A single independent store almost never reaches a Chinese factory's minimum. Several stores in the same trade, together, will. We combine the orders and then deliver door-to-door — by sea or by air, on small volumes.
Two obstacles keep a small business from buying directly in China. Combining orders addresses both.
A factory sets a minimum quantity per reference, usually calculated on a full production run. Below that, it will not produce — or it quotes a unit price that makes the exercise pointless.
On a small volume, freight is almost entirely fixed costs: file, clearance, handling, delivery. Borne by one buyer alone, it often exceeds the value of the goods.
Export documents, tariff classification, declaration, brokerage: for an order of a few cartons the administrative effort is disproportionate — and that is exactly what discourages people.
Four steps, and one rule that decides everything: the references must be identical.
You tell us the product family that interests you and a rough annual volume. No commitment, no order at this stage. We keep an interest list by product family.
When several businesses ask for the same reference in the same specification, a group becomes possible. We then put it to you with quantities, the price break reached, and the estimated freight cost per participant.
Production is launched as one factory order. Each participant has their cartons marked and their own packing list. That marking is what makes correct allocation possible on arrival — without it, a group order ends in a dispute.
Departure from China by sea groupage or by air, depending on what you prioritise — cost or time. Transport is arranged through to your address. Each participant remains the importer of their own goods and files their own declaration.
The rule is simple and we make no exception: in a group order, everyone buys exactly the same reference.
A catalogue product, no customisation, in a settled specification. This is the ideal case: the price break is real and the allocation raises no argument.
Group buying is designed for small volumes. It does not replace a full order: if your volume already justifies a container, you do not need us for it.
One participant may add several references, provided at least one reference is shared with another participant to create the group.
A product with your logo and your packaging cannot be shared. It follows the normal route, as an individual order.
Cushions, cat trees, furniture: freight charged on volume absorbs the margin. Group buying does not fix a product that is too expensive to move.
Two stores that want "the same product" but with different dimensions or colour do not have the same product. Two references, two files.
A group order that fails is almost always one whose allocation was never written down. Here is ours.
| Item | Allocated how | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Goods | Per participant, by their quantity and the price break reached | The unit price falls with the total group quantity, not with the individual quantity |
| International freight | Pro rata to each participant's actual volumetric weight | Sea groupage and air freight are charged on volume or chargeable weight, never on carton count |
| Duty and taxes | Per participant, on their own declaration | Each business is the importer of its goods: it declares and pays on its own lot only |
| Brokerage and file fees | Split equally between participants | These are fixed costs per shipment, independent of each participant's volume |
| Group fee | Disclosed in writing before you commit | No charge appears after the fact: the structure is disclosed before you decide |
A group order involves people who do not know each other sharing one shipment. That requires rules.
Goods and freight are settled before shipment. A group order does not run on credit: if one participant withdraws, the whole shipment stalls.
The departure date is the group's, not yours. If your stock must arrive on a specific date, that is an individual order, not a group order.
We provide the commercial documents for each participant. The customs declaration is made by a licensed broker, in the name of each importer.
We advance neither goods nor freight, for anyone. That is what ensures nobody carries another party's risk.
A group order rests on a single reference and a common sealed sample. We do not combine different qualities on the grounds that they look alike.
Delivery is door-to-door. If you prefer to collect yourself or have it delivered elsewhere, that is decided before shipment, not after.
Tell us the product family and a rough annual volume. We will contact you as soon as a group becomes possible on that reference — with no commitment on your part.