How it works
From the 1688 link to the door of your warehouse. Six steps, two payments and no point at which you need a Chinese account.
Short answer
How does a buying service in China work?
A buying service works in six steps: you send the product link from 1688, Taobao or Alibaba; it sends back a quote with the product price, the commission and the freight kept separate; you pay for the goods and it buys in yuan from its account in China; the seller dispatches to the service's warehouse in Shenzhen, not to your home; there the goods are checked, photographed and consolidated with other orders; and finally you choose the shipping route and pay freight at cost. The customer never needs a Chinese account, a Chinese payment method or an address in China.
In summary
- What you need to send us
- A link, a photo or a list with quantities
- What you do NOT need
- A 1688 account, a Chinese payment method or an address in China
- Receiving warehouse
- Shenzhen, Guangdong
- When you pay
- Twice: goods and services, then freight
- Typical total lead time
- 3 – 7 weeks depending on the route
- Storage included
- 30 calendar days from the first receipt
- Commission
- 5% – 8% of the value of the goods
You send us the link or the list
A 1688, Taobao or Alibaba link, a photo, or a list with several products and quantities. If you have the link, better: it removes any ambiguity about the exact item.
- You provide
- A link, a photo or a list with quantities and variants (colour, size, model).
- We do
- We check that the link is the right product and that the seller is viable.
- You receive
- Confirmation that we have understood what you want, or questions if anything is unclear.
We quote you with the numbers kept separate
We send back the product price, our commission, the cost of the services you ask for and a freight estimate. Kept separate, so you can see what you are paying for each part.
- You provide
- Nothing. This part is on us.
- We do
- We check with the seller, confirm availability and work out the full cost.
- You receive
- A written quote with each line item on its own row, and the estimated lead time.
You pay for the goods and the services
We pay the seller in yuan from our account in China, into the company account and never into a personal account. You reimburse us the goods plus the agreed commission and services.
- You provide
- The value of the goods plus the commission and the services you have contracted.
- We do
- We place the order and pay the seller in yuan inside China.
- You receive
- Payment receipt and the seller's order number for tracking.
We receive it at our Shenzhen warehouse
The seller ships to our warehouse, not to your home. That is why you do not need a Chinese account or an address in China. On arrival we check the item, the quantity and the condition of the packaging.
- You provide
- Nothing. The seller dispatches to our address in Shenzhen.
- We do
- We receive, weigh, measure and identify each parcel with your order number.
- You receive
- Confirmation of receipt with photographs, and a warning if anything does not match the order.
We check, photograph and consolidate
This is where the real value of the service sits. We check that the product is the one you ordered, photograph it if you need that, remove the manufacturer's labelling if you sell under your own brand, and combine orders from several sellers into a single shipment.
- You provide
- You tell us which services you want: photos, inspection, repacking, labelling, kits.
- We do
- We carry out the services and group all your orders into a single consignment.
- You receive
- A report with photographs and the detail of what is going out, already consolidated.
You choose the route and we ship
We give you the shipping options with their lead time and their real carrier cost, with no markup added. You choose, pay the freight and it goes. We give you the tracking number.
- You provide
- You choose air or sea and pay the freight at cost.
- We do
- We prepare the documents, ship and follow the consignment through to delivery.
- You receive
- A tracking number and a notice at every milestone until it reaches your address.
Why payment happens in two stages
First you pay for the goods and the services, because the purchase has to be made. Then you pay the freight, once the goods are in the warehouse and we know how much they really weigh and how much space they take up. Charging you for transport before that would mean charging on an estimate, and volume estimates are almost always wrong. It is more work for us and less risk for you.
What you can ask us to do while the goods are in the warehouse
The goods wait in Shenzhen until you close the load. That time is used to get the product ready to sell, rather than having to handle it on arrival.
Product photography
Photos on a white background of the actual goods, for your product listing.
Removal of manufacturer labelling
We remove the manufacturer's marks and seals so it goes out with yours.
Repacking and volume reduction
We replace oversized packaging and bring down the billable volume.
SKU labelling
A label per unit for MercadoLibre Full, Amazon FBA or your own sales.
Kitting and bundles
We group several items into one sellable pack with its own SKU.
AQL inspection
Formal sampling with a photographic report before the consignment leaves.
All of them at a published price on the pricing page , and all of them can be bought separately.
Frequently asked questions about the process
Do I need a 1688 account or an address in China?
No. That is precisely the service. 1688 requires a Chinese account, a Chinese payment method and a delivery address inside China; we provide all three. You only need the product link and to pay us.
What happens if the product I receive is not what I ordered?
We catch it at reception, before it leaves China, and we tell you with photographs. From there we claim against the seller in Chinese and with the goods still in the country, which is the only moment when there is real leverage. If the claim succeeds, the goods are returned or replaced; if it does not, you decide whether to ship it anyway or drop it without paying freight on it.
When do I pay, and how many times?
At two points. First you pay the goods, our commission and the services you have asked for, so that we can buy. Then, once the goods are in the warehouse and you know exactly how much they weigh and how much space they take up, you pay the international freight. That sequence exists so that you are not paying transport on an estimated volume that then does not hold.
Can I combine orders from several different sellers?
Yes, and it is the main reason to use a consolidation service. All the sellers ship to our Shenzhen warehouse and we join them into a single consignment. You pay one freight instead of five, one customs entry instead of five and one delivery instead of five.
How long does the whole process take?
It depends on three periods that add up: the seller's shipment to our warehouse inside China, which is usually two to five days; the time you take to gather all the orders you want to consolidate; and international transit, which runs from one to two weeks by air and four to six by sea. In practice, a complete order from payment to delivery usually falls between three and seven weeks.
Can I ask for the product to be checked before it is shipped?
Yes, and we recommend it. The basic reception check is included: we verify the item, the quantity and the condition of the packaging, with photographs. If you want a formal inspection with sampling to AQL criteria, that is contracted separately and billed per inspector-day.
Are there products you do not accept?
Yes. We do not move counterfeit goods or brand replicas, products that infringe patents, items whose import is prohibited in the destination country, or goods that require special licences we cannot verify. We also do not accept dangerous goods without the corresponding transport documentation. We tell you before buying, not after.
What do I need to send to get a quote?
The more specific you are, the faster and more exact the answer. What helps is: the product link or a clear photo, the quantity and the variants (colour, size, model), the destination city and whether you want any additional service such as photography or your own labelling. With that we can send back an itemised quote without a second round of questions.
Send us the first link
One product, a photo or a full list. We send back the itemised quote — goods, commission, services and estimated freight — with no commitment and no sign-up fee.
We reply within 24 business hours. See how the process works