Supplier sourcing
BuyerSide sources Turkish manufacturers for one defined product group at a time. The fee is €1,200 per product group, payable in full in advance, and a written specification on our request form is required before work starts. We accept no commission from any supplier we introduce, which is why the buyer pays the whole fee. The engagement rules on this page are fixed and are not negotiated.
The rules, in full
These are published before you enquire rather than explained after, because they are stricter than most agencies and they are the reason the work is honest. If any of them is a problem, we are probably not the right office for you.
- Payment is 100% in advance. There is no flexibility.
The full fee clears before any supplier is contacted. No deposit-and-balance, no payment on delivery of the shortlist, no payment on first order. A sourcing agent who is paid on results is paid by the result going through — which is the exact incentive we removed from this business.
- One fee per product group. One.
A product group is a set of items that can be manufactured by the same type of factory with the same process and materials. Kitchen cabinet doors are one group. Kitchen cabinet doors plus quartz worktops are two groups, two fees, because they are two entirely separate industries. We define the group in writing before you pay, so there is no argument later.
- A written official request is required before work begins.
You complete and return our sourcing request form with full specifications. Not a product name, not a photograph from a competitor's website, not "something like this but cheaper". Without a specification, sourcing degenerates into forwarding you factory brochures, which you can do yourself for free.
- The specification is frozen once work starts.
If the specification changes materially after we have begun contacting suppliers — different material, different dimensions, different certification, a different market — the work restarts as a new product group at a new fee. This is not a penalty. Every enquiry already sent has to be sent again.
- We take nothing from the suppliers we introduce.
No commission, no finder's fee, no per-order percentage, ever, including after the engagement ends. This is the same Clause 4 that governs every other service, and it is why you pay the full cost of the search.
- We do not accept exclusivity from either side.
You are free to buy from the suppliers we find without telling us, and to stop using us at any time. We do not ask for a share of your future orders and we do not ask suppliers for one either.
What the specification must contain
The request form asks for all of the following. We cannot quote, and will not start, without them.
| Field | Why it decides the outcome |
|---|---|
| Product name and HS code | Determines which industry and which region of Türkiye we search. |
| Technical specification, drawing or sample | Without it, no factory can quote and no quote can be compared. |
| Materials and grades | Two "steel brackets" from two factories can differ by 40% in price and entirely in fitness for purpose. |
| Dimensions and tolerances | Tolerance is where the price is. A supplier quoting cheap is usually quoting a looser tolerance. |
| Certification and standards required | CE, EN, REACH, LFGB, halal, market-specific marking. Decided before sourcing, not after. |
| Order quantity and annual volume | Determines which factories will even reply. A quantity below a factory's minimum is not a negotiation, it is a no. |
| Target unit price and currency | Tells us whether the specification and the budget belong to the same product. |
| Packaging and labelling requirements | Frequently the deal-breaker with otherwise suitable factories. |
| Incoterm and destination port | Changes the quote structure and which suppliers can serve you. |
| Required lead time and first delivery date | Excludes factories whose book is full, before you waste three weeks on them. |
| Sample requirement | Who pays for samples and courier, agreed in advance. |
What you receive
- Long list
Ten to twenty candidate manufacturers identified against your specification, with the reasoning for inclusion.
- Filtered shortlist
Typically five to eight suppliers that pass a desk verification: registry record, tax and social-security status, ownership, export history, capacity plausibility.
- Live enquiry and quotation
Your specification issued to the shortlist in Turkish, responses chased, quotations normalised into one comparable table — same Incoterm, same currency, same quantity, same packaging.
- Comparison and recommendation
A written comparison with our reasoning, including which quotes we do not believe and why.
- Introduction
Direct introduction to the suppliers you choose. You contract with the factory. We never sit in the middle of your invoice.
What sourcing does not include
Factory audits and pre-shipment inspection of the chosen supplier are separate services at their published prices. Sourcing gets you to a credible shortlist and comparable quotations; it does not get you inspected goods.
Nor does it include price negotiation on your behalf as a continuing service. We will tell you what the realistic price band is and where the quote is padded. The negotiation is yours, because a supplier who thinks we control the relationship will price accordingly.
Price and timing
| Fee | €1,200 per product group, prepaid in full |
| Second product group booked at the same time | €950 |
| Typical duration | 15–25 working days from receipt of a complete specification |
| Deliverable | Long list, verified shortlist, normalised quotation comparison, written recommendation, introductions |
| Specification change after start | New product group, new fee |
| Refund | None once supplier contact has begun. Before that point, a full refund less €150 administration. |
Why no refund after outreach starts
Sourcing spends its cost in the first week: identification, verification, and issuing your specification to the market under our name. Once that has happened it cannot be unspent, and our reputation with those factories is committed. We would rather state this plainly on a public page than argue about it later.
Frequently asked questions
Is €1,200 not expensive when other agents source for free?
No agent sources for free. An agent who does not charge you is being paid three to eight per cent by the factory, on every order, indefinitely — and chose that factory partly for that reason. On a €200,000 order that is €6,000 to €16,000, and it is inside your unit price where you cannot see it.
What exactly counts as one product group?
Items a single type of factory can make with the same process and materials. Six sizes of the same cotton towel: one group. Towels and bathrobes: usually one group. Towels and ceramic tiles: two groups, two industries, two fees. We define it in writing before you pay.
What if none of the suppliers is suitable?
That happens, and it is a legitimate outcome, not a failure. You receive the full documented search including why each candidate was excluded — which is frequently the discovery that the specification and the target price cannot exist together in Türkiye. Knowing that in three weeks for €1,200 is cheaper than discovering it in nine months.
Can we pay after we see the shortlist?
No. This is the one rule with no exception. See the payment clause above.
Do you sign an NDA before receiving our specification?
Yes, as a matter of course, before the specification is sent to us — not before it is sent to suppliers.
Will you tell suppliers who we are?
Only with your permission. Enquiries can be issued on our name with the buyer described generically, which also keeps the first quotation honest.