u/nonurs

Hi everyone, I’m new to sourcing from China and would really appreciate some advice from people with real experience. I’m looking for food-grade raw materials/ingredients and want to find reliable manufacturers. Is Made-in-China a good platform to start with, or are there better options? How do you check if you’re dealing with a real factory rather than a trading company? Is it realistic to find suppliers, negotiate, get samples and build trust completely online, or is it better to eventually travel to China and visit factories? I’d really like to hear what worked for you and what mistakes I should avoid as a beginner. Thanks!

Hey guys, I’m thinking about starting a beverage business and I already have the concept figured out, but I honestly have no idea where to start with the actual process. I’d love to hear from anyone who has experience in this — especially with developing the recipe, finding manufacturers and suppliers, production, distribution, pricing and just how difficult/expensive the whole thing is. If you’ve started a beverage brand before, what would you recommend doing first, and what do you wish you knew before you started?