At the international trade fairs, I often meet many founders of startup brands. Their first question is usually: “What’s your unit price?”
I totally understand the importance of cost control, but as specialized factory in the heating patch industry, I always ask them one more question: “Besides price, have you considered the ‘risk resilience’ of your supply chain?”
1. What are the hidden risks of choosing a non-certified manufacturer?
In the OEM field, extremely low prices often means that comprises have been made in areas that you can’t see. What is being sacrificed? It could be the purity of iron powder, the uniformity of breathable film, or the absence of the quality management system, such as ISO certification or medical device registration.
If the product causes burns due to uneven temperature control in the end market, or is seized by customs due to incomplete qualifications, the few cents you saved will turn into unbearable brand damage.
2. How to evaluate the reliability of a factory from thousands of miles away?
It’s not as sample as just looking at a few factory photos. How to dig deeper? I suggest partners focus on two key points. Fist, the responsiveness of R&D laboratory, and the second, the stability of production capacity.
3. What support can a professional partner provide besides production?
What is my final advice?
Finding a supplier is essentially finding a “symbiotic partner”. A mature factory should be able to help you share the burden of compliance and provide flexible production capacity as your order volume grows.
How to build a win-win future?
Let’s move beyond the single dimension of “price comparison” and look for partners who truly understand your brand vision and value quality above all else. After all, consistent quality is the most cost-effective marketing strategy.
