For e-commerce, the dropshipping model has always been a hot topic. It is a great model for new sellers. Even if you are a student, you can become rich once you find some niche products. As time goes by, things change. The entire e-commerce landscape has undergone significant changes. Find products on AliExpress, place ads on Facebook, and wait for the order to arrive.
Now, you need to consider branding and supplier chains more closely. Faster shipping, repeat order rate. It is more likely to build one brand, so some bigger dropshipping sellers are using 1688 to dropship to make them more unique and earn more money.
How do they do it? 1688 is Chinese, and 1688 can not ship overseas; they can only ship to a Chinese address. NO worry, let me show you one by one.
What Is 1688.com?
1688 is designed for Chinese Local B2B sellers, just like Alibaba focuses on overseas international buyers, 1688 is for domestic buyers. They both belong to Alibaba Group. Found by Jack Ma, the one who said, I have no interest in money. :) They have a wide range catergory including electronics, clothes, machines, raw materials, food, and even more products on Alibaba. Since the custom policy, some products can not be exported.
Is 1688 Cheaper than AliExpress?
Yes, with 15 years of experience in B2B and B2C sales. 1688 is the original factory. The most interesting thing is that the Aliexpress seller is buying from 1688. We have 20+ AliExpress stores; we know what the game is. Let’s be honest, AliExpress, Temu, Shein, Amazon, eBay, Walmart, Etsy – if they find a new supplier, they will likely go to 1688.com. Not Alibaba, not Aliexpress.
Aliexpress is designed for B2C; they are a retailer, which means that their price includes:
1688 factory price + package fee, Platform commission fee, Ads cost + seller profit, + shipping cost.
If you are buying for personal use or just starting to test ads, it is okay. While you once wanted to do business. Even in a dropshipping business, you need to find one B2B model. Imagine with all this cost, what’s your margin?
Reddit Pro came in and commented: No, my Bro, we know you are right, but Aliexpress can have no MOQ, which is more friendly for new sellers. 1688 and Alibaba are B2B; you can not dropship from them, except that you have a great daily order.
Ah, you are right, it will be better when you have some regular orders. 1688 also has one dropship area, so 100% of % products have no MOQ. The Chinese market has some platforms that sellers are using the dropshipping model, 1688 is designed for this area.
So, if you want to achieve long-term success and maximise your profit with the Dropshipping model, let’s utilise the 1688 dropshipping platform to optimise your supply Chain.
Ah, another thing you should avoid is Aliexpress, since Aliexpress updated their Choice shipping, they are delivering better than before( 10 years ago, epacket), while all the packages are with the Aliexpress Choice bag. It is not suitable for the Dropship model.
What is 1688 Dropshipping?
It uses the 1688.com platform to Dropship overseas, just like AliExpress. It’s not something complex; what you need is to find a dropshipping agent who can ship overseas. That’s okay, just like before, you should be used to using YunExpress, 4PX, and Cainiao. You buy from 1688 and ship to the agent’s warehouse, and they pack it and ship it to your end customer.
How Does 1688 Dropshipping Work?
Because 1688 is in Chinese, doesn’t support international payments, and doesn’t ship overseas, foreign dropshippers usually work through a 1688 agent. The typical workflow looks like this:
- 1. Connected with your store and confirmed the quotation
- 2. Your customer placed an order and received it in your Shopify or WooCommerce store
- 3. Our system has auto-received your order and placed an order on 1688
- 4. Your Dropshipping agent will check the quality and remove the Chinese manual and LOGO, and add your LOGO and thanks if needed.
- 5. Your shipping agent will ship the products by YunExpress or Canniao and send them back with a tracking code automatically to your Shopify store
- 6. Your customer received the order and gave 5 5-star review
Why You Need a 1688 Dropshipping Agent？
Because all your competitors’ ads are using 1688 dropshipping, or they don’t use 1688 dropshipping agent words, but their process involves using a private dropshipping agent to dropship from 1688. NOT Aliexpress.
Buying on 1688 is not that easy for international buyers, because of the payment issue, the seller can not speak English, and they can not ship overseas, while all these challenges can be your advantage. If you know this mindset, you can have a better supply Chain. As you can see, some influencers, such as “Mywifequitherjob” on YouTube, do business on Amazon and also advise buying from 1688.
A professional 1688 dropshipping agent bridges this gap by:
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- Sourcing and buying directly from 1688
- Negotiate with the Chinese supplier to get a better price.
- Inspection quality and make quality test before shipping
- Include the thank-you card and branding materials in your package.
- Consolidation products into one package becomes possible (before you could not combine products from different AliExpress stores)
- Ship your products to the end customer and provide a tracking code.
How to find a Reliable 1688 Dropshipping Agent？
You can easily find a dropshipping agent from Upwork or Google. Use the keyword dropshipping agent. At the same time, check those first before handing your store to others. Tips: find one dropshipping agent company, not a person, or soho, find on Upwork.
- How many years have you been a dropshipping agent? Choose the one who has been in the business for 3 years. Since it needs good experience to understand all the cases, like shipping channel, how to combine orders, and how to send your tracking reminder from the shipping company’s feedback. How to Negotiate a Better Price from the Shipping Agent.
- What services can they offer?
You are looking for a dropshipping agent who has their own warehouse and helps you order from 1688.com and ship worldwide.
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- Product sourcing from 1688
- Quality inspection
- Warehousing and inventory management
- Branded or blined packaging
- Order fulfilment and shipping
- Automated system integrations (Shopify, WooCommerce, etc.)
- 3. Use Assurance payment terms to test first
Use Alibaba Trade Assurance to protect your rights. If you disagree with your dropshipping agent, you can easily get a refund. Alibaba has 2% handling fee, while for the first month, you need to test first. After cooperating for some months, you can change it to a bank transfer.
- 4. Faster reply message, and fix the issue ability
Test their team’s reply message speed. Communication is key for dropshipping; you need a reliable team to take care of your store every day. Check if they can fully understand your requirements.
- 5. Ask about their charged fee structure.
All in one, Fix fee or transparency fee, or charge a handling fee per order? No matter how they offer a price, find someone whose total cost is low if you use the same shipping channel. And find some quotation for more transparency.
- 6. Test some order or a new store first.
Do not judge what they say, judge what they do; test their service first. You will know which team is better. Check shipping time, delivery, process time, and damage rate—their feedback when a customer asks for a refund. Do not give one whole store just because their price are a bit cheaper. Service is also included in the price. Do a sample test order for about 2 weeks, and then you can change to a new agent. While you do not change agents a lot, since the dropshipping agent is your partner, if you change partners a lot, it seems your business is not that stable.
Top 6 Dropshipping agents recommended
- CJDropshipping – Full-service, multiple warehouses, automation tools
- SourcingXpro Dropshipping- Product sourcing, 1688 dropshipping
- Sup Dropshipping – Sourcing, print-on-demand, branding support
- Wiio – Product sourcing, quick delivery, easy integration
- Eprolo – Free service, integrates with many stores
- Private agents – Flexible and often more personalized
- Aliexpress– Aliexpress is still a good option when you start to test some products
The Best Dropshipping Agent in China
Are you looking for a reliable dropshipping agent? You have to do some research on Google, Alibaba, and Upwork. Someone will say we are NO. 1, and we are the best shipping agent. While we can not say we are No.1, just let’s see what we can do for you.
No monthly fee – We don’t charge any App subscription fee. If you need any of our products, we will send you an offer, and then we will be in touch.
No MOQ– NO matter how many orders you have, we can use our App to connect your store and then dropship it.
Free warehouse- really free, for dropship, 1 year free warehouse. Dropship usually doesn’t hold stock; for those years, they have some brands dropshipping. They want to offer customers better shipping times, so they buy stock to reduce the process time. We offer 12 months of free stock; no one can offer this time.
Branding Dropshipping– yes, since some dropshippers buy stock so they can easily brand the products. While for dropshipping, we can also easily customize your package, colour box, and sticker. Thanks card…
150+ Shipping lines: We combine these shipping lines; we are in Shenzhen, so we feel very confident about our shipping price. If you have a big regular order, ask us to reduce the cost.
SourcingXpro is your sourcing and dropshipping agent in China.
We have specialized in this line for 10 years. We have assisted many small and medium-sized enterprises or new importers in purchasing high-quality products at competitive prices from 1688.com.
Feel free to contact us if you need a 1688 sourcing or dropshipping agent.
Phone: +8615290847252
Email: [email protected]
