Who has the best prices? Manufacturers or trading companies? Alibaba trade expert Tekle Sebhatu has some interesting answers.

by Tekle Sebhatu

Question:

Doing business with different companies in China, how is it possible to identify if the person is a manufacturer or a trading company? I believe that basically manufacturers must have better prices than trading companies.

Answer:

In addition to searching the Internet, which I suspect you already have done to find out whether or not the company has a legitimate website, you should also conduct thorough research including registration with trade agencies and industry associations.

As to the second part of your question, in some instances you might be able to get a better price from a manufacturer than from a trading company, but not always. Manufacturers also give good prices and terms to trading companies to remain competitive. Because most trading companies have good buying power they might also be able to negotiate a better price that they can offer buyers.