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Guide

Agent, trading company or direct.

Three ways to buy from Indonesia, and the honest difference between them is not price. It is who carries the work, who carries the risk, and how much of the supply chain you get to see. We are one of the three, so read this with that in mind.

The three models.

Direct with the factory

What it gives you
No intermediary and no intermediary's margin. You own the relationship and you keep everything you negotiate.
What it costs you
You carry supplier search, verification, quality control, documents and the language. Someone has to be in Indonesia when it matters, and the cost of finding out too late is a container.
Who it suits
Buyers with volume, a repeat programme and either a person on the ground or a factory they already trust.

Trading company

What it gives you
One counterparty, one invoice, and a company that will hold stock and take responsibility for the goods it sells you.
What it costs you
They are the seller, so their margin is inside the price and you cannot see it. They choose the factory, and they are not obliged to tell you which one it is.
Who it suits
Buyers who want a supplier rather than a supply chain, and who value simplicity over visibility.

Sourcing agent

What it gives you
Works for the buyer and is paid by the buyer, so the incentive points at your side of the table. You see the producer, the invoices and the process.
What it costs you
You still contract with the producer, so you carry that counterparty risk. And an agent paid by the factory instead of by you is a trading company wearing the wrong name.
Who it suits
Buyers who want visibility into the supply chain without putting a person in Indonesia.

The question that separates them.

Ask who pays the person you are dealing with. A trading company is paid by you through a margin you cannot see, which is legitimate and worth understanding. An agent should be paid by you and by nobody else, and an agent taking a commission from the factory has an interest in the factory you were not told about.

We charge 5 per cent of the order value, paid by you, and we show you every supplier invoice. That is the model, and it is the reason the number is on the homepage instead of behind an enquiry form.

When you should not use us.

If you already have a factory you trust and a routine that works, an agent adds cost and little else. If you buy one pallet a year, the coordination costs more than it saves. If your product is a commodity you can buy on specification from any of fifty exporters, a trading company is simpler and probably cheaper.

Where this model earns its fee is a product with real specification risk, a producer nobody has checked, or a market whose paperwork can stop the consignment at the border.

Questions buyers ask.

Is a sourcing agent the same as a buying agent?

The terms are used interchangeably and neither is protected. What matters is not the label but who pays them and whether they will show you the producer. Ask both questions early and the label stops mattering.

How do I know the agent is not taking a factory commission?

Ask directly and ask for supplier invoices. An agent who shows you what the producer charged has nothing to hide in the middle. One who quotes you a single all-in number is operating as a trading company, whatever they call themselves.

Can I start with an agent and go direct later?

Yes, and it is a reasonable plan. You learn the producer, the specification and the paperwork on someone else's time, then take it in-house once it is routine. An agent who hides the factory to prevent that is telling you what they are.

What does your service cost?

5 per cent of the order value, paid by you and never by the factory. A factory audit starts at $250 depending on location. We work with orders from $10,000 per shipment.

Read next.

At some volume the question stops being which kind of intermediary and becomes whether to have one at all:an agent against your own Indonesian office →

Not sure which fits?

Tell us what you are buying and how often. If the answer is that you do not need us, that is a short conversation and an honest one.

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What you want back

Add a specification, packaging or a target price

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We answer within one working day, from Indonesia on UTC+7. Wholesale orders from $10,000 per shipment.