Decision guide
They are not the same job. Choose wrong and the trip is wasted.
Sourcing guide (dipei): you come in person, they accompany you all day—factory tours, material checks, negotiation, contract. The core is neutrality: fixed fee only, and you pay the factory directly. Best if you can be on site and want to see everything yourself.
Buying agent (daigou): they order or pay on your behalf. Money passes through their hands, and the quoted “factory price” usually contains hidden margin. Convenient, but they will never bargain against their own income.
1. Money first: payment must go directly to the factory's corporate account—never through the guide's personal account. However familiar, a private-account operator is out.
2. Open pricing: fixed day fee only (ours is RMB 800/day), no commissions, no rebates. “Free” operators earn from your spread—the spread is always bigger than you think.
3. Workshop access: a real guide wants you to see production. Anyone avoiding the workshop is likely a reseller in disguise.
4. Contracted materials: leather, wood, hardware, dimensions, lead time—if a line is missing, do not sign.
5. Verifiable track record: ask for real process photos from past clients, not the claim of “thousands served”.
Ask directly: “does my money pass through your hands?” Touts and commission agents never bring this up themselves—it is their weak point. A neutral guide states it upfront.
A real case: a client hired a “free guide” and was taken to factories quoting showroom prices with a hidden 15% rebate. He thought he saved money; he actually overpaid more than ten times a guide's fee.
We have worked in Foshan furniture for 19 years and know 200+ source factories in the Lecong–Longjiang belt personally. Our service: plan a route around your budget, shortlist factories to your style, verify materials on site, negotiate, and get the contract signed in one day. We never touch your payment, never take kickbacks—only a fixed fee of RMB 800 per day (about US$110, rate as of Oct 2026), car transport within the belt included. How the service works →
A sourcing guide charges a fixed fee and never touches your payment; a buying agent pays for you and builds margin into the price. Their incentives are opposite.
Three checks: payment goes to the factory's corporate account, a fixed openly stated day fee, and willingness to take you into workshops.
Not necessarily. Judge by neutrality, not price: money untouched, workshop access, materials in the contract.
Yes—remote inspection plus purchasing is available, still with the rule that your money never passes through the guide.
Talk to us
Message us on WeChat or call. We will tell you honestly whether a sourcing trip to Foshan makes sense for you.