6 tragical mistakes you can make choosing furniture sourcing agent in China

Furniture sourcing tours become more and more popular but what do we really know about it? Prices for quality furniture are cheaper than in Europe or North America, it allows you to furnish residence, restaurant, office in a one-time visit to China. This is an amazing opportunity for restaurant or hotel owners; for those who decided to buy exclusive furniture for the house; professional designers creating interiors and eager to find unique and cost-efficient pieces for clients, or for entrepreneurs and companies who are in the furniture business themselves to buy everything in one go.

Most people come to Foshan, Guangzhou, China for high-quality furniture. Hundreds of thousands of furniture market space will make happy the fussiest clients there are.

Before making a decision to go for Chinese furniture you should find yourself a trustworthy furniture sourcing agent to not help you translating but handle the order until the very end and deal with Chinese manufacturers. Here are 6 tips for choosing a bad furniture sourcing agent in China.

1. Working without a contract

The contract is the first thing you’re going to refer to if anything goes wrong. Always require a contract with official company stamps and signatures especially when working with private tour guide or translators. All customer-specific agreements should be in the contract or at least made into a contract appendix.

2. Working with private agents / translators

Choosing to work with private tour guides or translators instead of companies that specialize in furniture tours, remember that it is not their full-time job. They are not going to be responsible for all the defects and after-sales service. After completing the order most of them disappear and don’t get in touch with the clients afterwards. Private tour guides and translators have no registered company in China or Hong Kong so there no way to find them through the company registration number.

3. Not doing a background check on your agent

Double check if the company/translator has his own warehouse, office and a logistics department. In case you encounter any problems on the way with your furniture, you know where exactly you can find the agent. If the agent you’re going to with doesn’t even have an office it usually means two things: they either don’t have many clients or just started in this business. Notice that it can be day-fly organization and choose long-lasting companies in furniture tour business.

4. Paying 100% of the money upfront

Never pay whole purchasing amount upfront. 99% of Chinese suppliers work with a deposit-balance payment routine and almost never ask to pay 100% of the order in advance. If the agent is trying to convince you to pay it all to him — it’s a scam.

5. Not checking the information

Triple check all the facts. Clarify terms and conditions before your trip to China, require to send a contract while choosing the agent. Pay attention that all of the prior agreements should be in the contract and the sample contract that was sent to you should match the ones you’re signing. If there are any changes that you didn’t agree upon, do not sign anything until it is included in the contract or at least made into an appendix.

6. Trusting written reviews

Do not trust written clients’ reviews 100%. You can’t check how genuine is the review, therefore, video reviews should be in favour during the choosing of the agent. Video reviews show the level, quality and the company’s attitude to their work and clients.

Are you building a house or about to purchase one, designing a restaurant or are you working on any other interior design projects and don't know where to purchase the best quality furniture at competitive rates?

To buy quality furniture in China just contact us and schedule your visit to Foshan for only 5-7 days. Please click here for more information.

Pros of working with us:

• Office and warehouse located in Foshan
• Vast working experience
• International shipping from China
• Providing clients with all the paperwork needed for customs clearance in their countries
• In-house logistics department
• Legit contract
• Officially registered company