Sourcing LEDs from China to save money?

**ndawson** · 03-07-2011 11:01 AM

Hey Everyone,

New to the forums so just a little bit about myself first. I've been making a fairly small side income selling controller LED kits on ebay, typically 50p or so each and a good few per day. Mostly small profit but decent volume for little work.

I've been buying my LEDs from a site in the UK called Enopto. With volume discount I pay around 6p-8p per LED which is low compared to other sites over here, my question is what are the savings involved in sourcing from China instead? Would it be worthwhile?

I've been considering it for a while to try and increase profit a little. I'm perfectly happy with my current supplier but if I can get them significantly cheaper then I'd like to pursue that route. Can anyone offer any input?

**Spliff** · 03-07-2011 11:22 AM

You can save quite a bit sourcing direct from China, but you have to order in bulk. Try Alibaba.com, but make sure you order samples first to determine the quality. Buyer beware there though, do your due diligence before going through with a bulk order.

**ndawson** · 03-07-2011 11:25 AM

Originally Posted by Spliff

You can save quite a bit sourcing direct from China, but you have to order in bulk. Try Alibaba.com, but make sure you order samples first to determine the quality. Buyer beware there though, do your due diligence before going through with a bulk order.

That's precisely what I had in mind. I've contacted a supplier from Alibaba more or less at the same time I posted this thread. Unless I order more than 16000 pieces it would work out cheaper to order from the site I already order from. The shipping seems to be a killer along with the exchange rate.

I'll have to wait until my sales go up a little further before taking the plunge and ordering from China. With Enopto I can order and more or less have them the next day so for now I'll stick where I am. On the positive side I have the contact details of a supplier who can help me out when I'm ready.

**Spliff** · 03-07-2011 11:35 AM

Wow 16K pieces seems like a pretty high MOQ. There's probably tons of suppliers that you could potentially order from on AB. There aren't any others?

I agree that if you have a good relationship with your local supplier, then maybe it's good to stick with them. But remember, they're making a profit off of you. So they're obviously getting their parts cheaper from somewhere else!

**ndawson** · 03-07-2011 11:48 AM

Originally Posted by Spliff

Wow 16K pieces seems like a pretty high MOQ. There's probably tons of suppliers that you could potentially order from on AB. There aren't any others?

I agree that if you have a good relationship with your local supplier, then maybe it's good to stick with them. But remember, they're making a profit off of you. So they're obviously getting their parts cheaper from somewhere else!

The MOQ itself was actually 4000 but the shipping cost on 4000 meant that it was almost double what I currently pay per piece.

4000 would take me a long time to get through as that's 1000 kits so I don't see it being a worthwhile way to cut down on cost.

Thanks for your help though, I appreciate that.