Sourcing 101

This blog is going to focus on the commercial invoice and for good reason.  Having a full and complete understanding of the commercial invoice does one thing – speeds up the customs process.  You get your products and into the hands of your customers much more quickly.  You turn your profits faster.  How is this accomplished?

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This particular piece is a comprehensive overview on the Bill of Lading.  In it, you will learn everything you will need to know about a Bill of Lading.  It is the explicit goal of the blog to help you learn all the information you need for this important document and your sourced Chinese products.

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If you have ever ordered a package, chances are you have seen a packing slip.  Typically, you will see it either in a pouching attached to the outside of your package or tucked down inside the package.  There are a variety of names for the packing slip: waybill, packing list or shipping list – all mean the same thing.

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The Certificate of Origin goes by a few different abbreviations – C/O, CO and MSO.  All of them mean the exact same thing – a shipping document used in international trade that demonstrates the products are obtained or manufactured in a particular country, and in this case, China.

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There is one thing that is inevitable – time.  There is nothing that will stop time.  For your business, time is absolutely necessary.  After all, you will never have enough time for your business.

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You have finally come up with a new product.  Years of hard work and investment have paid off.  You made the necessary arrangements and are ready to find an appropriate manufacturer to build your products.

While it is understandable you want to jump right into manufacturing, doing so is not a wise decision.  You need to take the time and effort to protect your property and hard work.  You will need an NDA, Non-Disclosure Agreement.  Failing to do so will compromise your hard work.

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You have taken all of the steps in finding appropriate products to source from China, contacted Sourcing Nova and have made preliminary arrangements with a purchase order.  The first thing necessary is to secure a pro-forma invoice, PI.  This is an invoice that will describe your product details and the necessary pricing information that goes with it.  The PI can also double as a sales contract, and this is a common occurance with Chinese manufacturers.  They do not, as a general rule, send sales contracts.  As long as you have detailed the information necessary about your products, you will be set with your first order.

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You have so far used all of the suggestions learned from the pieces available here on Sourcing Nova.  It is time to purchase your products.  Great!  However –

Continue reading “The Purchase Order – The Legal Document For Products”

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Look at almost any product you may have in the home.  By federal law, the origin of manufacturer must be on the product in some way.

You will likely find the products is made in China.

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Sourcing Nova previously provided you with an in-depth look at AliExpress and in that piece, mentioned its parent company Alibaba.  It is now time to turn to Alibaba and make a determination about the site – Is Alibaba legit?

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