The Wholesale Forums

[mazz_y2k]

Hi Everyone,

I have been trying to make some decent money from importing and selling items from the far east for the past few years. I started selling a few products i found to students at my uni, but the happy days of uni have now finished and its time for me to hit the real world running!

I would love to know if it may be worth it for me to take a trip to Hong Kong or Southern China, where i gather all the factories are, to maybe find more sustainable business opportunities or just even some good contacts?

I have been searching all the trade site, which we all know, but never seem to find anything new, or for a price which i could even make some money from selling on ebay!! As i am on my own i dont have the capital to buy in the 000's but have a few £000 i would love to invest now i have no family/mortgage, to hopefully help me when i do get family/mortgage!

Any thoughts, stories, advice or jus to say (as this is my first post!) are very welcome!!

Make everyday great,


Mazz

[greedyboy]

Going out there isn't much use unless you have the contacts already. A trade fair would be better for you.

[mazz_y2k]

Thanks Greedyboy, i see from being on this forum for only a few hours that you seem to be the elder statesmen everyone goes to!

Are there many trade fairs in the UK?? where could i find out more info??

thanks

[greedyboy]

Check the globalsources website for trade fairs that will suit the stuff you want to sell.

[cbeebies]

Yes, knowing exact what you want and attending the professional show are good suggestions.

If you have never been to China before, you'd better have an interpreter with you.

There are lots of pocket pickers in southern China. You must be very careful of placing your passport and money.

[N J]

Make sure what you want to sell. Maybe I can help you to find a good supplier.

[consultant]

If you know what you you want, there is probably a HK trade fair to go to.

If you do not know what you want, wait until October and visit the HK Electronics shows and then go to trh Canton Fair - this way you will see the widest range of products in the shortest timescale.

As for the UK, you could try GLEE or the Giftfairs in Birmingham, however, you may not see some of the advantages that direct sourcing can bring.

Please be very cautious. If you read several posts on the forum, there is a lot more to buying from China that getting your chequbook out.

Read and Learn!

[missmushroom]

Originally Posted by mazz_y2k

I would love to know if it may be worth it for me to take a trip to Hong Kong or Southern China, where i gather all the factories are, to maybe find more sustainable business opportunities or just even some good contacts?

I think if you do your research and know the right place to go to source for your products then making the trip is a wise decision. Trade fairs is of course the best way to start. You should organize your trip about the same time as China's trade fairs like Canton fair. Once the fair is over you can look around other places and sources. Not all manufacturers participate in trade fairs although a good amount do .

Right now my cousin who runs a small antique shop is heading over to India. He knows where to get his goods and places where there is a bargain. With all the budget air flights available i think cost is no longer an issue for making a trip like that.

I myself am planning to make a trip to Thailand and Myanmar this year. There are a lot of bargains there and many of the manufactures don't have a website or even take photos of their products. Sometimes it just makes more sense to make the trip then don't.

[techfundoo1]

mazz_y2k, I recently went to Singapore and Hong Kong for finding suppliers, and some vacation, I am sorry to say, it's not that easy to find supplier by going there.

In HK language was a main constraint, but there are some areas in HK where you can find the right supplier, like Mongkok, there is a street called Ladies Street, as the name suggests, you will find all ladies product, you can also talk to shop owners, some of them are Big Wholesalers.

For electronics there was a shopping mall whose name is just slipped from my mind..

But it's better to do some reseach before taking a flight.

Singapore too had some very good wholesalers, just have to know the right place and the people.

[consultant]

Is the electronics mall 'Golden Centre' in Sham Shui Po (I think that's how it is spelt)?

Going to a market may get you some cheap products, but it is unlikely to get you the manufacturer!