We are able to organize Full Day Field Trips for new customers (includes meals and transportation). This gives valuable insights, and priceless learning experience, to see how things are really done in China at the manufacturers, markets and suppliers. Once you have done your first container with us, we will not charge for this field trip.

You benefit from our extensive network of vendors, competitive prices due to our proven volumes and customer base, our in-depth relationships, and obviously from our knowledge of the local language and business etiquette. Should you do decide to start procuring for a container order during your field trip - as you could select items you see - the amount you paid for your field trip(s) will be credited toward your order.

Its best if you pre-plan your visit, letting us know well in advance which time of year you would like to come to China. Remember that some times may be preferable to others due to weather or holidays. Some markets may be seasonal or open on the weekends only. See here for more detailed information about the best times for visiting china and ACF.

Once your overall trip is scheduled, we can pre-plan which vendors you will need to visit and how much time will be required. This varies according to the size and complexity of your order but most visits range from two or three days up to a full week. Here are some examples to be used as guidelines only.

• Mixed Order: three to four days.
• Single Source Order: one to two days.
• Custom Built Items: Add an additional day.
• Cultural and tourism activities: add an additional day or two.
• Non-local Vendors: Varies depending on local of vendor (for vendors outside Beijing)
• Brief Tour Only: One to one and a half full days.

When you arrive you should give us an idea of the time of day you are comfortable working – some people are morning, while some are night people. Total hours are ten per day, and are also based on the availability. We will interact for ten hours per day total time, from initial meeting time to time we part at night.

We will always try to match you with the most qualified person each day. We endeavor to spend as much time as possible while you are here but we may have other obligations, which require cutting our time short.

You may get tired as some locations are quite dirty, dusty and we recommend you prepare yourself for some measure of culture_schock which is quite normal when visiting any foreign location.

There are too many factories to visit and some are quite far away. Instead we can use Beijing as a large catalogue. We will take you to a combination of:

• Factories
• Warehouses
• Workshops
• Markets
• Retail Stores
• Showrooms

Selection & Taste

Basically we can only target you to certain factories so much, and its still a hit-and-miss sometimes. If you are at a factory where you don\’t see what you want, then just let us know and we will move on. We have a HUGE network and can probably show you almost anything and so in order to streamline, please try to be as specific as possible with us about what you want.

Confirmations

Please also be really clear when confirming whether you want a product or not - especially while in the field. More details about what we need from you in confirmaions to buy or not buy can be found here.

The Importance of Follow-ups

There is a finite amount of time even if your time here is lengthy, and some things may need to happen according to a different schedule. We can\’t hit every factory. In some places you will make your selection, and then we will need to move on, and someone from our office will follow-up after us. This is part of the service you are paying for, and is one advantage of working with us. If you still need or want to use your own system in addition to ours that is fine, but know that it will slow things down and we may discourage it.

Other specialty items – like turning that cool statue you found, into a lamp which usually requires additional time (and incurs some charges such as the lamp socket, turning the item into the lamp…)

ACF is your partner in China – we understand the language and business practices, the market, plus we know the quality per price ranges. We will be taking you into a variety of situations and introducing you to our supplier network. We may even take you to vendors we don\’t normally work with. Therefore, as your partner here, we expect that you will allow us to negotiate and handle any and all transaction that will occur including all interactions with vendors. If a vendor approaches you directly, politely refuse and refer them back to us.

Depending on your service package, you may meet numerous different vendors.

Any input on the item should be directed to the agent that's accompanying you. We may direct you away from purchasing certain items from certain factories. Each factory has a smattering of products, but each factory has its own unique niche. For that matter we may recommend that you do not buy that item from that factory since we have a much better, or possibly cheaper, or better selection source elsewhere.

This includes logistics and we ask that you please allow us to coordinate all logistics. It may seem confusing at times since we use sometimes seemingly contradictory east/west methods but it does work. Don't panic nor try to involve yourself. The end result will be the same.

China is fascinating but is a very complicated environment in which to do business, and as your agent here it is imperative that you allow us to navigate the transaction for you and we expect you to honor this arrangement.

Why do we charge a day rate for field trips?

For existing customers we do not charge a day rate, though we may bill for expenses such as transportation. However for new customers who have not made any commitment to purchase, we do charge a day rate in order to cover the hard costs involved. This includes having an expert in the field with you, basic meals, transportation and a very complete education.

Do I need to come to China each time I buy?

No. In fact, we can generally complete your entire transaction ten to twenty times faster when we are alone without a client.

what if I see an item I like on my own during my visit?

1. We can source for anything you see in a store, market or factory. If you see something you like:
2. Take a photo of the item if possible and/or write down a description
3. Grab a name card and give them our name card
4. Submit the information to us
5. We can then continue to source for you while you are gone via our online catalogue and photos
6. We can assist you to source while you are here

What if I am just interested in the product itself and not interested in actually accompanying you in sourcing the product on site?

( For general informations on product sourcing see here)