
1. The Necktie Structure Anatomy
2. How produces handmade jacquard neckties in batches -Learn the neckties
2. There are many tie makers, but you need to know where to find them
China is the largest exporter of neckties; in 2020, China’s neckties exports accounted for 35.38% (this figure was more than 40% before the pandemic); in China, you can find all grades of neckties in the world, but it requires some skill.
Data source: ATLAS
● B2B platform (Alibaba, Made-in-China, Global Sources)
Advantages: As long as you enter the product you want to purchase in the search box on the B2B platform, you can immediately see many suppliers and the product you wish to, but you need more steps to find the right supplier.
Disadvantage: It isn't easy to screen real factories on B2B platforms. The top ranking on the B2B platform is not necessarily the actual manufacturer because the manufacturer is usually not as good at marketing as the trading company; you can try to contact more low-ranking merchants.
● Google search
If you can use Google proficiently, you can quickly find a reliable tie manufacturer. But if you are not that good at Google, then the search results need to be checked one by one because there will be B2-B platforms, blog articles, etc., mixed into the search results.
3. Make sure you find an actual manufacturer, not a trader
In the search results, the first thing you need to check is the geographical location of the supplier. ShengZhou produces more than 90% of China's ties, which means that if the supplier you find is not in ShengZhou, then you have only a 10% chance of finding the actual manufacturer.
After you have selected a tie supplier, you can ask the supplier to provide the full Chinese name of the company and then verify whether it is a factory or a trader through “企查查."
Click the result the same as what you are looking for, and you can see the Chinese version of the company introduction. You can use the translation function with your browser to help you read the relevant content, focusing on the Business Scope. If the production rights for the appropriate product are not listed here, then it is a trading company. You should note that even if the Business Scope lists the production authority, it does not mean the company must be good at producing this product because this registration information only means that the company has the right to make related products. To determine whether the company is the actual manufacturer, you need further verification. Please read the other information carefully; you can get more surprises.
You have eliminated more than 95% of the options through the first two steps. At this point, you need to verify that it is the actual manufacturer via an instant video call. You should make a video call with them during their working days and request a factory tour. But you can't tell him in advance; you should make a request anytime from 9 to 11 Beijing time(GMT+8) or from 13 to 16. If she can get through right away and show you around their factory, then it's a manufacturer. Suppose it asks to postpone the visit, because the person is no longer in the office, and asks to invite you to call after 1 hour. In that case, you should decline the invitation because one hour is enough for her to go to the actual production factory; you should send it again on another date. Video call invitation, if it still delays the call time for various reasons, then its high probability is not the actual manufacturer.
4. Try to understand the manufacturer's quality control process.
Quality control is significant in the manufacturing process of any product. Before working with your supplier, try to understand whether it has a relatively complete quality control strategy. Although essential, many manufacturers ignore it; they only produce products.
Although the quality control strategies of different manufacturers may vary widely, The factory should include the following tests in the production of a good quality tie:
Before Tie Production - Fabric Inspection
Tie production - after fabric inspection and cutting
Tie production - silk inspection
Finished necktie production - review of finished neckties
Tie before shipment - packing quantity inspection
5. The right way to get a quote
Preparation
Now you have selected a good factory but want a fast, accurate, and professional quotation, you should do some preparatory work before you ask the supplier for a reference. If you only give a product name to your suppliers for a quote, the price you get will be a big difference; you can't judge whose price is reasonable because they offer you the quote based on different product materials and craftsmanship, size, etc. Therefore, you must prepare product specification information before getting a quotation. Take a necktie as an example:
● Materials (Silk, Polyester, Wool, Mixed)
● Colors (Pantone colors or actual sample if possible)
● Certification requirements (If you need to sell in a specific channel)
● Customizations (sizing, logos on the product, design change, etc.)
Actual Pictures
● Links to the same (or very similar) products online
Product packaging
Product packaging is a significant factor in the process of purchasing, transportation, and sales because it will affect the production cost of the product (color box printing/adhesive stickers, material, size), transportation cost (volume, weight), and sales ( branding, customer experience).
So before getting a quote, you have to decide for yourself what the packaging will look like:
● Do you need a full-color print cartridge? Or can you accept that it's just a box with your logo?
● What do you define as a "unit"? Is it 1 product per box? Will it come in sets? Do you want five products in 1 pack? Or package it with other accessories?
Actual packaging allows you to have your supplier provide you with a DDP quote (the quote that includes everything it costs to deliver the goods to your requested address) so that you can calculate and control the overall project cost.
6. Get samples
Before bulk purchasing or mass production, you should get samples to check the quality; it is essential for the first-time supplier because it will be a test for your supplier and your design.
Existing samples
Existing samples are products that have been produced or are being produced by the factory, and you can quickly obtain such samples from any supplier. In general, you only need to pay the shipping fee to get free samples, and its role is a way to verify the manufacturer's production capacity.
Customized samples + packaging
The supplier you are looking for will not produce your packaging; you can find a packaging manufacturer to make your design and send it to your supplier or ask your supplier to help you purchase your packaging. Custom packaging may add additional cost and time.
Customized samples
When customizing samples, you should choose two suppliers to complete them, inspect their product quality, and choose excellent ones for bulk product cooperation.
Custom samples require more preparation time. Take the tie as an example; if the product specification information you provide is complete, we only need 3~5 days to complete the production of custom ties (we produce the fabric and ties by ourselves). You only need to pay about 20~ A $30 custom fee will return on bulk orders.
If the supplier you are looking for does not produce fabrics by itself but only neckties, the custom-made neckties will take about 7 to 10 days and cost $30~40.
If the supplier is a trader, your sample production time will be increased to 10~15 days, costing $30~40.
The above time only includes sample-making time.
Note: If you are ordering a custom tie, you should ask the supplier to express tie and fabric samples to you.
7. Follow up on bulk production.
When you receive the sample, after confirming that the sample is perfect or modified to perfection, you place the order with the supplier. Still, you can't take it for granted that the supplier will produce the same bulk products as the sample. You also cannot assume that all suppliers will communicate with you and negotiate solutions as soon as they find a problem. So you should follow up after your order is mass produced.
If you have two projects simultaneously, you should hand over the two to different suppliers to complete and screen the outstanding suppliers for cooperation in the follow-up projects. Never put your eggs in the same basket; always have a Plan B.
When the first piece of fabric is complete
During mass production, our quality inspectors and workers will inspect when the batch fabric is about 10cm long, compare the newly made fabric with the sample fabrics to ensure that the colors and patterns are consistent, and proceed to production.
At this time, you should also like us, ask your supplier to confirm the fabric pictures produced in batches, and then compare it with the sample fabric you received. If problems are found, the supplier can make adjustments; a 10cm long fabric loss is acceptable to all suppliers. If you find an error when all the fabrics are completed, your supplier will usually convince you to pay for the error; if it doesn't affect the use, let you accept the defective product; Or give you some discount for you accept. Of course, if you can meet a supplier willing to pay for their own mistakes and re-manufacture after all products are completed. Then you are lucky, your supplier is sincere and reliable, and you can consider deepening cooperation with him.
When you inspect, if you find a big difference between batch and sample fabric, your supplier insists it is the same. It would be best if you asked your supplier to provide a picture of the sample and batch fabric together (the batch fabric is on the machine now). If the supplier can't offer such a picture at this time (supplier leaves no sample fabric), you know the supplier's quality control is not perfect. So it would help if you were very careful in future cooperation with him because you never know when he will make a mistake that neither you nor he can afford. If he can provide photos, you can proofread them carefully. If there is any problem, you can negotiate to solve it or let him send you physical samples.
When The first tie is complete
When the first batch of tie production is completed, our product inspector will compare with the sample and ensure that all errors are within the national or agreed standards. We will carry out the followed tie production standards according to this tie.
You should confirm with your supplier the production standards for bulk products, which are somewhat different from samples.
When the first tie is finished packing
When the first tie packaging is complete, we will confirm with the customer that our packaging is accurate. Especially for Amazon customers, we provide a free labeling service; if the label is missing or incorrect, it will affect customer sales.
8. Inspection before shipment
When all your products are finished, you need to confirm the following information with your supplier.
Quantity
The number of ties produced will not be the same as your agreed number of relations. Because considering the factor of defective products, the supplier usually prepares more fabrics, and sometimes there will be a few more neckties after the production is completed. Sometimes there will be a few fewer pieces, so we need to confirm the quantity that the necktie can ship with the supplier.
Packing List
Before shipping, you should ask the supplier for a packing list showing the quantity and specifications of the products in each box so that you can check and proofread the goods after you receive them.
9. Try to get more extra serves.
You can try to find some suppliers that can provide you with additional services, which can save you a lot of time and money. Our company offers some extra services specifically for e-commerce customers:
● Project consultation to discuss better production solutions
● Inquiries about import access and tariff duties in your country
● Necktie graphic design, renderings display
● Production visualization
● Pasting Amazon FNSUK Labeling
● Finished products one by one inspection
● 60 days of free storage
● Unpacking inspection Before shipment
● DDP delivery
● Take product photos for e-commerce
● Factory production pictures, videos
● After-sales service
10. Set aside enough time for your project
Finally, if you need to start a project, you'd better allow enough time to prevent black swans from disrupting your plans. If you're sourcing custom ties for your Christmas sale, you'd better start looking for suppliers in August, so your products don't miss out on the Christmas sale.
Remember, it takes some skill and luck to find a reliable supplier. You should maintain your relationship with your suppliers because your business will grow faster if your suppliers can trust you and give you more significant support.