Slippers Report — Supplier Profile — Sample Pages: Sourcing Slippers from China

Supplier Profile: Beijing Chaolongda New Science and Technology Co. Ltd

Beijing Chaolongda New Science and Technology Co. Ltd is an ISO 9001:2000-certified exporter engaged solely in the production of indoor slippers. Established in 1997, the Japan-invested company has a 10,000 square metre factory in Beijing employing 560 workers, and all of its output is exported directly to Japan, with OEM buyers accounting for 50 percent of shipments. Export sales reached US$5 million in 2004, up 10 percent from 2003, and with growing demand from its Japanese buyers the company expected export sales to surge by 20 to 50 percent in the following year. Monthly capacity and average output both stand at 350,000 pairs, at 100 percent utilisation.

Indoor slippers are offered with rubber, plastic, fabric, genuine and synthetic leather and natural-material uppers, each type accounting for an equal share of production. Fabric uppers use fleece, cotton, linen, suede, satin and printed flock; genuine leather models use cowhide and sheepskin, with pigskin used for uppers and midsoles; outsoles are mostly TPR, with PU, EVA and PVC also used. Prices run from US$1 to US$15 per pair — plastic, rubber and fabric uppers at US$1 to US$2.50, synthetic leather at US$2 to US$8, and genuine leather up to US$15 — and were likely to rise 10 percent on higher material and labor costs. The company invests US$50,000 a year in a 15-person product development team that can produce samples in three to five days when materials are readily available; new designs include bright colours, printed patterns and bead trimmings.

What a Full Profile Adds

The sample shows the profile template at work: company background and markets first, then products with price ranges, then manufacturing and research capability, then outlook. Across all 69 profiles that single template is the point — every manufacturer is examined on the same points, so a buyer can line profiles up and compare export shares, OEM and ODM mix, design capacity, quality systems and price positioning without translating between formats. Details such as a production checklist — lines, research and quality control staff, machinery and processes — turn a profile from a description into an audit summary.

Profiles also connect back to the rest of the report. A supplier's prices can be checked against the product gallery's 116 models and the industry overview's price trends, and its outlook against the supplier survey. When the three agree, a buyer has a supplier worth sampling; when they disagree, the profile has done its other job — showing where to ask harder questions before an order is placed.