When was the last time you evaluated your supplier relationships?

A distributor does business with an average of 30 suppliers. In an industry with more than 3,200 ASIlisted suppliers, that’s a pretty exclusive club, so be sure the suppliers you choose to work with are giving you the best service.

One way to know if your supplier relationships are paying off for you is to carefully review pricing for hidden or extra charges. Here are five examples of hidden cost points.

1. Finishing Items
These could be hems, grommets, multicolor options, imprinting fees, straps and so forth. Any embellishment or finishing item, even if it’s essential, to an otherwise basic product (usually wearables) can possibly incur an extra charge. One way to know if your supplier relationships are paying off for you is to carefully review pricing for hidden or extra charges. Here are five examples of hidden cost points.

2. Setup Fees
Typically a supplier requests you send artwork in a print-ready file format that needs no adjustments. It’s common to be charged a modest one-time setup fee, such as $10 per design. Any additional design work would be billed at a higher hourly rate. Don’t assume your client’s artwork is print-ready. Ask for an estimate and the supplier’s hourly rate.

3. Designer Assistance With Proofs
Some suppliers charge a significant fee for human eyes to review a proof. Charges for this vary widely, as does the quality of service received. Ideally, a trained quality control manager or professional graphic designer will review your proof. A reasonable charge, for example, would be a flat $5 setup fee per design for a professional graphic designer to review.

Choose supplier with great customer service, including being able to reach live customer service reps on the phone and online chat.

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