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I just started my business and was taught the first lesson by reality. I am proficient in operation and promotion but not good at development/purchasing. I have already selected the style of products. How can I find a suitable factory, get the ideal price, and ship on time and with quality?
Situation:
1. Based on the concept that professionals should do professional things, I found a middleman, paid him a salary and commission, asked him to help with purchasing and order tracking, negotiated with the factory to ship on time and with quality, and signed contracts with two factories. The price was within an acceptable range, and I needed the factory to deliver on time and with quality.
2. The first factory that signed the contract had the following problems:
①The hole size of SKU1 product is wrong, it is too small, which has a fatal impact on the buyer's installation experience. The hole cannot be installed. When the bulk goods are shipped, the full amount of the delivery quantity has already been paid.
② The instruction manual for SKU1 is not the one we provided, there is a slight difference but it is not a big one.
③The connection structure between the SKU2 bulk goods and the samples has changed. Therefore, the number of accessories and the connection structure do not match the instructions. When buyers receive the goods and install them, they will definitely be confused. First, the number of accessories does not match, and then the number of screws required during installation is not actually the case.
④The quality of SKU2 bulk products is inconsistent with the sample. The paint does not peel off easily, but it does peel off easily. The weight and thickness are also obviously lighter and thinner than the sample, and it is short of one pound.
In addition, the contract stipulated a delivery date and required payment of a deferred amount, but the factory delayed delivery for approximately five days without any investigation into the factory's responsibility or the deferred amount confirmed in the payment contract.
3. For the second factory that I signed the contract with, my requirement to the middleman was that the goods should be delivered by the end of February at the latest.
We started following up on this project at the end of December. The middleman was responsible for finding the factory and confirming the quality of the samples. The final feedback to me was that the delivery time was the end of February. After the Chinese New Year, I asked him to confirm the delivery time every day, but he was always perfunctory and could not confirm it. I asked the factory about the time in the cooperation group. The factory said that the contract was signed by the middleman first, and the factory would deliver the goods at the end of March. It was made clear before the Chinese New Year (I paid a 30% deposit before the Chinese New Year to jump the queue).
I am a person who always keeps my word. I don't know if it's because I demand and expect perfection or what, but I am very disappointed with this kind of two-faced attitude. Now I can only wait for the factory to deliver the goods. I can't ask for the late payment fee in the contract. The factory just said that they will try their best to ship as soon as possible.
4. The middleman provided the following solution to the cooperation between the two factories: the first factory would try to claim compensation, but it was hard to say whether it could get compensation, and it was also difficult to deal with. Even though the contract stipulated specific liability for breach of contract, etc.; the second factory could only urge the goods to be delivered as soon as possible, and there was no other way.
5. My analysis:
This middleman is not the right person. He cannot achieve the quality of cooperation I want. His attitude is also perfunctory. Although he is very capable, he is indeed not suitable for cooperation. For the losses that have already occurred, it seems that I have no choice but to accept them. I am so helpless. I have to find a replacement factory for the first product myself. I have read various experience analyses of dealing with factories. The difficulty lies in how to communicate with the factory. I am not good at this. I am honest, I don’t make empty promises, I don’t speak nonsense, and I don’t socialize. Hahahahaha.
The experience summarized by a friend: Either find the right person or don’t find anyone.
The more than 100,000 yuan I have invested was earned through a year of hard work, and I don’t know how much I can get back now. Now I can only force myself to study the supply chain and learn how to deal with factories.
My doubts:
① How to get a lower or suitable price? After inquiring with the factory on 1688, the quotation given by the factory is basically difficult to bargain. Even if the first batch says to make 1k+, the price cannot be reduced. How to negotiate with the factory for the price you want, or reduce 5%-10% on the basis of the quotation? In addition to understanding the cost of raw materials, labor costs, and technical costs to calculate the factory's profit margin, are there any other operational techniques?
② How to avoid the problem of inconsistency between factory goods and samples? Many details of the goods cannot be detected in the first random inspection, especially for products that need to be installed. If a full inspection is conducted, customers will definitely see signs of use on the installed products. If the products that need to be installed are not installed, no problems with the products can be found. How can we ensure that the factory's final goods are exactly the same as the samples? How should we conduct inspection?
③ Is it necessary to be serious about the delivery time limit? The contract signed by the factory has a breach of contract liability. If the delivery is one day late, a certain amount of liquidated damages must be paid. However, in reality, it seems that this clause cannot bind the factory. The tax-free contract signed seems to be useless. It only has a moral constraint effect (when I wanted to pursue responsibility, the middleman said that the contract is basically useless, and I was speechless). If you really have to sue the factory for compensation, it will be troublesome, and it will be unnecessary to break up. How can you protect your legitimate rights and interests?
④ How is the sample fee calculated? The sample fee of the middleman is basically 2-3 times the actual product quotation. I am quite puzzled. Why is a sample so much more expensive than the contract quotation? Shouldn't it be enough to pay the sample price? I have also taken samples at 1688, and it is not so outrageous.
⑤ It is said that after signing the contract, you should go to the factory to follow up on the order to ensure that the factory is not exporting the order. You dare not do anything weird when you are in the factory, but I also question the probability that you can actually solve the problem by guarding the factory every day. Oh, it's frustrating.
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