Role Overview
Clients don’t hire Supplier Sourcing Experts just to “find a factory” — they hire you to protect margin, speed up launch cycles, and secure product reliability at scale. In TikTok Shop and private label, every delay, defect, or miscommunication with a supplier can cost the client momentum and credibility. Your role is to spot strong manufacturing potential early, vet fast, and lock in dependable supply under terms that protect the business. The end goal is frictionless sourcing — quality products, priced right, delivered on time — so the client can focus on listing, scaling, and brand-building.
This is not a passive, wait-for-quotes role. It’s also not just about who you know, or dropping links to suppliers without screening. Clients expect proactive strategy: knowing what trade-offs matter, where risks lie, and how to get real answers from real suppliers. If sourcing is weak, the entire business model fails — product launches stall, refunds spike, and profit margins collapse. If done well, sourcing becomes a competitive edge that keeps the client ahead of trends, stocked with winners, and ready to scale.
Standards You Must Meet
• You secure at least 3 vetted supplier options per product, with clear pricing, MOQs, lead times, and shipping terms — not just links or vague chats.
• Product samples must be proactively requested, tracked, and evaluated for quality within defined timelines — delays cost credibility.
• Every supplier you recommend has been pre-checked for response reliability, production capability, and delivery history — no guesswork.
• Clients expect market-matching or better quotes — if your sourcing doesn’t preserve margin, it’s not working.
• You must flag trade-offs early (e.g., speed vs. cost, quality vs. MOQ) and guide clients with clear, risk-aware recommendations.
• No blind drop-shipping setups or unconfirmed product specs — everything must be sourced with integrity and suitability for TikTok Shop selling.
• You’re expected to follow through on supplier deadlines and production checks — “sent inquiry” is not the job.
• If a supplier fails on quality or delivery, clients expect a backup plan from you, not an apology.
What You’ll Be Doing
• Deliver three or more fully vetted supplier options per product, each with accurate pricing, MOQs, lead times, and shipping terms.
• Proactively request and track product samples to ensure clients approve quality before placing any orders.
• Screen suppliers for fast responses, proven production capacity, and consistent on-time delivery records.
• Negotiate directly with suppliers for pricing that protects margin without risking product integrity.
• Flag trade-offs early around speed, cost, and MOQs, and guide clients through informed sourcing decisions.
• Confirm all product specs, packaging details, and compliance requirements before any supplier moves forward.
• Track supplier timelines continuously and follow through on production status until shipment is completed.
• Secure backup suppliers for approved SKUs to protect against fulfillment delays or quality failures.
What You’ll Hand Over
• A validated supplier shortlist (3+ options per product) with full pricing, MOQs, lead times, and shipping terms in a comparison-ready format.
• A clear sample status tracker showing shipment dates, feedback notes, and approvals or rejections per item.
• A sourcing summary with key trade-offs, risks flagged, and final recommendations based on cost, speed, and quality targets.
• Confirmed spec sheets for selected products, including materials, dimensions, packaging, and labeling — aligned with TikTok Shop requirements.
• A backup supplier matrix for all approved SKUs, ready to activate in case of fulfillment issues or quality failures.
Tools You’ll Need to Use
• Alibaba.com – Essential for identifying, vetting, and negotiating with private label suppliers at scale.
• 1688.com – Key for sourcing domestic Chinese suppliers with competitive pricing and local manufacturing options.
• Google Sheets – Used for tracking supplier data, comparing quotes, and maintaining organized sourcing pipelines.
• TikTok Shop Seller Center – Required for managing product listings, supplier uploads, and inventory syncs on the platform.
• Slack – Central for team communication, supplier updates, and fast decision-making across sourcing projects.
• Trello or ClickUp – Useful for tracking supplier sourcing progress, factory tests, and approval workflows.
• Canva (Basic Use) – Helpful for quick supplier outreach decks and visual briefs aligned with private label branding.
Why Work Smarter
If you can’t identify and automate the most repetitive parts of your sourcing process, the client is overpaying for manual labor. This doesn’t mean you need to be a full automation engineer today. But knowing what can be automated—and being able to follow or build a simple workflow—is becoming the unspoken baseline. Fast.
At OES, we set this as the new standard because the market already expects it.
Why Your Work Matters
Every product listed on TikTok Shop depends on the backbone of reliable, margin-safe sourcing. If the numbers are wrong, if the supplier ghosts, or if a sample misses quality standards—launches stall, ad budgets are wasted, and refunds spike. Clients are moving fast, and they need sourcing that’s not just accurate, but predictive: anticipating delays, preventing quality issues, and locking margin before the campaign starts. This is not “pre-work” — it’s a revenue gate. Poor sourcing will choke a brand before it even scales.
Clients depend on Supplier Sourcing Experts to be the quiet engine that keeps their business moving forward. You’re here to eliminate friction, not add to it. Your decisions determine how fast a product launches, whether it hits profit goals, and how well it holds up under volume. Right now, sourcing isn’t a backend task — it’s lifeline infrastructure. In this role, you are not just enabling growth — you are protecting it, under pressure, every day.
What We Expect From You
At the Specialist level, we expect you to own your craft—and in this role, that means mastering high-stakes supplier sourcing for TikTok Shop and private label operations. You bring sharp judgment into fast-moving, high-risk spaces where pricing, MOQ negotiations, and lead times directly affect campaign profit and fulfillment timelines. You don’t chase deals; you assess supplier reliability, enforce compliance around product standards, and proactively flag sourcing risks before they become operational problems. When supplier performance breaks down, you act, not react—you don’t wait to be told where the leak is. Strategy and precision are not extras in this role—they’re baseline.
You fit this role if you consistently make sourcing decisions that hold up under scale, pressure, and scrutiny. You don’t just know how to find suppliers—you know how to keep the right ones and cut the wrong ones without compromising quality or margin. You understand the commercial weight of every sourcing call: how pricing affects ads, how delays kill conversion, and how missteps cost trust. You’re disciplined enough to document, report, and escalate with intent—because this role feeds the full supply chain. Your sourcing judgment doesn’t just keep things running; it sets our brands up to win.
Login to Get Matched
To view salary standard, expectation based on experience level, or even request a customize or personalize version of this role, please log in.
$530 – $1,500
OES salary standards reflect real market benchmarks, tier and experience level, ensuring fair pay for VAs and realistic expectations for clients.
Can't find a client that fits?
You can get it here, we will match you based on your preferences - salary, set up, schedule and more. Just say the word, we got you covered!