Supplier Search: How to find the best supplier for your e-commerce store?

If you are not selling handmade or niche products, you will want to find a reliable supplier in your e-commerce store to provide you with the products you need to sell.
Finding the best supplier for your store is a challenge for ecommerce people. You see that there are a lot of suppliers out there, they all offer seemingly great deals, how do you find a supplier that offers not only quality products but also good margins?
In this blog post, we will outline the strategy you should use to find a good supplier for your e-commerce store.

You will learn:

1. The best platforms to find suppliers
2. Why you should reach more than one supplier
3. The importance of reading the supplier's comments and references
4. How to take all samples before making a decision
5. How to bargain

Best platforms to find suppliers

Fortunately, there are many markets where people can find suppliers for their products.
You can try Aliexpress or alibaba. These platforms work on hepiburada or similar to the work of n11. Search for the type of products you want to sell. Have the opportunity to filter by style or price.
Or you can search for what types of products are popular right now and continue your search. This strategy works well in general e-commerce stores. However, if you run a store in a specific area, for example clock or robotics, you will have a clearer idea of ​​the type of product you need.
Shop owners who want to buy their products from China and Aliexpress usually use China. In most cases, you can get better margins and cheaper products, but for some e-commerce sellers (especially those who want to create a good brand), buying from China is not the right choice.
If you want to work with a supplier near you, you can do a Google search to find it right away.
Simply type the "product you want to buy" + "your city"; you'll be able to see a number of suppliers offering wholesale products in your city.

Reach multiple suppliers

After getting a list of suppliers you want to contact, you need to know which business model you want to sell.
Some suppliers keep all your products in their warehouse and send them directly to your customers when you receive an order. This is known as dropshipping and can be profitable because there is no need to pay for stock or a warehouse. However, if you choose this option, you will generally get lower profit rates.
Or you can send the orders by yourself. Find yourself a supplier and buy as many products as you want, you can send it to your customers as soon as an order is received. These products are an expensive and risky option because they need to be paid in advance, but you have more control over how to ship your products.
When you reach out to suppliers, the best option is to try to speak to the supplier's owner. This will speed up the purchasing process. You must indicate which shipping process you want to use. If you want the products to be sent to you first, we recommend you to pay attention to whether there is a minimum order amount.

Comments and references

We recommend that you take references from other buyers before deciding on the list of suppliers you are talking to. If you are using a popular marketplace like Alibaba or Aliexpress, you can also see the comments directly from the sales page. However, if you find the supplier elsewhere, for example from google, you may find it difficult to find a reference, so we recommend you spend more time finding a reference.
The only goal here is to find a supplier that you can trust and won't let you down.

Requesting samples

Not all suppliers can send samples, but we recommend that you ask. Samples help you get an idea of ​​what a product looks like. Since your customers shop online, they will have little information about the product, taking samples will make you think like your customer. Also, if you take samples from as many suppliers as possible, you have the opportunity to compare quality and continue with what is best for your business.

Getting the best discount

It is very important to find the best supplier and get good discounts. If you want to buy the product at a lower cost, you must give something in return. For example, you can offer to buy a large amount of products if they offer a discount, or if your supplier wants to enter new markets, you can also help them enter new markets. Mutual win-win situations will always be useful to you.

Final thoughts

Finding a good supplier is crucial for your e-commerce operation to be sustainable, it is very important to have someone you can trust.
We recommend you pay attention to their references or comments.
Goodness of your supplier will make your profits sustainable and you will become more competitive.

What does Listinguish do?

Listinguish is a competitive analysis platform, it helps you track your competitors' products and prices, so you position your products at much better prices