Buying products from several suppliers in China can give you better prices and more product choices, but arranging separate international shipments for every supplier can become expensive and difficult to manage.
A practical solution is to have your suppliers send their goods to one consolidation warehouse in China. The warehouse can receive, identify, check, and combine the cargo before it is shipped internationally. (cnxtrans)
How to Ship from Multiple Suppliers
- Place your orders: Purchase your products from Alibaba, 1688, Taobao, factories, wholesalers, or other Chinese suppliers.
- Choose a consolidation warehouse: Arrange a warehouse address in China where all your suppliers can send their completed orders.
- Send the warehouse details to suppliers: Give each supplier the correct warehouse address and your required reference or identification details.
- Track every delivery: Keep each supplier’s tracking number and expected delivery date so you can confirm when the different orders arrive.
- Receive and check the cargo: The warehouse records the incoming packages and can check quantities, carton condition, weight, and dimensions.
- Consolidate the shipments: Once the suitable orders arrive, the warehouse combines them into one international shipment. Repacking may also be used to improve the way the cargo is packed.
- Choose international freight: The combined shipment can move by air freight, sea freight, or another suitable transportation method depending on the cargo, destination, budget, and delivery deadline.
Should You Wait for Every Supplier?
Not always. If one supplier is significantly delayed, waiting for that order could hold up the entire shipment and potentially create additional storage costs.
You can decide whether to wait for the remaining goods or ship the cargo that is already ready. This decision should consider the value of the delayed goods, storage period, shipping cost, and urgency. (Axoha)
What Information Should You Prepare?
Before shipping, give your freight forwarder:
- Supplier names and addresses
- Product descriptions
- Number of cartons
- Weight and dimensions
- Expected ready dates
- Supplier tracking numbers
- Destination country and address
- Preferred shipping method
Accurate information makes it easier to match incoming packages with the correct orders and plan the final shipment.
Air Freight or Sea Freight?
Air freight is useful when you need faster delivery or have relatively small cargo.
Sea freight is generally more suitable for larger and heavier shipments. After consolidation, your cargo may be shipped as LCL when it does not fill a container or FCL when the volume is large enough.
How Travo.ng Can Help
Travo.ng can help coordinate shipping when you are buying from multiple suppliers in China. Instead of managing several international shipments separately, you can organize supplier deliveries, warehouse consolidation, freight planning, and final delivery as one logistics process.
This can make importing easier to manage and may help control freight costs when multiple orders are suitable for consolidation.
Before your suppliers dispatch their goods, make sure every package is correctly identified and that the warehouse has your supplier and order information. Good coordination at this stage can prevent missing packages, incorrect quantities, and unnecessary shipping delays.
