Costs and practicality of importing from China to USA?

If you can buy 1-3k of your product wholesale and mark up such that you
can get good margin on your parts then I would think it would be
reasonable to get 1-2 pallets. I've imported 2 shipments to Tennessee
and it's not cheap. One shipment had 150 parts and I figured I had to add
about $4.00 to each to cover my costs. The second shipment was only 3
boxes of samples, and it cost almost as much as the 150 pieces did.
My samples were heavy though. I went through FEDEX Trade networks
for both my shipments. Terms were FOB Hong Kong. I had previousl
dealings with Chinese Co and felt as though I could trust them. I'm
currently working on other parts with them for a future shipment.

Small quantity importing
We are looking at importing a small quantity - 100 - 500 MP3 players which is basically a pallet load or less. Using Air Freight is a viable option and some logistics companies can help you with estimating cost. I have also had some dealings with DHL for smaller quantities and they can help with the process.

If you need help with looking into products or quantities let me know. We have an office in China and Hong Kong and that helps negotiate directly with the manufacturers.

Glad to help in any way possible.
Thanks
Eric

It really depends on the profit margin you make as compared to the cubic volume and weight of the product. 1-3k pcs of something you don't make much money on isn't generally worth it.

If the product you have coming in is heavy or large, you should look into a freight company like Eagle Logistics Transport. If it is small and light, DHL or Fed Ex should work.

Costs and practicality of importing from China to USA?
Hi, I just found this site and it seems to be pretty informative.
I am trying to make purchases from four suppliers in Shenzhen, China.
What I've found to be interesting is as follows:
1) All four of them want me to pay by Western Union (payments are under $1000).
2) The payment made out to an individual's name instead of the company's name.
3) None would supply customer referrals instead some supplied tracking numbers from EMS to USA.
4) They will only accept L/C if amount above $5000 except for one T/T above $2000.
Are these normal business practices when dealing with chinese suppliers?
Thank you. Your answers will be greatly appreciated.
Sergio.

just read somewhere (?) that when paying by western union , it's not posssible to trace the payment if something goes wrong .
the article appeared in a business section of newspaper and STRONGLY advised against using western union - unless good businesss relations have already been established - but then you wouldn't need western union anyway .
hbg

Thanks hamburger.
Smymag.