Sourcing guides and freight updates

Written by the people who do the work — buyers, inspectors and the freight desk. No listicles, no affiliate links.

Featured · Freight & customs

The real break-even between air and sea freight in 2026

Most sellers switch to sea freight too early. We ran the numbers on 340 shipments from our Shenzhen hub — including the cash tied up in transit — and the crossover sits higher than the rule of thumb everyone repeats.

18 Aug 2026·9 min read·Freight desk

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Sourcing

How to tell a factory from a trading company in one email

Five questions that get a straight answer, and the three replies that mean you are talking to a middleman with a nice website.

02 Sep 2026·7 min

Quality control

What AQL 2.5 actually allows through — with photos

An inspection standard is a risk setting, not a guarantee. Here is what passed and what failed on a 3,000-piece drinkware run.

24 Aug 2026·11 min

Private label

Printed packaging at 500 units: what is genuinely possible

Digital versus offset, why colour boxes have higher minimums than mailers, and the four proofs worth paying for.

11 Aug 2026·8 min

Freight & customs

Shipping products with lithium batteries: the short version

UN38.3, MSDS, which lanes will take them, what it adds to the rate, and the paperwork that causes most hold-ups.

29 Jul 2026·6 min

Sourcing

Beauty devices: the compliance costs nobody quotes you

CE, UKCA, FCC and the testing lab bills that turn a US$29 device into a US$34 landed cost if you find out late.

15 Jul 2026·10 min

Sourcing

Negotiating MOQ down without paying more per unit

Four levers that work — shared moulds, stock colourways, split deliveries and honest reorder forecasts.

03 Jul 2026·7 min

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