What Are Dropshipping Suppliers? How to Find Good Ones
Quick answer: Dropshipping suppliers are manufacturers, wholesalers or agents that store products and ship them directly to your customers when you make a sale. To find good ones, search Google and marketplaces like AliExpress, use supplier directories, join seller communities and trade shows, then check reviews and order samples. This page also covers red flags to avoid and six suppliers to consider, including AliExpress, Honest FulPhilment, Green Dropship, PlusBuyer, SaleHoo and Sunrise Wholesale. Even though you have everything set up, you still can’t start your dropshipping business. You haven’t finished the most important part –finding dropshipping suppliers. The dropshipping suppliers are responsible for storing the retailer’s products and delivering them to the customer.
Maybe you already have an online store and are sure that your chosen niche product will be a hit in the market, so what? Suppliers are the key to delivering your products to customers.
But with thousands of suppliers around the world, how do you find the most reliable one? That’s why we created this page. Finding suppliers is not easy, but we will help your business succeed.
Dropshipping Vendors VS. Dropshipping Wholesalers
We have to distinguish between wholesalers and vendors to better understand dropship suppliers.
Dropshipping Vendors
A Vendor is a supplier that sells products and services directly to customers
Product prices are higher.
The purpose of sales is to sell products to the final consumer and take minimal risk.
Promote products on direct selling platforms.
Located in the first link of the supply chain.
Business relationship: B2C/B2B
Dropshipping Wholesalers
A wholesaler is a supplier that provides the products and services needed by the enterprise
Product prices are lower.
The purpose of the sale is to resell the goods to others who need them, and the risk is high.
Has own independent website. Use their own website and app to show the inventory status of the product.
Located in the penultimate link of the supply chain.
Business relationship: B2B
Dropshipping Suppliers to Avoid
You may find fake wholesalers or bad suppliers, the following tips can help you avoid them:
The most important thing is to check customer reviews, suppliers with negative feedback and bad reviews are best avoided.
Monthly Billing. Be careful when someone asks you to pay a monthly membership fee or service fee.
Higher than normal pre-order fees. Generally speaking, it is normal for suppliers to charge pre-order fees, but if you find some suppliers charge higher than normal pre-order fees, you should be vigilant.
How to Find Dropshipping Suppliers?
You may usually search in Google: “your product name + wholesale supplier”. We recommend that you try different search methods. This is because many high-quality suppliers do not market themselves. You can search for words such as supplier, warehouse, batch, etc., which will be more accurate.
But there are hundreds of search results, it is really difficult to read and analyze them all. So when you open these pages, don’t be fooled by their appearance. Even if some websites do not do well, you should not deny it.
Some mature e-commerce platforms can also be used as a channel to find dropshipping suppliers. Such as AliExpress, Amazon, etc. Therefore, when searching again, you need to pay attention to the following points to choose the best supplier:
Shop around to learn about the quality, material, price, size, returns, and other information about the product.
Try to choose a real merchant and calculate the comprehensive cost.
The supplier directory refers to the wholesalers organized by product type or market. These wholesalers have been screened to ensure that they are all legitimate wholesalers. However, most directories charge a fee, either one-time or on an ongoing basis. But it can help you quickly search for the best suppliers. There are also free ones. Wholesale Central, for example, is an online directory that is regularly updated with new suppliers. It’s very easy to use and doesn’t cost a fortune.
People usually like to share, communicate and discuss their work experience online. You can join these posts to gain some experience and advice and are more likely to meet relevant suppliers.
There are many quality suppliers who regularly attend the show, so you can network with them. And you can also intuitively feel the supplier’s products at the exhibition. You can also add their upcoming products to your dropshipping store.
Multiple choices and multiple guarantees. Using multiple suppliers doesn’t just give your store a wider variety of products. Imagine that when your supplier has an emergency, your product will not be delivered to the customer on time. Choosing multiple suppliers can solve this problem, and you still have a chance to keep your business from taking a complete shock.
You can read customer reviews. This can most directly reflect the quality of the supplier’s service. You can look for suppliers with the most enthusiastic reviews.
6 Best Dropshipping Suppliers
Good dropshipping suppliers and dropshipping companies share several qualities.
Good suppliers focus not only on the factory but also on the market and some content outside the factory. They will look at what’s going on in the market, know what’s popular and then produce it.
Good suppliers stick to their positions and choices. They will control the size of the enterprise and pay more attention to cash flow and profit.
Choose a supplier that can integrate with your eCommerce platform. This will help you automate certain tasks associated with dropshipping companies, such as placing orders, managing inventory levels, and more.
AliExpress
AliExpress is one of the largest B2C dropshipping platforms in the world. It has over 100 million products spread across 40+ niche categories. All you have to do is identify the products you want to dropship and find the most suitable offer. Both beginners and veterans can use AliExpress to find fashion products, conduct market research, establish relationships with suppliers, and make wholesale orders.
Honest FulPhilment
Honest FulPhilment provides eCommerce fulfillment solutions to a range of companies, from sourcing products, order fulfillment, inventory management, and can ship products. We have a professional purchasing team that can help you find all kinds of products you need most in China, whether it is beauty products or clothing and toys. And we can tailor our service to your specific requirements.
Green Dropship
Green Dropship is a US-based supplier that deals in organic and natural products related to body care and wellness.
PlusBuyer
PlusBuyer is a direct wholesaler of electronics. Its website has gifts, digital products, consumer electronics, and more. These products are directly sold by top manufacturers in China at very reasonable prices.
SaleHoo
You can use SaleHoo’s directory to find reliable, low-cost suppliers. Allows you to communicate directly with suppliers. You can also list the supplier’s product inventory on your own website. In addition, you can find a dropshipping supplier from a variety of trending and profitable niche products to sell, and import items directly into your Shopify store.
Sunrise Wholesale
Sunrise Wholesale is a dropshipping service known for its catalog of general merchandise. Its range is narrower than big marketplaces, but it offers fast shipping times. It is an option for dropshippers who plan to sell in North America and want fast shipping. US and Canadian customers ship within 2-3 days.
Conclusion
Do you want to grow your dropshipping business or expand your existing e-commerce store by offering new products? Then you need a quality supplier. Not all suppliers can provide high-quality products directly and services at the same time. A reliable supplier will save your eCommerce store a lot of time.
Honest FulPhilment, as a supplier with many years of experience, is committed to creating tailor-made solutions for different types of customers. Not only can we help you find the best products, but we also provide complete order fulfillment services. All the above requirements can be met. Contact us now.
FAQ
What is a dropshipping supplier?
A dropshipping supplier is a manufacturer, wholesaler or agent that stores products and ships them directly to your customers whenever you make a sale. You never handle the inventory yourself; you pay the supplier for each order you send.
How do I find dropshipping suppliers?
Search Google for your product plus terms like wholesale or supplier, browse marketplaces such as AliExpress, use supplier directories like SaleHoo or Wholesale Central, join seller communities and attend trade shows. Always order samples before you start selling.
What makes a good dropshipping supplier?
A good supplier offers consistent product quality, fair prices, fast and trackable shipping, integration with your store platform and responsive communication. Positive reviews from other sellers are a strong signal.
What are red flags with dropshipping suppliers?
Be careful with suppliers that have many negative reviews, demand ongoing monthly fees just to access products, charge unusually high pre-order fees, or cannot provide samples and tracking numbers.
Should I use more than one dropshipping supplier?
Using a backup supplier for your best sellers is wise. If your main supplier runs out of stock or has delays, a second supplier keeps your orders shipping and protects your store from sudden disruptions.