US programme
A sourcing agent's job for a US buyer is deceptively simple: find the right factory for the right SKU, at the right price, at the right MOQ, and hold the whole programme accountable through to the container seal. We have done exactly that for 23 years, from a Moradabad head office that puts us inside the largest home-décor cluster in India.
What a US sourcing agent actually does
A sourcing agent, unlike a buying agent, works upstream of the PO. Our job starts before a factory has been selected: category strategy, cluster mapping, factory shortlist, sample development, price benchmarking against your reference SKUs, then supplier verification, capacity check and social compliance. Only then do we hand over the recommended supplier(s) to your team (or to our own buying-agent workflow) for the PO.
For a US buyer specifically, the extra weight our sourcing engagements carry is compliance modelling (CPSIA / Prop-65 / FDA / FTC) built into the product development stage — not bolted on at pre-shipment — and cartonisation designed around US retail DC or Amazon-FBA constraints from the very first sample.
The Asia Sourcing US sourcing engagement — end-to-end
1. Discovery + brief lock
One working-day response. Category, target SKUs, MOQ, target landed cost, timeline, US destination port, retail context. We commit in writing to a factory shortlist inside 5 working days.
2. Factory shortlist + verification
3-5 factories per SKU, personally walked. Legal entity check, capacity check, social compliance certificate check, IP-safety check (buyer NDA + no-competing-sample-display).
3. Sampling + first article
3-5 weeks from spec lock to first article. 3-4 sample rounds inside programme fee.
4. Price benchmark + FOB negotiation
We benchmark against your reference SKUs (or comparable retail-shelf SKUs) and negotiate FOB. Fee is buyer-side commission — we take zero from the factory.
5. Handover to buying-agent workflow
Once a factory is chosen, we can either hand over to your in-house team OR continue as buying agent (PO issuance, LC/TT flows, in-line + final QC, export documentation, container consolidation).
Why buyer-side matters
Most Indian sourcing 'agencies' get paid a commission by the factory. That is not a sourcing agent — it is a factory sales rep in disguise. Asia Sourcing is 100% buyer-side: our fee is disclosed to you in writing, we take zero from the factory, we sign a full NDA before any brief is shared, and every recommendation is documented so you can audit our work.
Frequently asked
Questions US buyers ask us on this programme.
What is the difference between a sourcing agent and a buying agent?
A sourcing agent finds and vets factories before the PO. A buying agent manages the PO end-to-end after a factory has been chosen. We do both — many US buyers engage us as sourcing agent for the first programme and buying agent for repeat POs.
What does an India sourcing agent cost for US buyers?
Two typical structures: (a) percentage buying-agent commission on FOB (typical 5-10% depending on category and volume) or (b) fixed monthly retainer for supply-chain-management engagements. Disclosed in writing before we start. Zero factory kickbacks.
How fast can you produce a factory shortlist?
5 working days from brief lock. Physical audit + verification adds another 5-7 days per factory.
Do you sign a buyer NDA?
Yes — as a matter of default. Every brief is treated as confidential; factories only see spec-level information relevant to sampling.
Can you handle a first-time India importer with no prior experience?
Yes — approximately a third of our US client base is first-time-India importers. We walk you through documentation, LC / TT flows, freight, customs and destination-side receipts. The buyer-side NDA + buyer-side commission model means we have no conflict of interest with the factories we recommend.
Other US programmes
Continue on the US hub.
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