1. B2B platform procurement and buyer/agent purchasing system
Today, B2B platform procurement and buyer/agent purchasing system are favored by many e-commerce companies
(1) B2B platform procurement
B2B platforms are mainly for e-commerce companies and are one of their procurement channels. They can directly link procurement and sales businesses. Moreover, e-commerce companies purchase goods through B2B platforms by looking for sources online, which reduces the hassle and trouble of looking for sources on the spot and reduces procurement costs. E-commerce companies can contact wholesalers or distributors online and sell directly to buyers who place orders after confirming the source of goods. The whole process is online, which is convenient and fast
Currently, the main B2B platforms in my country include Alibaba 1688, Made-in-China.com, Marco Polo.com, etc. Of course, there are also professional B2B platforms in various industries, such as China Fashion Network for clothing. The advantages of purchasing goods on these B2B platforms are relatively low costs and a wide range of choices. They are suitable for small batches and multiple styles of combined purchases.
At the same time, there are also disadvantages in purchasing goods through B2B platforms, such as high purchase prices, high shipping costs, and buyers giving medium or bad reviews. Therefore, e-commerce companies must be cautious when using B2B platforms to purchase goods.
(2) Buyer/agent system
As we all know, most luxury websites use the buyer system to source goods from brand owners through overseas purchasing agents. Brand owners also have their own buyers to purchase new goods of the season from all over the world. E-commerce companies can learn from this method and purchase goods through buyers or agents. For example, buyers can purchase goods from Oxford Street in the UK.
When using the buyer/agent system, e-commerce companies need to have keen market insight and be able to grasp the new goods of the season. Generally speaking, because the purchase volume is not large, the inventory pressure of e-commerce companies is relatively small, but the disadvantage is that the supply volume is not large and it is difficult to create a hit product, so it is more suitable to take the niche route.
Tips
Purchasing goods through B2B platforms is suitable for e-commerce companies with certain experience, because these e-commerce companies can more accurately grasp the quality of the source of goods. The buyer/agent purchasing method is more suitable for small online stores that pursue styles and trends, because the purchase volume of this purchasing method is not too large, and the update speed is very fast, which is conducive to attracting more picky buyers.
Second, foreign trade tail orders
Foreign trade tail orders are also products that e-commerce companies can choose. The original meaning of foreign trade tail orders is a small amount of unqualified products or raw material processing products left after the factory has produced the brand’s genuine products.
Take clothing as an example. Large brands may only be responsible for design and material selection. In particular, brands without self-operated factories will outsource production tasks to professional factories. If the order contract is for 300,000 pieces of finished clothing, the factory will often reserve some extra fabrics just in case. Clothing produced by such fabrics belongs to foreign trade tail orders.
There are two main reasons for the generation of foreign trade tail orders: one is that the factory processes the materials planned to be scrapped into finished products to reduce losses, and the other is that due to various problems during the processing, the finished products fail to pass the inspection, and the factory decides to switch from foreign trade to domestic sales. Although most of the foreign trade tail orders are substandard products or raw material processing products, the quality and style are still guaranteed.
Since the foreign trade tail orders are usually wholesaled at a price close to the cost, but the quality and style are the same as regular finished products, they can become a way for e-commerce companies to purchase goods. The advantage of foreign trade tail orders is not only the lower price, but also the style and quality are more reliable. Of course, there is still a certain gap between foreign trade tail orders and counter products.
Tips
If e-commerce companies take foreign trade tail orders as target products, they must check carefully when purchasing to avoid blindly buying in for the sake of cheapness, which will lead to inventory backlogs and squeeze the capital chain.