Every story about importing from China going wrong starts the same way: a supplier who wasn’t checked. The good news is that vetting isn’t complicated — it’s a list of boring, verifiable facts. Here’s the checklist we run before placing a first order.

1. Business license, verified

Every legitimate Chinese business registers with the government and receives a unified social credit code. Ask for the business license and check it against public databases or through a local agent. Confirm the registered name matches the name on their invoices and bank account — mismatches here are a top-five red flag.

2. Is the factory actually a factory?

Trading companies, which buy from factories and resell, are common and often legitimate — but you should know which you’re dealing with. A trading company posing as a factory adds margin without adding capability. Ask what the company manufactures in-house versus what it subcontracts.

3. Export experience in your market

Ask for references from customers in your country, and for the certifications your product category requires in your market (CE, FCC, FDA, etc.). A supplier who has exported to your country before has already solved the compliance problems you’re about to hit.

4. Audit photos and video, on demand

A factory tour video call is cheap insurance. Request one, and ask them to walk the production floor, not just the showroom. If they refuse or keep rescheduling, treat it as an answer.

5. A sample, always a sample

Never order bulk before receiving a sample. Order at least two: one to keep as your reference standard and one to have independently tested. When the bulk order arrives, compare it against the reference — this is how disputes get won.

6. Negotiate in writing, in detail

Your purchase order is your contract. Specify product, materials, dimensions, colors, packaging, labeling, defect tolerance, and delivery date. A supplier who pushes back on written specifications is telling you how they’ll behave during a dispute.

7. Payment terms that protect you

Standard practice is 30% deposit, 70% before shipping — ideally after a pre-shipment inspection. Be suspicious of suppliers demanding full payment upfront on a first order. It’s also worth noting that payment protection works both ways: wire transfers to company accounts, never to personal accounts.

8. A pre-shipment inspection

Hire an inspection (yours, not theirs) before the balance is paid and before goods leave the factory. Checking 100% of goods is rarely practical, but a proper AQL-based sample inspection catches systemic problems — which are the ones that matter.

9. Small test order first

Your first order is also a vetting step. Start with a quantity you can afford to lose. How the supplier performs on a small order — communication, accuracy, timeliness — predicts the big order with remarkable reliability.

10. Trust your logistics

A supplier who insists on arranging shipping through their own “friend’s” forwarder is worth a pause. Keep shipping under your control, or your partner’s. Freight is where hidden costs live.

Red flags that end a conversation

Any one of these is enough to walk away:

• Business license doesn’t match the company you’re dealing with
• Payments requested to a personal bank account
• Prices dramatically below every other quote (materials cost something)
• No sample policy, or samples that are suspiciously perfect
• Pressure to order immediately with a “price expires today” story
• Refusal to commit to written specifications

Vetting is not paranoia

None of this is about distrusting an entire country’s manufacturing sector — it’s about recognizing that a supplier relationship is a business relationship like any other, and good ones are verified, documented, and tested small before they’re trusted large. Run the checklist once, keep the paperwork, and your supplier becomes a genuine competitive advantage instead of a risk.