Is it better to buy plastics directly from Manufacturer or go through an Agent?
Consider this situation: If you were going to participate in a legal process in court, would you go through law school and learn everything so you can represent yourself, or would you hire a lawyer who is a professional in his field?
Many manufacturers of products do not want to get involved in International trade or may not have an international department. If they do, it would be wise for a purchaser, particularly for a one-time purchase to work through a manufacturer, rather than an agent. However agents can be very effective in negotiating for the best price, because of the strong competition in the product area and extensive knowledge of the market. We constantly strive to find the best price for our customers, and have multiple distributors to select from, with plenty of room to negotiate. A good agent should be able to provide their clients with better price and security of funds than they would get if dealing with manufacturers directly.
International sourcing, importing and exporting is a field which requires an extensive knowledge of the market and all the players involved (manufacturers, distributors, wholesalers, agents, inspectors, couriers, banks, insurance companies, etc.). There are various regulations and in some areas required certificates. One successful order is usually a process which takes several weeks to complete and brings in paperwork ranging from securing your payment transaction, providing clearances, arranging transportation, inspection, etc. To make it even harder there are countless traps and scammers to watch out for. If you are going to represent yourself in this field, you have years of learning and training to go through at best.
In this field a good, serious and reliable Representative (Agent) can save their clients a lot of trouble, time and money. Exactly like any other good professional would. Like lawyers, tax consultants, etc.
Dealing through an Agent can have it’s advantages:
- Manufacturer’s stock is limited and often buyer has to wait for availability while an agent may have stock available from his many different sources
- An agent has multiple, reliable sourcing channels
- An agent is usually able to negotiate a good discount based on volume orders and long term relationship he has with manufacturers. That allows him to offer goods at equal or lower price as the manufacturer
- An agent offers after sale services which manufacturers may not (handling of paperwork, arranging insurance, banking, logistics, inspections, quality analysis, getting the goods through customs, etc)
- An agent is aware of hidden expences, legal requirements, export/import experience
A few words from the CEO of Raw Polymers Ltd:
As an agent my words would be seen as biased, but still: too often Trading (middleman) companies pretend to be manufacturers which in the end can be more frustrating than going to an agent in the first place, at least with an agent you are getting full disclosure, a more reliable sense of business and product delivery At the same time it deflects any issues that you might not otherwise be aware of when dealing directly with Asian manufacturers and the like.
Most people see agents as middlemen with a financial agenda. What we are is in fact facilitators, we take out the usual time and effort otherwise wasted, this small transactional fee base is often minimal (speaking from my own personal experience) and would not burden a foreign firm who might otherwise be paying higher prices elsewhere anyway.
If you are determined to go direct I would honestly suggest going to the factory and trying to negotiate your terms but be prepared for a bumpy road of trial and error.