3. A Step-by-step Guide to Import Furniture from China

In this section, we will be taking you through the step-by-step procedures to import furniture from China!

3.1.) Finding the Right Chinese Supplier/Factory

The first and most critical step in importing furniture from China is selecting the right supplier or factory. Choosing the right factory is essential for obtaining fair pricing, good quality, timely delivery, and effective collaboration. A poor choice, however, may result in delays, defects, and unnecessary costs.

Many importers start their search on Alibaba, a popular platform with thousands of suppliers. While it’s a convenient starting point, selecting a reliable supplier requires experience and a detailed vetting process. This task involves more than just browsing online; it requires careful negotiation and thorough research.

To ensure you find the best supplier, many businesses turn to a furniture buying office. These offices have on-the-ground expertise, access to suppliers that might not be listed online, and the ability to attend trade fairs in China and abroad. For example, some suppliers may only attend industry events like CIFF (China International Furniture Fair) and not have a strong online presence. By using a buying office, you’ll be able to access a wider range of suppliers, ensuring you find the right match for your needs.

After selecting a few potential suppliers, it’s crucial to audit their facilities. This includes checking their equipment, production processes, and their commitment to quality and ethical standards. Factory audits are a vital part of the process and are best handled by professionals who can ensure that the factories are reputable and capable of meeting your requirements.

Once you’ve narrowed down your options to at least three qualified suppliers, the next step is to request quotations. Professional sourcing requires sending a formal Request for Quotation (RFQ), specifying product details, quantities, and expected lead times. This process ensures that you receive standardized quotes, avoiding any confusion or miscommunication.

3.2.) Calculate import cost

Before committing to any deal, you must calculate the total cost of importing furniture. This includes not only the price of the furniture but also additional fees such as freight costs, customs duties, and local delivery charges.

Start by ensuring that all suppliers provide quotations on an ‘FOB’ (Free On Board) basis. FOB means that the quoted price includes the cost of goods and their transportation to the port in China. Once the goods are loaded onto the ship, responsibility shifts to the buyer.

Next, consider other costs such as sea freight, port handling charges, and trucking fees to get the goods from the port to your warehouse. Ocean freight rates fluctuate, so it’s crucial to get these figures from your freight forwarder or buying office in advance to avoid surprises.

3.3.) Negotiating the Price

Price negotiation is a critical stage in the importing process. By this point, you should already be dealing with reputable suppliers, so the negotiation will focus on refining the terms and ensuring that both sides are satisfied.

At this stage, the buying office can be particularly helpful. They can provide insight into what constitutes a reasonable price based on the specifications and the quotes you’ve received from different suppliers. This is also the time to discuss potential discounts or flexible payment terms.

If you’re negotiating with multiple suppliers, you’ll have a range of prices to compare, which helps you spot any anomalies or unusually high quotes. The key here is to ensure the price reflects both the quality and volume of the order. If you’re making large orders, suppliers may offer discounts on subsequent orders.

Face-to-face meetings can be beneficial for securing better deals, especially when dealing with factories that want to build a long-term business relationship. If you are working with a buying office, they can arrange these meetings and help finalize the deal.

Once at the factory, it’s much easier to discuss everything, to go into detail about elements that can influence the price.

If you have significant volume, instead of a simple discount off the unit price from a container, the factory may agree after the first three orders; from that point, that they will offer you a 5% discount. After all, Chinese factories want volume and continuity of orders. If you can give them what they want, then you have a powerful position to get what you want!

3.4.) Understanding Minimum Order Quantities (MOQ)

When importing furniture from China, understanding the supplier’s Minimum Order Quantity (MOQ) is crucial. MOQs can vary significantly depending on the manufacturer and product type. Here’s what you need to know:

• Large Factories: Typically have higher MOQs due to their capacity for bulk production. If you’re looking for mass-market items, expect a higher MOQ.
• Small to Medium Suppliers: May be more flexible with MOQs, especially if they specialize in custom or boutique furniture.
• Negotiating MOQ: If the MOQ seems too high for your needs, try negotiating. Some suppliers may lower their MOQ if you commit to future orders or place a larger initial order.

MOQ requirements vary depending on the supplier and the type of furniture. When buying directly from a manufacturer, especially for mass-produced furniture, expect the MOQ to be a full container load (FCL), often a 20ft container. The MOQ can also depend on the complexity of the product and whether the factory has enough stock or raw materials to meet the order.

If you’re dealing with smaller suppliers or wholesalers, you might be able to order smaller quantities, especially if you’re sourcing from furniture markets in cities like Foshan or Guangzhou. However, if you’re buying from a wholesale market, you will need the assistance of a buying office or sourcing agent to manage orders, payments, and consolidation.

A buying office can also negotiate flexibility on MOQs for initial orders, which is especially useful for smaller businesses just starting their import operations.

What are the standard minimum order quantities?

Minimum order quantities will vary from one furniture supplier to the next. In this section, we will point out the various ways that you can procure furniture in China, and outline what typical minimum Order Quantities you can expect.

Buying Factory Direct

If you’re buying mass-produced furniture from a typical Chinese furniture manufacturer, then you can expect the minimum order to be a container load. Often a 20ft container.

Generally, furniture is bulky. Factories are geared for mass production, and manufacturers need to buy minimum quantities of raw materials and components legs, feet, handles, etc. For all these reasons, and more, are why, generally, Chinese factories will require a customer to order a full container load.

However, the next question is how many different furniture SKU’s or furniture items/ranges can be put into this container? Again, this will vary from factory to factory. Still, typically ordering one container load from one factory, it’s quite normal for them to be able to provide between 2 – 5 different items to fill your container. It’s worth pointing out that this is a point of negotiation, and often factories that are keen to begin co-operating with you will bend their standard minimum order quantities for you on initial orders.

Buying from Furniture Wholesale Markets

Across China, there are various wholesale furniture markets. The key furniture markets are located in Foshan, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Beijing, and Tianjin.

These markets vary. Some of them are there to service the ‘International export market.’ Others are designed for the Chinese domestic market. At the more International Furniture markets, you will find everything from leading Italian furniture brands to small Chinese local furniture manufactures. Generally, in all cases, the minimum order can be as low as one of each item!

However, if you want to buy various pieces of furniture to ship, you will need a buying office or agent to co-ordinate payments, consolidation and packaging of stock for export, and all the export documentation.

If you want to buy these sorts of minimum quantities from wholesale furniture markets, then the only way to do this is to contact a furniture buying office, such as www.furnituremadesolution.com, and arrange a buying trip to China.

3.5.) Sample development and quality assurance

Before giving your factory an order to mass-produce your furniture, it’s vital that you do Quality Assurance! In short, this means checking the sample and signing it off.

Quality Assurance should cover all aspects of the furniture, the product itself, how it assembles (if an assembly is required), the instructions, and the packaging (especially crucial for e-commerce furniture sellers).

There can be a few things going wrong with the furniture. All issues and mistakes must be ironed out on an agreed sample between the buyer and manufacturer. If this is not done, these mistakes will be mass-produced and become a massive problem for any furniture importer!

To give you an idea, here are a few issues picked up on one product by the Furniture-Made-Solution Quality Assurance team. All of these issues ONLY became apparent when doing professional Furniture Quality Assurance.

Ex: Quality Assurance on a Computer Desk

To give you an idea, here are a few issues picked up on one product by the Furniture-Made-SolutionQuality Assurance team. All of these issues ONLY became apparent when doing professional Furniture Quality Assurance.

• A white, flat-packed computer desk in white. The material used is a cheap ‘paper’ finish, which means dirty marks cannot be easily removed. If the end customer were to put a dirty cup of coffee on this ‘new’ desk, they would soon be a depressed customer.
• The draws on the computer desk have been made slightly too small; it’s only apparent when checking the physical sample that you cannot entirely lay down a piece of A4 paper flat.
• The cam locks that hold the structure together have been placed on the outside of the panel. This does not give a ‘clean look’ – the structure can be altered, so on the finished product, these are invisible to the naked eye.
• The instructions for the desk are too simple, technical drawings not detailed enough, and ultimately very hard to read.
• The packaging means it’s effortless for the desktop to get damaged while it’s being handled, the packaging needs re-designing.

All of these issues were solved in the second sample. The second sample was then officially signed off by the Furniture-Made-Solution Furniture quality Assurance team, and successful production and sales began on this furniture line.

Due to the combination of the fact that furniture is generally bulky, and the fact that very often in Furniture Quality Assurance the second round of sampling is required, many furniture importers will either use a furniture buying office or send their own Quality Staff to sign off samples at their Chinese furniture supplier.

3.6.) Compliance

Making sure that your product legally complies with any regulations and standards in your country is essential for any China furniture import.

Generally, there are three areas to get right.

Safety compliance

Depending on your country, there will be various standards around product safety. These are in place to protect the end consumer.

For example, load, stability, structure, dimensions, and so on, can all play a role to ensure a product is fit for purpose. For instance, a bunk bed that cannot withstand a certain load on the top bunk, if it fails, could prove extremely dangerous.

Different materials will also have specific tests, again for safety. For example, the glass will have a test to ensure that tempered glass, when it breaks does not break into large shards of glass, but a certain number of small pieces. As such, if you are importing a glass dining table, there may be one test for the table, and also another test for the glass.

As a furniture importer, it’s your responsibility to ensure that the furniture you are importing from China has been specifically tested.

You cannot do this on goodwill either. As an importer, you need to hold the test certificates and the test reports to prove that your product has been tested, and you have the results to prove it.

Remember, as the furniture importer, this is your responsibility, not the China furniture manufacturer!

Chemical compliance

There are also specific standards related to the chemicals used and given off by the furniture. In Europe, for instance, these are covered by REACH.

For example, glues, paints, and chemicals used in foam must all comply with the relevant standards in your country.

Sustainability

More and more, people and businesses around the world care that what they are buying is ultimately coming from a sustainable source. The FSC certifies that the wood used is furniture is coming from a sustainable source.

3.7.) Purchasing

When purchasing a product from China, there is a right way and a wrong way! The first significant thing to get right is to ensure there is a purchase contract in place. The purchase contract should contain the following:

• Clear payment terms
• Furniture specification including product, packaging, instructions
• Amounts
• Agreed tolerances
• Agreed quality standards (most China furniture importers will follow AQL standards).
• Late fines.

While all of these details may have been discussed at some point in time, it’s essential that for each furniture import from China, an explicit purchase agreement is in place.

If you are using a buying office, creating and managing the contract is a standard role that they would do for you.

3.8.) How to Pay China Suppliers

Payment is a critical part of the transaction when importing furniture from China. The most common payment methods include:

• Bank Transfer (T/T): This is the most commonly used payment method. A 30% deposit is typically required upfront, with the remaining 70% due before shipment.
• Letter of Credit (L/C): This is a secure method where payment is only made when goods are shipped and all terms are met.
• PayPal: For smaller transactions, PayPal is an easy option. However, the fees are higher compared to bank transfers.
• Western Union: Used less frequently, this method is often reserved for smaller or low-risk transactions.

Payment options can vary under different circumstances and can be negotiated. Generally, most companies that import furniture from China will work along the lines of the importer paying a deposit, then pay the balance against the bill of lading (after the goods have been shipped from China).

Here are a few examples of payment terms, listed from ‘worse case’ to ‘best case.’

100% payment before production even begins

Super high risk as the furniture importer has no leverage against a China furniture manufacturer after they have paid. Typically, the only time this payment term would be applicable would be if a furniture order is minimal, say less than USD 5000.

30% deposit then 70% before shipment

Here, the importer pays a deposit on the order, then the manufacturer produces the furniture, and later before the goods are shipped, the importer must pay the remaining 70% balance. This is not ideal from a risk or cash-flow perspective of the furniture importer. If the furniture manufacturer were requesting these payment terms for any order above USD 10,000, it should ring an alarm bell as to why they’re offering such poor conditions.

30% down, 70% against bill of lading

These are STANDARD terms any furniture importer should get from any a China furniture manufacturer or China furniture-buying office. Simply, it means that the importer pays a deposit and is able to control the quality and standard of the goods. The goods are then shipped out of China, and the importer can pay the balance against the bill of lading when they know that their furniture is in a container, and on the way to them. It also helps importers manage their cashflow a lot better.

0% deposit, 100% against bill of lading

These are good payment terms where the China furniture manufacturer will agree to manufacture based on a firm’s purchase order and contract. They will then ship the goods out of China, leaving the furniture importer to pay only after his or her goods have been shipped. Generally, these payment terms will only be achieved if you’re using a China furniture buying office, such as Furniture-Made-Solution.

0% deposit 100% balance after 90 days (importing goods on credit)

These are pretty much the best payment terms possible for importing furniture from China. Basically, the only way these terms can be achieved is by making use of a dedicated furniture buying office such as Furniture-Made-Solution. Getting credit terms will require meeting specific criteria, such as trading history, credit checks, and contracts.

3.9.) Quality control

Quality Control is the most basic function that should be carried out on all Chinese furniture purchases. Chinese furniture manufacturers, both big and small, all have some degree of quality issues during production from time to time. Depending on the factory, these could vary a lot.

It’s worth pointing out that as vital as quality control is, no amount of quality control will ultimately turn a bad Chinese furniture manufacturer into a good one!

The critical point is that as a furniture importer, whether you are importing one container load of furniture either as a one-off or as a regular furniture importer, if a quality issue is missed on any batch, the effects on your furniture business can be severe.

The reason being, once you have imported your goods, they cannot be returned to China. You (the furniture importer) now has the stock, and you’re left to either sell it as a second-hand item, fix the issues/mistakes, or apply some damage control means. You can sort out the highly defective furniture from the stock that is sellable, or worst of all, dispose of the stock as it either cannot be sold, or a commercial decision has been made that selling below par is damaging to your furniture brand!

As such, each furniture import must be quality checked! Various forms of quality control can be carried out; in short, these are:

• Mid production inspection – checking production halfway through to ensure the right materials/colors, etc., are being used.
• Pre-shipment inspection – this is an inspection of the batch at the end of production.
• Container load check – to ensure that the right quantity of furniture is loaded as well as making sure the container is loaded correctly, with a case. This is especially crucial with something such as a glass mirrored furniture.
• Online inspection – this is a situation whereby a Quality Inspector visits the factory every day during the entire production process.

The simple rule is, the more quality control you do, the more you reduce your risk! However, it’s essential to find a practical balance between cost and the amount of quality control you practice.

If you’re working with a furniture buying office, such as Furniture-Made-Solution, then they will have a Furniture Quality Team in place. Their Furniture Quality Team will assess each furniture manufacturer, each furniture SKU (item), and put the right quality control plan in place for your furniture.

This can vary, anyways. Also, the Furniture Quality team will help you to design, manage, and implement this plan. For instance, when dealing with a new Chinese furniture manufacturer, on the first order of a complex piece of furniture, the types and levels of inspection will be much higher compared to a manufacturer that is a well-known supplier. And also, it has made the same piece of furniture for multiple containers each month for the past two years.

“Good” Furniture Quality Control

There are several ‘quality control’ companies that carry out inspections. A good quality control inspection will report all findings, including the specifications of the product, assembly, instructions, packaging, minor and major defects accurately.

Any good furniture quality control report will be marked either as a ‘pass’ or ‘fail’. However, the importer should study this report and fully understand and then make their judgment.

For example, what a third-party furniture quality inspector may think is a ‘minor’ defect, you, the furniture importer and brand, may feel that these minor defects are, in fact, significant defects and not acceptable.

It’s for this reason that many Chinese furniture importers use a buying office, as there is a greater understanding of what the furniture brand’s quality expectations are.

After a quality control report is done, it’s not yet ‘job over’ at this point, still. The next actions need to be decided. For example, if the quality issues are not acceptable, does the batch need to be re-worked then re-inspected? Can the furniture be shipped, and should either spares or compensation be agreed before shipping? Is it decided that the furniture can be shipped and instructions then need to be given to the freight forward office or shipping line?

“Bad” Furniture Quality Control

There are various forms of ‘bad quality control’ that China furniture importers can experience.

First, when making use of a third-party company, the actual inspector carrying out the inspection and report can be very much ‘detached’ from the needs of the furniture importer. As such, a ‘GIGO’ (garbage in garbage out) effect can be found. Meaning, the actual inspector is not familiar with what the furniture brand deems acceptable or unacceptable!

Not only that, but a third-party furniture quality control can be quite emotionally detached from the furniture importer they are ultimately working for. Maybe they will never do any inspection for this brand again? One genuine risk for businesses that import furniture from China is that the Quality Control Inspector is either lazy, corrupt, or both!

When the inspector is at the factory, maybe the factory is fully aware that there are quality issues; however, they do not wish for these to be reported to the furniture importer. As such, they do anything they can to either bribe or influence the inspector. Many Chinese manufacturers have reported that they have been asked, ‘how much will it cost you if I fail this batch?’ before!

It’s for this reason that furniture importers prefer to use a professional buying office that has full-time Quality Control inspectors who are fully accountable and that there is continuity over the same inspectors carrying out quality control for the same furniture importer.

Furniture Quality Management

A furniture buying office will have a professional quality management system in place that ensures:

• The right level of Quality Control on your furniture
• Agreed standards of working are observed
• Full-time inspectors and accountability over results
• Interpreting the Quality Control results, and then taking the right actions for either re-working and reinspection or shipping out.

3.10.) Shipment (transit times, logistic options, container sizes, etc.)

How Do I Book, Load, and Ship Furniture from China?

Once your order is confirmed, you’ll need to book shipping and arrange for loading.

Booking the Shipment

Most suppliers will arrange for shipping, but it’s important to confirm the details with them. Discuss whether the shipment will be FCL (Full Container Load) or LCL (Less Than Container Load) depending on the size of your order.

Loading Furniture

Furniture is typically loaded into containers at the manufacturer’s warehouse. Make sure that the furniture is packed securely to avoid damage during transit. If you’re unsure, hire a third-party inspection service to ensure proper packaging.

When you ship furniture, the ideal way to ship these is ‘by the container load.’ See table below of standard shipping containers, and the amount of cubic meter volume they hold.

When your shipping importing furniture, unless your shipping by airfreight (much more expensive and likely not commercially viable to import furniture!), your furniture will be loaded into a container.

You can either import a ‘Full container load’ known as FCL or a ‘Less than a Container Load’ known as ‘LCL.’

Shipping Methods: FCL vs. LCL

• FCL (Full Container Load): Best for large shipments. You pay for the entire container, but your goods will be loaded separately.
• LCL (Less Than Container Load): Ideal for smaller orders, where your goods share space with those of other buyers. LCL is cheaper but may take longer to arrive.

LCL (less than a container load) shipments