Factory vs. Trading Company: 5 Ways to Vet Your Roof Top Tent Supplier in China
By the Founder of Camp Auto Parts (Wuyi Camp Outdoor Products Co., Ltd.)
Introduction: The “Alibaba Mirage”
You are sitting in your office in Europe or the US, scrolling through B2B sourcing platforms.
You see a supplier profile. The photos look amazing. The office looks huge. They claim to be a “Leading Manufacturer with 20 years of experience.”
You send an inquiry. They reply instantly.
But here is the uncomfortable truth:
Estimates suggest that over 60% of “manufacturers” listed on major B2B platforms are actually Trading Companies.
Why does this matter?
Working with a middleman isn’t inherently bad, but for a brand owner scaling up, it kills your competitiveness:
Margin Drain: You pay an invisible 15%-30% markup.
The “Telephone Game”: You tell the sales rep to move a window 5cm. They tell their boss. Their boss tells the factory boss. The factory boss tells the worker. By the end, the window is moved 50cm.
No R&D: Traders sell what exists. Factories build what doesn’t exist.
As a Real Manufacturer based in Wuyi (China’s hardware capital), I want to share 5 Insider Detective Tactics you can use right now to verify if your supplier is the real deal—without flying to China.
1. The “Product Mix” Test
Specialist vs. Generalist
Open your supplier’s “All Products” page. What do you see?
The Trading Company Catalog:
They sell Roof Top Tents… and Camping Chairs, and Sleeping Bags, and Yoga Mats, and maybe even Dog Leashes.Why this is a Red Flag: No factory has the machinery to sew canvas, injection mold plastic chairs, and weave yoga mats under one roof. This is a “Supermarket” sourcing from multiple factories.
The Real Factory Catalog (Camp Auto Parts):
You see Roof Top Tents. You see Car Awnings (same fabric/frame tech). You see Roof Racks (same metal welding tech).The Logic: A factory focuses on its core manufacturing competency—for us, that is Metal Fabrication and Heavy-Duty Sewing. We don’t make yoga mats because we don’t have foam extrusion machines.
2. The “Live Video” Ambush
Don’t settle for a pre-recorded tour.
Anyone can hire a film crew to shoot a fancy “Factory Tour” video. They can even rent a factory for a day (yes, this happens).
The Detective Move:
Ask your sales rep for an unscheduled video call (FaceTime/WhatsApp) right now during China business hours.
Say: “Can you walk onto the production floor and show me the CNC machine cutting the tent base?”
The Trader’s Reaction: “Umm, I am not at the factory today,” or “The signal is bad,” or “We need to schedule this.” (Because they are in an office building 200km away).
The Factory’s Reaction (Us): “Sure, give me 2 minutes to put on my safety helmet.” We walk out of the office, down the stairs, and you hear the noise of the machines. Noise is the sound of authenticity.
3. The “Technical Modification” Test
Salespeople say Yes; Engineers say How.
Trading companies want to close the deal, so they say “Yes” to everything. Real factories know the limits of physics and machinery.
The Detective Move:
Ask a difficult technical question.
Example: “Can we change the main hinge from 2mm steel to 4mm aluminum to save weight?”
The Trader: “Yes, no problem!” (They haven’t checked if it’s structurally safe).
The Factory: “Wait. If we switch to aluminum, we need to increase the thickness to 6mm to maintain the same shear strength, or the hinge might snap in high winds. Let me check our mold constraints.”
Insight: If a supplier pushes back or gives you a detailed technical explanation, trust them. That is Engineering Expertise.
4. The “Business License” Scope
The boring paperwork never lies.
Ask for their Chinese Business License. You don’t need to read Chinese; just use Google Lens to translate the “Business Scope” (经营范围) section.
Keywords for Traders: Look for “Wholesale,” “Import/Export,” “Sales of…”
Keywords for Factories: Look for “Production” (生产), “Manufacturing” (制造), “Processing” (加工).
At Wuyi Camp Outdoor Products Co., Ltd., our license explicitly states the Manufacturing and Processing of Outdoor Gear.
5. The Location Context (Geo-Verification)
Where are they on the map?
China has industrial clusters.
Electronics: Shenzhen.
Textiles: Shaoxing.
Hardware & Outdoor Gear: Wuyi / Yongkang (Jinhua City).
If your Roof Top Tent supplier claims to be a factory but their address is in the middle of a financial district in Shanghai or Shenzhen, they are likely a Trading Company with a sales office.
Camp Auto Parts is located in Wuyi, Zhejiang. Why? Because this is where the aluminum supply chain and skilled metal workers are. We are right at the source.
Conclusion: Who Should You Choose?
Is a Trading Company always bad?
No. If you want to buy 50 tents, 500 chairs, and 1000 water bottles in one container, a Trading Company is a great “Sourcing Agent” who consolidates everything for you. They earn their margin by saving you time.
But…
If you are building a Serious Roof Top Tent Brand, if you want to create a custom mold, if you want the lowest price to compete on Amazon, or if you need instant spare parts support—you must go direct.
Cut out the middleman. Come straight to the source.
Ready to see the noise?
Book a live video tour of our Wuyi factory floor. No scripts, just welding sparks and sewing machines.
👉 [Book Your Live Factory Tour]
Email: info@campautoparts.com
WhatsApp: +86 181 5796 2741
