For a newbie in the International Trade Business, it isn’t easy to import LED Lights from China.
If you don’t know the importing process, it may be extremely complex, confusing, and costly for you. Then you will be in the risk of property loss or lack of competitiveness on your market.
With a large number of vendors on the market, how to choose a good and reliable LED lights manufacturer?
As all sales are trying to sell their products, customers have to be pretty careful before buying from a specific one.
Because even though the price might still be on the lower end, no one would want to spend a dime on a forged product.
So if you want to learn the basics of importing LED Lights from China, you’ve just come to the right place.
We’ve compiled this step-by step guides and unreleased tips for people like you who’re ready to take a plunge into the Chinese Market, but are not sure from where to start.
Well today we’re going to make it easy for you.

1: Do Research
Before contacting any supplier from China, contact your local suppliers. Have a look at their prices and the products they’re offering and then compare it with their Chinese Counterparts.
For more often than not, you’ll see that the Chinese LED Manufacturer is offering products at least 50% cheaper than your local LED wholesalers or dealers. And that’s the exact reason why people are interested in importing LED Lights from China.
Then make a list of what sort of LED Lights do you prefer to import. Always complete your research before stepping into the market.
Because  at the end it will save you a valuable amount of time.
In addition to that, check with your local administration as what kind of items are prohibited in terms of Import. Various Governments have banned a series of accessories which cannot be imported in any way. So make sure your desired product isn’t banned by your respective authorities.
2: Online Browsing
Not many people could afford to take a trip to China and meet the LED Manufacturers in person.
Since it is quite an expensive method, customers aren’t very fond of this trick. Apart from it, nobody knows about the place where they’ll meet a reliable supplier.
As a result, most customers rely on online browsing when it comes to finding a wholesale LED Manufacturer. It is the quickest way to find a supplier which can serve your needs in an imperious manner.
In this case, the most viable option is Google.
On this search engine, type a clear description. If you’re looking for wholesale Dealers regarding LED Lights, type the exact wording in the Google search bar. Don’t forget to add “China” with your sentence as it will instantly narrow down the group of suppliers to a specific country.
Besides, be specific in your approach. Since a large number of LED Lights are currently sold in the Chinese market, it will help you if you’re clear of your preferred purchase. For Example, if you’re looking for Puck lights, type “LED flood Light Manufacturers in China“.

3: Attend Trade EXPO
Nowadays, a large number of trading fairs are set up all across the globe where the Chinese Manufacturers display their products on the World scale.
On such kind of event, companies display their most LED Lights in the form of stalls, thus making people aware of their companies’ catalog.
The biggest advantage of this activity is that potential dealers can meet the LED Supplier without going anywhere.
Since any such event will attract a large number of sellers, it will help the consumer to have a clear insight of the market and avoid any potential scam. In this way, you can meet those suppliers in person and ask them whatever you want related to your business queries.
However, before attending any such fair, make sure that it is set up by a reliable organization.
One simple method which will help you big time is to check the registration fee of that EXPO. If the companies have to pay a decent amount of money to showcase their products, it means that the trading fair is mostly genuine.

4: Visit China

Once you’ve made contacts with a LED light manufacturer in China, via online or through the trading fairs, it is highly recommended to pay them a visit if possible.
Unlike the start of your import business, now you’re sure of where to go and what to expect from the wholesale dealers.
Visit their workplace and go through their manufacturing processes. Have a look at what kind of LED Lights have they developed in the past and what is their reput
station in the local market.

5: The tips for Inquiry
Before sending the inquiry to the suppliers, make sure and clear what kind of products you want.
Tell them your requirements, such as wattage, voltage, color temperature, body color, beam angle, IP rate,
materials demands about light source and driver
(Attention: there are fake Meanwell drivers in the market, check the link to avoid loss)
besides tell your requirements for the product, you  must pay close attention to the trade term the supplier offered.
or you can ask the supplier quote you with Incoterms(International Commercial Terms) you want.
You can find a price quoted by a supplier is always based on an incoterm and a city, such as FOB Shenzhen.If the order is not so big, suppliers usually quote with FOB, EXW prices. If for big order and goods sent by Sea, usually with FOB or CIF.The different incoterm will have different prices, rights and obligations.Let’s show you an example.If supplier quote you FOB Shenzhen price, here is what you and your supplier have to do:
>You book shipping space loading at Shenzhen Port
>Your supplier handles the goods delivery to Shenzhen Port
>Your supplier handles Customs export declaration
>Your supplier pays all cost at the Shenzhen Port until departure
>You pay the shipping cost to get the B/L
>You pay all cost after the cargo leaves
>You pay sea freight charges, destination port charges, Customs, VAT, tariff and duties, inland transportation to your door or warehouse.While if it’s with EXW Shenzhen. You have to pay all the cost after the goods leave the factory.
Now you might be think:  How to Choose Incoterm When Importing LED lights from China?Based on the incoterm you select, you can ask your China supplier handle the shipping of products to a nearby port in China or all the way to your front door.Besides, you can compare the pricing between two or more suppliers with the same Incoterm.If you are new for importing or unfamiliar with the incorterm, the best way is to tell you supplier your purchasing quantity. And ask them to make a PI(Proforma Invoice) for you and includes all the cost from them company to your company.What is the proforma Invoice?

A proforma invoice is a document that states a commitment from the seller to sell goods to the buyer at specified prices and terms. It is used to declare the value of the trade.

6: Place an order
Always buy samples before place a bulk order!
Once you’re convinced with a specific LED Supplier, start Importing. You’ve already done enough research.
Now is the time for the real business.
However, never make the mistake of ordering a bulk consignment at the start.
No matter how good a supplier looks from the outside, never let them persuade you ordering in bulk from the very beginning.
Always order samples and have a thorough look at them. From the trial order, you can see and evaluate the lamps quality and the lead time.
On another aspect, you can know the company or the salesman service.
If you’re comfortable with the quality of those LED Lights, only then you should think of ordering a larger consignment.
And if there’s something fishy with the samples, move on to the next supplier.
Even if it costs you a decent amount of money in ordering the counterfeit samples,
it will eventually save you from a bigger loss of a faulty consignment.

7: Clear Communication
When communicating with a LED Manufacturer, be as clear in your approach as you possible.
Make it crystal clear of what type of LED Light do you want, what should be the size, the color, the beam angle, and even the material you preferred, such as Meanwell driver for high quality high bay. If you want a blue colored light, tell the vendor. If you’re looking for LED Under Cabinet Lights, inform him.
Never assume that the LED Supplier knows everything because he doesn’t.
It’s up to you to give him all the details regarding LED Lights which you are interested in importing and only then you will receive your intended product.
Lastly, the contract on which you agree with the LED Manufacturer should be precise. It should have all the instructions regarding the product characteristics, the time frame, and the payment.

8: Payment Methods
Rely on the trusted payment methods when it comes to paying a typical LED Supplier. Especially if you’re new to this business and are yet to develop a decent relationship with your supplier, there is no better way than to use PayPal.
However, if you’re a veteran, one which has been importing LED Lights for the past few years, there are other methods such as the Banks and LC. In this case, ask your vendor to give a list of information including their address, account number and swift code. Because if any of these things get wrong, it can cost you dearly in terms of the payments.

9. Avoid Faulty Products
Don’t choose the lowest-price product.
Price is always related to materials. If you find some one quote you a price which is lower much much than others or lower much than the market prices.
Raise a red flag.
Believe us, the product they quote you is not the one you need.
You may know there is no lowest price in China, only the lower and lower prices. Lowest price always accompanies with high risk, maybe quality, quantity or reputation.
Even if it saves you a decent amount of money, but a serious buyer should never compromise on the quality of its product. At the moment, a large number of LED light Manufacturer are there in the Chinese Market. Consequently, some of whom will provide you with a faulty set of products for an inexpensive price. But if you want to turn your business into a successful one, avoid the counterfeit products. Because even if the margin of profit is higher, such kind of products will eventually land you in trouble.

10. About Shipping
Once the LED supplier has finished manufacturing the product, now is the time that the LED Lights will arrive at the shipping port. On the port, one has to deal with a large number of requirements regarding the list of documents and the customer fees. So for a newbie, this might get a little confusing to handle.
In order to avoid all such hassles, tell your supplier what kind of shipping methods you want.
Generally, there are DHL/Fedex/TNT/UPS, by air and by sea options. You can ask your China LED light supplier to take charge of all the shipping and exporting matters.
Then they will offer you the PI which will include all the cost includes the products cost, the shipping cost from China to your company, and also the exporting fee.
The only thing you should do is to hire an experienced import agent in your county. The importing agent will deal with the customs clearance once the goods arrive in your country. If everything goes well, the goods will release soon from customs and you will get the goods soon.Thus, the extra fee you should pay is the service fee to import agent and the tax fee.

If you are planning to import a wide range of LED products in bulk quantity from several suppliers. There is no better way than to hire a China shipping forwarder. According to your plan and suppliers lead time, they will support to handle and arrange your supplier’s goods shipping with the same container or flight. It will save your time and shipping cost.

11. About declared value on CI
There is a CI (commercial invoice) shipped with the goods for your local customs tax checking.
Years ago, some customers ask for less value, such as 50% value to avoid tax.
From these clients feedbacks, the penalty is also very high if the customs evaluate the declared value is lower the real one.
So we recommend you tell your supplier to write the real value.

12. Do a better plan for your order
In the international trading, time is money. Always consider that delays might happen during the process.
The goods might not be produced on time. The vessel might not sail as scheduled.
Goods might be held by the customs. Usually the delivery time is longer before long-term festival, such as
Christmas holiday, Chinese Metal Spring festival.
Besides, suppliers are very busy before the holiday. The production time is longer than usual.
So if you have projects, or need goods for your Ecommerce business, you’d better to prepare and plan accordingly.

Conclusion
The basic reason of why customers are interested in importing LED Lights from China is to maximize their profit. Chinese developers are offering their products for a low price and if you’re able to strike a right deal, it can help you big time in the future.  So have a look the before-mentioned guide in length and it will help you big time in extracting maximum profits from the import of LED Lights.