The case study shows how Dragon Sourcing helped one of the clients identify and recommend new potential competitive suppliers in two countries, India and Vietnam. Our client asked us to find potential suppliers for sourcing:
- Cutting tools
- Thread and thread packs
- Pins and needles
As soon as we received the request, we worked to analyze and define the products and requirements. We collected samples of the products to ensure potential suppliers fully understood them. After gathering all this data from the client, we looked at the supply market to find potential manufacturers in four countries by leveraging B2B websites, fair catalogs, the DS database, etc.
After investigating the sources, we located 47 suppliers who produced these goods. We engaged in prescreening to manage and reduce the list of potential providers. Based on simple, mutually agreed-upon criteria (the company cannot export, is not interested in selling goods to a foreign company, etc.), we excluded some suppliers. We selected 14 suppliers after the prescreening phone interview, and we mailed them an RFI-RFQ. This RFI-RFQ was created after consultations with the customer. It was developed to handle all the elements (export expertise, suitable technology, quality certification, etc.) that would make the suppliers chosen through this approach the best fit for their needs. We received early answers from 8 of the 14 suppliers to whom the RFI-RFQ was sent, out of which 6 were from India and 2 from Vietnam.
We analyzed the RFI received from potential suppliers on various parameters that include business information (20% weightage), production (30% weightage), quality management (30% weightage), corporate social responsibility (15% weightage), certificates, documents, and pictures (5% weightage). We then asked the suppliers for samples of their products. To compare providers and choose the best one, we carefully evaluated the RFQ and graded it using a scorecard. Most of the suppliers had credentials with certification and production capabilities that met the requirements of the client. After assessing their RFI responses and samples, our company recommended the best suppliers who scored high on the comparison scorecard.