The rise of B2B marketplaces like Alibaba and Taobao has led many to assume the apparel sourcing process has become easier. Contacts can be made as easily as sending an e-mail detailing the specifications of the products you are sourcing. Tell them what you are looking for and they send you a sample of their product. Yet, it is really as simple as that?

Many companies have tried this route with little to no success. These manufactures often request very high minimum order quantities for production, charge for proto samples, and often deliver a product that fails to meet the requirements. Many companies feel discouraged and confused about the sourcing process. Let us take a few minutes to understand why these connections don’t end up working out.

There are four types of players within the manufacturing ecosystem: Large-scale manufacturers, small-scale manufacturers, subcontractors, and agents. The large-scale manufacturers are often older players whom have built a solid customer base. They mostly work with large brands and have facilities all over the world. Small-scale manufacturers are either small because they are new entrants, or are small and remain small because they are still working on landing the bigger accounts. Subcontractors are small manufacturers with no sales team, and mostly work as back-up facilities when the large-manufactures max out on capacity and use them as their own production facility. Agents normally have no manufacturing facility, and partner up with manufactures.

At the beginning of time, let’s say 20 years ago, apparel manufacturers mostly relied on agents to bring in customers. Most manufacturers did not have the sales team to reach out to new customers, and so relied on middlemen. Today, direct sourcing has become the method of choice for most apparel brands. Going straight to the source of garment factory, fabric mill, or even going so far upstream as the yarn supplier. Sourcing directly reduces risk in the supply chain and gives companies maximum control over quality.

The downside of B2B marketplaces is you don’t know which type of player you are contacting. The information stated on their website may be fluffed up, or even completely made up. The supplier whom you think is a large-scale manufacturer may be an agent who may over promise and under deliver because he has no control over the manufacturing process. That is why many times what you ask for is not what you get delivered.

This is why when it comes down to it, sourcing requires a lot of on-the-ground work. You need to be present, meeting new suppliers face-to-face. Visiting and auditing a supplier’s facilities is the only way you can truly know who you are working with. The best way is to consolidate the number of suppliers you have to a number the company can handle. Also, consolidate each sourcing trip and visit as many manufactures as you can on a single trip. In many ways, consolidation is the key to sourcing.