Your margins are too thin. You’ve found a product that sells in the UK, but buying it locally eats almost all the profit. That’s the problem we hear most from new clients, and it explains why more than £60 billion in goods moves from China to the UK every year. Importing directly fixes this. I’ve watched small FBA sellers and shop owners turn a barely-there margin into a healthy one on the very same product.

This article lays out how it actually works in 2026. Real shipping costs. The duty and VAT you’ll owe. How to find a factory that won’t waste six months of your life. No fluff.

Why Source from China in the First Place?

Price, mostly. Manufacturing there typically runs 30-60% cheaper than in the UK. That gap lets you lift profit per sale, undercut local competitors, or build inventory without draining your cash. Testing new product ideas gets cheaper too. If something flops, you’ve lost a little, not a lot.

Cost isn’t the whole story, though. China’s manufacturing ecosystem runs absurdly deep: rapid prototyping, capacity for orders of any size, and specialist knowledge across practically every material. For custom or private-label work, the integrated supply chains are genuinely hard to replicate elsewhere.

Getting Your Goods to the UK

Picking a shipping method comes down to cost, speed, and order size. Here’s the honest breakdown.

Sea freight is the default for bulk. Slow, but cheap.

  • Transit time: 28-35 days from major ports like Shanghai or Sh