1) China Wholesale & Manufacturer Directories
This is the most traditional way (‘traditional’ on Internet comes to mean ‘older than 5 years’) and it is only suitable for business buyers (B2B) such as retailers, auction power-sellers, wholesale distributors and so on.
On this category we have many websites with more than 10 years of history like Alibaba, Made-in-China, TradeKey, GlobalSources and ecPlaza.
These websites offer a place where sellers can display their products and buyers can initiate trade leads. The platform provides means of communication between seller and buyer and a certain level of trading security, frequently through different levels of seller verification.
The value-added services are usually trading information and knowledge bases, product trends and community features. Some sites charges buyers a fee to access to the information.
Trading on these websites has obviously been made easier than through offline channels in the past but they missed the most essential part, the transaction itself.
Wholesale Directories are the First Generation of B2B trading platforms while the following types come to form the Second Generation.
2) Wholesale Marketplaces
The concept of Wholesale Directories evolved naturally into real marketplaces where buyers could finalize the transaction and submit payment directly to the sellers. Logistics also become integrated within the platform to some extent, usually in the shape of order delivery tracking.
Some examples are DHgate, Beltal, TradeTang and Alibaba’s first step into the transaction-based marketplaces, AliExpress.
These wholesalers normally provide payment protection to buyers through Escrow services. With no extra cost for the buyer, the platform will not release the money to the seller until the buyer has confirmed the arrival of the products. Within the platforms buyer and sellers can resolve any disputes related to their transaction.
>> WholesaleDoc has reviewed some Wholesale Marketplaces
3) Wholesale Distributors
The last kind of Chinese Wholesalers is also part of the Second Generation as it also allows buyers to pay for the merchandise.
Some of the most notable wholesalers in this group are Chinavasion (the first second generation site) and Lightinthebox.
Wholesale Distributors engage in both B2B and B2C trade, and they are the most suitable for individual buyers.
With their own product sourcing resources they frequently are able to offer exclusive products found nowhere else. They get involved in every step of the purchase process, similarly as online retailers like Amazon would do, and will hold the responsability on product guarantee and post-purchase customer service. Prices are usually a bit higher than Wholesale Marketplaces and wholesale lots discount is not always available.
>> WholesaleDoc has reviewed some Wholesale Distributors
