Sourcing an automotive item is mostly a sequence of confirmations. This page sets out the four stages, what you provide at each one, and what is written down before money is committed — so the second order takes days rather than weeks.
Each stage ends with something you can file and refer to later — not a chat thread.
You describe the item and the market; we reply with feasibility, the open questions and a trial-quantity indication.
The specification sheet, the itemised accessory list and the packaging artwork are approved in writing. This is the point where cost is fixed, because material grade and print decisions are made here.
Production runs against the approved sheet. Inspection uses an agreed AQL level and defect classification, and the result is reported before the goods leave.
Cartons are marked, mixed SKUs are consolidated to the carton plan, documents are compiled and shipping terms are confirmed against the agreed schedule.
Most sourcing cost is in the first order, not the fifth. Once a specification, accessory list and packaging artwork are approved, they stay on file, so a reorder of a proven item starts from a reference rather than a blank page.
This matters most where a range is replenished regularly — tire consumables, roadside kit, care products. The same discipline also protects you when a supplier changes material: the approved sheet is the baseline the new batch is measured against.
In this category the same description covers materially different products. "Jump starter, 12V" can mean anything from a small power bank with clamps to a unit with a specified cell type, cable gauge and protection set — and the cost difference is large. A published number would be either meaningless or misleading, so we quote against a specification instead.
Illustrative photography.
The item and intended use, the target specification or a reference sample, the quantity for a trial and for follow-up orders, the destination market, and any certification or marking you must comply with. Packaging preference and required delivery window help as well.
Yes. Trial quantities are quoted per item rather than as one fixed figure across a catalogue, and the specification agreed for the trial carries over to the follow-up order, so nothing has to be re-decided.
Shipping terms are agreed per order. You normally remain the importer of record, which means certification and market approval obligations sit with you; we coordinate production, inspection and the documents that support your import file.
Changes are accepted or declined in writing against the approved specification. If a change affects tooling, print or material already committed, that cost is made clear before it is applied rather than appearing on the final invoice.
Describe the spec you need and the market you sell into. The reply will tell you what is feasible, what is still open, and what a trial would look like.
