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Product sourcing · India, China, Vietnam

The right factory, found and proven.

SourceSquid finds, audits and approves manufacturers for your product in India, China and Vietnam. You get a named shortlist compared on landed cost, capability and audit results, then we manage samples through to a signed golden sample.

Named
factories on every shortlist
2
approved sources per part family
48 h
free teardown
Shortlist · SQ-SL-0417 · exampleStainless investment casting, 11 parts
Foundry ARajkot, Gujarat
  • Licence
  • Audit
  • Sample
94$4.18 landed
Foundry BSolapur, Maharashtra
  • Licence
  • Audit
  • Sample
88$4.36 landed
Foundry CNingbo, Zhejiang
  • Licence
  • Audit
  • Sample
81$4.05 landed

Recommended: Foundry A as lead source, Foundry C as backup.

How a shortlist is built

Dozens screened. A handful audited. The right one chosen.

Every factory we put in front of you has been checked on paper, on video and on the floor. You see the evidence for each step, so the final choice is easy.

Typical program for one part family

  1. 30Screened

    Registries, export records, trade fairs and our own network. Licences and addresses checked.

  2. 8Shortlisted

    Capability, capacity and price fit confirmed on video calls. RFQ issued on one common basis.

  3. 4Audited on site

    Quality system, machines, people and social compliance checked by our team.

  4. 3Sampled

    Samples measured, tested and compared side by side against your drawing.

  5. 2Approved

    One lead supplier and one qualified backup, signed off against a golden sample.

How a sourcing program runs

Six steps from brief to first shipment.

  1. 01

    Brief

    We agree the product, volumes, target cost, markets and deadlines with you, and sign an NDA before any drawing moves.

    You receiveMandate brief and NDA
  2. 02

    Country and cluster

    Duty, lead time, compliance and capability decide where to look. The India Atlas shows where each process runs at scale.

    You receiveCountry and cluster scorecard
  3. 03

    Discovery and screening

    Dozens of factories screened on licence, address, export record and capability, then verified on live video.

    You receiveMarket map of named factories
  4. 04

    RFQ and should-cost

    One RFQ, one common basis. Every quote is compared against a should-cost model so you see the real price.

    You receiveQuote comparison workbook
  5. 05

    Audit and samples

    The strongest candidates are audited on site. Samples are measured, tested and signed off as a golden sample.

    You receiveAudit reports and golden sample
  6. 06

    Order and first shipment

    A PO with AQL, tooling and delivery terms, in-line checks during production and a pre-shipment inspection before you pay the balance.

    You receiveFirst container, inspected
What we source

Process-led. Product-agnostic.

Fifteen years across metals, plastics, tooling, soft goods and electronics mean we speak the language of every shop floor. The categories below are examples: we are not limited to these.

Metals

Metal parts

  • Investment and sand castings
  • Forgings
  • CNC machined parts
  • Sheet metal and welded assemblies
  • Fasteners and wire forms
Polymers

Plastics and rubber

  • Injection moulding
  • Blow moulding
  • Extrusion and profiles
  • Foam and latex
  • Rubber moulding
Tooling

Moulds, dies and fixtures

  • Injection moulds
  • Die-casting dies
  • Press tools
  • Check fixtures and jigs
Soft goods

Textiles and soft goods

  • Apparel and knitwear
  • Home textiles
  • Bags and cases
  • Seat covers and trim
  • Webbing, nets and straps
Electronics

Electronics

  • PCB assemblies
  • Cable and wire harnesses
  • Chargers and power supplies
  • Box builds
Packaging

Packaging

  • Corrugated cartons
  • FIBC bulk bags
  • Plastic pallets and returnables
  • Retail packaging
Home

Home and décor

  • Metal and brass décor
  • Wood furniture
  • Ceramics and glass
  • Handcrafted GI products
Industrial

Industrial consumables

  • Brushes and abrasives
  • Filters and filter bags
  • Gaskets and seals
  • Maintenance spares
Categories we've sourced

Real products. Real factories.

These are categories we have sourced or quoted for brands in Europe, the US and Australia. Where the India Atlas has a guide, the card opens it: the process chain, the clusters, the tests and the HS heading.

Categories
23
Sectors
4
Atlas guides
21

Not on the list? We are process-led, so a new product usually maps to a process we already buy. Send us your product

Supplier dossiers

How a supplier dossier looks.

Every supplier on a SourceSquid shortlist comes with a one-page dossier: what they make, where, with how many people, which certificates are valid and what to watch. Each line says how we know it.

  • Seen on siteChecked in person or on a live video walk-through of the factory.
  • Document checkedMatched against certificates, registries or export records.
  • DeclaredStated by the supplier, to be confirmed at audit or on the first order.
Supplier dossier · Example · SQ-SD-EX01

Example Wellness Products

Delhi NCR, IndiaCut-and-sew wellness textiles

Products
Meditation cushions, bolsters, eye pillows, acupressure mats and cotton yoga straps Seen on site
Facilities
Two units: cutting and stitching with about 60 machines; filling, finishing and packing Seen on site
Staff
About 120, plus seasonal contract tailors Declared
Export share
About 80%, mainly to the US, the EU and Australia Document checked
Certifications
GOTS and OCS scope certificates, amfori BSCI audit; numbers matched on the issuers’ databases Document checked
Lead time
40–45 days after sample approval Declared
Capacity
About 15,000 cushions a month on one shift Seen on site
Strengths
  • Organic cotton with a transaction certificate per lot
  • In-house cleaning and heat treatment of buckwheat hulls
  • Retail-ready packs with barcodes and case packs
Seen on site
Watch-points
  • Buckwheat hull stock is seasonal: book fill before peak orders
  • One outside dye house: ask for colour-fastness reports per lot
  • Capacity tightens from August to October, before Diwali
Seen on site
RecommendationShortlist. Audit before the first order.

Illustrative example. Example Wellness Products is not a real company.

Supplier screening

Factory or trader? Learn to tell in five cards.

Five supplier profiles, all fictional, all built from patterns our team screens every week. Read the clues, make the call, and see what a trained eye picks up.

Traders can be excellent partners. What matters is knowing which one you are talking to, so the price, the quality promise and the accountability all line up.

Country selection

Where should it be made? We tell you straight.

Duty, landed cost, lead time, capability, compliance and distance to your market decide the answer. We compare the options for your product and recommend where it should be made, even when the answer is not India or China.

  1. 01 · Our own teams

    India and China

    Delivered end to end by our own teams in Bengaluru and Ningbo: search, audits, samples and inspections.

    • India · Bengaluru
    • China · Ningbo
  2. 02 · Partner inspectors

    Vietnam, Indonesia and Thailand

    Sourcing led by our principals, with audits and inspections carried out by partner inspectors we know and brief.

    • Vietnam
    • Indonesia
    • Thailand
  3. 03 · Trusted partners

    Anywhere it is best made

    When the answer lies elsewhere, we advise on the choice and deliver through trusted partners. We tell you plainly which parts of the work they carry.

    • Mexico
    • Turkey
    • Eastern Europe
    • Staying local

Any product, any stage: new product, cost-down, second source, nearshoring or strategic sourcing. Ask where yours should be made

Sourcing questions

Straight answers.

Anything else, ask us directly. A principal replies, not a bot.

anirudh@sourcesquid.co

How does SourceSquid find manufacturers?

We start from the cluster that specialises in your process, screen factories through registries, export records, trade fairs and our own network, then verify licences, addresses and capability on video before auditing the best candidates on site.

Will I know the names of the factories?

Yes. Every shortlist names each manufacturer, with its location, audit findings, sample results and quoted price, so you choose with full visibility.

How long does it take to find a new supplier?

A named shortlist usually takes three to four weeks. Approved samples follow in another two to six weeks, depending on tooling.

What product categories do you source?

Metal parts, plastics and rubber, tooling, textiles and soft goods, electronics, packaging, home and décor, food ingredients and industrial consumables. Recent categories include castings, PCB assemblies, seat covers, FIBC bags, leather saddlery, wooden kitchenware, stoneware and organic coconut products. We are product-agnostic and process-led, and not limited to these categories.

Do you only source from India and China?

No. India and China are delivered by our own teams in Bengaluru and Ningbo, and Vietnam, Indonesia and Thailand through partner inspectors. We advise where your product is best made, including Mexico, Turkey, Eastern Europe or staying local, and deliver those through trusted partners. When another country is the better answer, we tell you.

What is in a supplier dossier?

A one-page profile of each shortlisted supplier: products, facilities, staff, export share, certifications, lead time, capacity, strengths and watch-points. Each line is marked as seen on site, checked against a document or declared by the supplier.

Do you work with small and mid-sized companies?

Yes. Small and mid-sized brands and manufacturers are our focus. Programs are sized to your volumes, from a first container to a multi-part family.

Start here

Send one drawing. Get a teardown in 48 hours.

The process chain, the best-fit clusters in India and China, a should-cost range and a clear next step. Free, with no obligation.

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