Why importing furniture from China is still profitable?

Though there is no doubt that many businesses importing furniture from China had a significant increase in business during COVID, many of the same enterprises are now facing significant problems.

Furniture importers have little choice but to hike commodity prices. Currently, freight prices are predicted to fall through 2022, however they may never return to pre-COVID levels.

As a result, several furniture exporters and merchants have sought to obtain furniture from countries other than China. However, it is worth mentioning that the rises in freight and raw material prices are not limited to China, but are a global issue affecting furniture producers globally.

It is also worth mentioning that record high freight costs have the same effect on Vietnam and India as they do on China. Importers are looking at other furniture manufacturing areas in Eastern Europe and South America with this in mind. However, finding a viable successor for the Asian furniture manufacturing behemoths is simply difficult.

You should seek help of China Furniture sourcing agent to know the current charges, manufacturers and pricing of furniture you are looking for. As travel to China is a bit uncertain, A China sourcing agent can be your extended arm in China.

Why China is still the best place to import furniture?

Undoubtedly, China is the world’s factory; however, as China developed, some of its low-end manufacturing sectors, such as textiles, moved production to other countries, although furniture manufacturing in China remains extremely strong.

China still has many advantages when it comes to furniture production, supply chains being one of them. Let us take an example of a simple flat-packed TV cabinet with chrome-plated hairpin legs.

In comparison to textiles, the supply chain is far more complicated. There is the production of particle board/MDF, as well as the production of paper/melamine/vinyl to cover it with. Manufacturing of all fasteners and fittings, as well as metal fabrication for the metal legs and a coating factory to chrome the legs, are all included.

Aside from that, China continues to reign supreme when it comes to mass production at low cost. We will also present examples of Chinese factory owners who moved their outdoor rattan garden furniture to Vietnam, only to close it down and return to China later in this book. While they were able to reach lower wage costs than China, they ended up with serious productivity challenges.

Import Furniture License

A prevalent myth is that firms and individuals that import furniture from China must obtain a licence.

In general, this is not the case. In this section, we will take a brief look into importing furniture into the United Kingdom, the United States, and Australia, as well as what is necessary.

Here is a roundup of processes involved in importing furniture to major countries:

When your furniture consignment (shipment) arrives — assuming it is arriving by sea freight — you will need to arrange customs clearance and delivery. This is often handled by a freight forwarding business that you must have pre-selected (either by yourself or your furniture-buying office).

You must guarantee that all commercial invoices, packing lists, bills of lading, and other essential papers are correct. Remember that if any information is liable, it is your obligation to ensure that all of these declarations are correct — you are the importer!

You must then pay any applicable taxes (VAT, sales tax, duty, etc.), as well as the ocean freight if you are purchasing FOB, as well as trucking/haulage port handling and admin/documentation fees.

These fees should be ‘pre-negotiated’ prior to shipment sales; otherwise, firms can charge you anything they like.

Another benefit of working with a furniture-buying office is that they will negotiate the best possible logistical charges and exclusively manage this for you.

If you’re importing a complete container load of furniture, it’s usually your obligation to get it offloaded when the container arrives.

Importing furniture from China to the United Kingdom

If you are bringing furniture into the UK, you don’t require an import licence. To import furniture into the country, you must first obtain a VAT number or, if you are a person or a small business, an EORI number.

As such, no permit or import licence is required.

Furniture imports from China to the United States

A customs bond is required when importing furniture into the United States.

Furniture imports from China to Australia

When importing furniture into Australia, if wood is used in either the product or the packaging, the container and furniture must be fumigated in China. You must also have a fumigation certificate authorised by Australian border security.

Types of Furniture you can import from China

When it comes to furniture types in China, there isn’t much that the country doesn’t produce! The following is a list of the various types of furniture produced in China:

1. Living room furniture

2. Bedroom furniture

3. Coffee tables and chairs

4. Dining tables and chairs

5. Outdoor furniture

6. Metal furniture

7. Wooden furniture

If you are looking to import furniture, you should still consider China as your best option. The range, quality and ease of importing from China is unbeatable. With lowering freight charges and help of China Furniture Sourcing agent you can import furniture to your country without any hassle.