Most importers who lose money in China do not lose it to a product problem. They lose it to a company that looked real, answered quickly, quoted well — and turned out to be a broker with a rented office and no stock.
None of the checks below is conclusive on its own. Together, they take about twenty minutes and catch most of the bad ones.
1. Get the business licence number, not a photo of a certificate
Ask for the 18-digit Unified Social Credit Code (统一社会信用代码). A real company has one, it appears on the business licence, and it can be checked against the company name in the Chinese national credit system.
Look at three things: the registered name matches the name on the invoice, the registered address is a real business address, and the business scope includes trading or import-export. A company registered as a "technology consultancy" that is selling you container loads of kitchenware is worth a second question.
2. Find out whether they own the stock or are brokering it
This is the single most useful question you can ask, and it is easy to test:
- Ask how many pieces are available right now, in one warehouse, today.
- Ask what happens if you take half the lot — a broker has to ask someone, an owner just says yes or no.
- Ask for a photo of the cartons with today's date or a newspaper in frame.
Brokers are not automatically bad. They are bad when they pretend to be the owner, because then the price, the quantity and the delivery date are all promises they cannot keep.
3. Ask for live video, not photographs
Photos are easy to reuse. A two-minute live call while someone walks to your pallet is much harder to fake. Ask them to show the carton label and read the line number out loud.
If a supplier cannot walk to your goods with a phone, they probably cannot walk to your goods at all.
4. Test the paper trail before you test the product
Ask for a past shipment's documents with the customer details removed: invoice, packing list, bill of lading. A company that has shipped to your market before will have them within minutes. A company that has not will send you a catalogue instead.
5. Payment terms tell you a lot
The normal structure in this trade is 30% deposit by T/T with the balance against the bill of lading copy, or a letter of credit at sight. Be cautious when someone asks for the full amount up front on a first order, or wants payment to a personal account rather than a company account.
Western Union and Alibaba Trade Assurance are normal for samples and small trial orders. They are not normal for a full container.
6. Ask one question they do not want to answer
Ask: "What is the most common complaint your customers have had this year, and what did you change?" A supplier who answers honestly with a specific, unflattering detail is almost certainly real. Someone who says they have never had a complaint is either new or lying.
Red flags that mean walk away
| Signal | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Refuses to give a business licence number | There may be no registered company behind the account |
| Price far below everyone else with no explanation | Usually failed inspection, wrong specification, or no goods at all |
| Will not do a live video call | The warehouse may not exist, or your goods may not be in it |
| Pressure to pay today because "the price ends tonight" | A sales technique, not a stock fact |
| Payment only to a personal bank account | No company liability, no recourse |
| Answers arrive instantly but never address the actual question | Copied replies from a script |
What none of this proves
A licence proves a company exists. It does not prove the goods are good, the quantity is accurate, or the shipment will leave on time. Verification gets you to the starting line; inspection and document checks get you to the finish.
The practical combination is: verify the company, inspect the goods, and never pay the balance before you have seen the report and the loading photos.