https://meliprep.com/en/blog Practical guides on buying on 1688, cargo consolidation, certification and shipping to Mexico, Argentina and Brazil. Written from Shenzhen. en Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/1688-buying-guide-step-by-step https://meliprep.com/en/blog/1688-buying-guide-step-by-step Buying on 1688 from abroad: why you need a Chinese account, how to filter out resellers, how yuan payment works and what export documents come out. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/buying-components-and-pcba-from-china https://meliprep.com/en/blog/buying-components-and-pcba-from-china Buying components without ending up with remarked parts, and contracting board assembly: turnkey vs consignment, and the functional test to require. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/buying-electronics-at-canton-fair https://meliprep.com/en/blog/buying-electronics-at-canton-fair How the Canton Fair electronics phase works, why it filters suppliers rather than selling cheap, and how to pair it with a factory round in Shenzhen. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/calculating-landed-cost-from-china https://meliprep.com/en/blog/calculating-landed-cost-from-china Method to calculate the landed cost of importing from China: the eleven line items a quotation leaves out, and how to spread them per sellable unit. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/capital-for-a-first-import https://meliprep.com/en/blog/capital-for-a-first-import How to work out the real capital a first import needs, why the goods are only half of it, and what happens when the order arrives and does not sell. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/cargo-held-at-customs https://meliprep.com/en/blog/cargo-held-at-customs Why cargo gets held, which clocks start running, what each stopped day costs and what can still be done. What you recover and what you cannot. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/cheap-ddp-to-brazil https://meliprep.com/en/blog/cheap-ddp-to-brazil Every cut-price "all-in" quote for Brazil rests on the same two levers: declaring less than the goods are worth, and importing under someone else's CNPJ. Why the route exists, why the risk lands on you, and the right path for each case: Mercado Libre Full, formal resale and samples. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/chinese-supplier-not-responding https://meliprep.com/en/blog/chinese-supplier-not-responding Practical guide for when a 1688 seller stops replying: where to claim, what deadlines apply, what you recover and what you cannot, and how to prevent it. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/comparing-supplier-quotes https://meliprep.com/en/blog/comparing-supplier-quotes Why two supplier quotes are never comparable as they arrive, how to normalise them onto the same Incoterm, and when the cheapest offer is the right one. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/ddp-to-brazil-local-structure https://meliprep.com/en/blog/ddp-to-brazil-local-structure Whoever imports into Brazil has to be a local company: CNPJ, Siscomex authorization, duties debited from a Brazilian account and certification held by someone in the country. Why classic DDP can't close — and which routes actually exist. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/electronics-certification-mexico-brazil https://meliprep.com/en/blog/electronics-certification-mexico-brazil Which certification your electronics need for Mexico (NOM, CRT) and Brazil (ANATEL, Inmetro), when to start it, and what happens if you ship without it. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/factory-or-reseller-on-1688 https://meliprep.com/en/blog/factory-or-reseller-on-1688 A method to tell a 1688 manufacturer from a reseller: what the licence says, what the catalogue shows, and why the difference changes price and lead time. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/first-importer-mistakes https://meliprep.com/en/blog/first-importer-mistakes The mistakes that really cost money on a first import, ranked by what they cost, with how to avoid each one before it happens. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/how-much-does-a-china-sourcing-agent-cost https://meliprep.com/en/blog/how-much-does-a-china-sourcing-agent-cost Real commission bands for a China sourcing agent: what the fee covers, what is billed separately, the hidden costs to watch and how to compare two quotes. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/how-to-choose-a-china-sourcing-agent https://meliprep.com/en/blog/how-to-choose-a-china-sourcing-agent Rubric for evaluating China sourcing agents: questions to ask, which answers are red flags, and how to compare two quotes without fixating on commission. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/how-to-import-from-china-to-mexico https://meliprep.com/en/blog/how-to-import-from-china-to-mexico Step-by-step guide to importing from China to Mexico: RFC, importer registry, pedimento, NOM, real landed costs and door-to-door timelines. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/how-to-pay-a-chinese-supplier https://meliprep.com/en/blog/how-to-pay-a-chinese-supplier T/T transfer, letter of credit, platform guarantee and staged payment: what each method protects, what it costs and which suits your order size. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/how-to-verify-a-chinese-supplier https://meliprep.com/en/blog/how-to-verify-a-chinese-supplier How to tell whether a Chinese supplier is a real factory or a middleman: business licence, activity scope, certifications and the red flags of a scam. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/huaqiangbei-shenzhen-electronics-market-guide https://meliprep.com/en/blog/huaqiangbei-shenzhen-electronics-market-guide What Huaqiangbei in Shenzhen is, what it sells, how to use its prices as a reference and why importers should not buy retail at the counter. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/importing-bluetooth-speakers-from-china https://meliprep.com/en/blog/importing-bluetooth-speakers-from-china Why a portable speaker's claimed wattage cannot be real, how sound output is actually measured, and what the battery inside requires for shipping. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/importing-chargers-and-power-supplies-from-china https://meliprep.com/en/blog/importing-chargers-and-power-supplies-from-china The category where a 30-cent saving can burn your brand: verify real power, why safety certification is not negotiable and what to check in the cable. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/importing-led-lighting-from-china https://meliprep.com/en/blog/importing-led-lighting-from-china How to import LED lighting that lasts: the driver decides service life, how to measure real lumens, and why the IP rating on the label often is not real. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/importing-power-banks-from-china https://meliprep.com/en/blog/importing-power-banks-from-china Why a 20,000 mAh power bank delivers 11,000, how to tell grade A cells from recovered ones, and which capacity can fly and which must go by sea. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/importing-small-appliances-from-china https://meliprep.com/en/blog/importing-small-appliances-from-china What to fix before making an electrical appliance: destination plug and voltage, certification before shipment, and where Shenzhen's advantage really is. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/importing-smart-watches-from-china https://meliprep.com/en/blog/importing-smart-watches-from-china What to check before importing wearables: why sensor accuracy depends on the algorithm, why health claims change the legal category, and the app. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/importing-to-mexico-customs-guide https://meliprep.com/en/blog/importing-to-mexico-customs-guide The documents a Mexican import requires — RFC, padrón de importadores, pedimento, NOM — and the order to resolve each one so your cargo is not held. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/importing-tws-earbuds-from-china https://meliprep.com/en/blog/importing-tws-earbuds-from-china Technical guide to importing TWS earbuds: Bluetooth SIG declaration, UN38.3 report, how to measure real battery life and why claimed ANC rarely matches. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/mercadolibre-full-prep-center-guide https://meliprep.com/en/blog/mercadolibre-full-prep-center-guide How to prepare your goods in China for the MercadoLibre Full warehouse: SKU labelling, barcode scan checks and the most common rejections. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/negotiating-moq-with-a-chinese-factory https://meliprep.com/en/blog/negotiating-moq-with-a-chinese-factory Practical ways to lower a Chinese factory's MOQ: mixed orders, neutral packaging, paid sample runs, and why some factories cannot go lower at all. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/negotiating-price-with-a-chinese-supplier https://meliprep.com/en/blog/negotiating-price-with-a-chinese-supplier Which levers actually move a Chinese supplier's price, in what order to use them, and why asking for a discount with nothing to offer does not work. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/ordering-samples-from-china https://meliprep.com/en/blog/ordering-samples-from-china How to order samples from a Chinese supplier, what shipping really costs, what to measure before approving, and why a sample never guarantees the batch. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/prepare-a-china-purchase-list https://meliprep.com/en/blog/prepare-a-china-purchase-list Template and criteria for a China purchase list that gets quoted in one pass: the five data points per line, how to state variants, what everyone omits. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/protecting-your-product-from-being-copied https://meliprep.com/en/blog/protecting-your-product-from-being-copied Register the trademark in China, own the mould by contract, split the design and lock the firmware. What slows copying, and what protects nothing. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/reduce-freight-cost-from-china https://meliprep.com/en/blog/reduce-freight-cost-from-china The decisions that actually lower the transport bill: packaging volume, consolidation, route, timing and Incoterm — and why price per kilo misleads. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/sea-vs-air-freight-from-china https://meliprep.com/en/blog/sea-vs-air-freight-from-china Choosing between sea and air freight from China: volumetric weight, the 15 m³ FCL break-even and the cost of capital tied up in transit. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/shipping-lithium-batteries-from-china https://meliprep.com/en/blog/shipping-lithium-batteries-from-china UN38.3, MSDS, watt-hour limits, air and sea restrictions, and why the power bank you want to import may not be allowed to fly. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/what-a-container-shipment-costs https://meliprep.com/en/blog/what-a-container-shipment-costs How the cost of a container is built: which line items scale with volume, which are charged once per shipment, and why one container price does not exist. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/1688-vs-alibaba https://meliprep.com/en/blog/1688-vs-alibaba The key differences between 1688.com and Alibaba.com, and why professional sellers prefer 1688 to protect their margins when importing into Mexico. Thu, 10 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/what-is-ddp-shipping-to-mexico https://meliprep.com/en/blog/what-is-ddp-shipping-to-mexico What DDP shipping to Mexico means: who acts as importer of record, what the all-in price covers and why e-commerce sellers use it. Tue, 08 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://meliprep.com/en/blog/preparing-inventory-for-peak-season https://meliprep.com/en/blog/preparing-inventory-for-peak-season Real sea and air import lead times from China to Mexico, worked backwards from Buen Fin, Black Friday and Christmas so your stock lands in time. Sat, 05 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT