Need help on importing ceramic mugs from China?
Lazpanda will help you find the best ceramic mugs manufacturers
Lazpanda helps kinds of small business owners sourcing ceramic mugs from China, and we have got lots of experience, that we can communicate with ceramic mug suppliers more smoothly than new buyers.
We have been established for 6 years in China, we know each earth of the mug manufacturers, how to go there factories, whether they are real suppliers or middle-man, how to audit them.
What's more, we can offer your the best one-stop sourcing process, what you only do is Lying on the sofa as a lazy panda, and waiting for the goods arriving.
Import Ceramic TRAVEL Mug from China
Ceramic travel mug will have a lid to make sure that the drink won’t get spilled. They are designed for people who love enjoy a hot beverage on the go.
Import Ceramic THERMOS mug from China
This type of mug is designed to keep the heat of a beverage trapped inside the thermos mug for as long as it can. The inner lining of the thermos is made of ceramic while the outer layer is usually made of stainless steel or some kind of metal to help keep the temperature in. It forms a vacuum inside to prolong the retention of heat.
Import Ceramic COFFEE mug from China
The most common type of ceramic mug you can find. They are usually customized with cartoon drawings, Christmas designs or city names. Some manufacturers even do personalized designs according to the customer’s specifications.
Royal danube from China
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Import Ceramic mugs from China: Definitive guide
So you want to start a mug design business? Great! You just come to the right place.
This guide will teach you to be an expert in Ceramic mugs market, and help you avoid scams before sourcing.
Let's jump into the mug knowledge ocean:
Chapter 1: Why should you import ceramic mug from China?
The start of Chinese ceramics can be dated back 20,000 years ago. But it was during the Han dynasty that porcelain was first made.
That means that in terms of ceramic production technique, China is considered to be the leading expert. In fact, porcelain is a Chinese invention.
China is heavily associated with porcelain ware that they are now called “china”.
Chinese ceramics don’t only stop with Chinese porcelain though. Chinese ceramics extend to bricks and tiles, handmade pottery and other items used commercially or industrially.
Today, you often see ceramic mugs. This is the most common product produced in the ceramic industry.
This is due to the fact that there has been a huge rise in people who love drinking coffee. Starbucks anyone?
Ceramic mugs are great for drinking coffee mainly because of its properties.
Simply put, a ceramic mug will retain the heat of your coffee a lot longer than an ordinary glass mug. This will allow you to enjoy your coffee a lot longer.
So, it’s no coincidence that coffee shops like Starbucks always have a stable supply of ceramic mugs.
They import their supply from China, which is the most popular manufacturer of ceramic mugs.
This is for the simple reason that China makes the best ceramic mugs at the most competitive price (well, they should know a thing or two since they invented the whole thing right?).
Chapter 2: What should you consider before importing ceramic mugs from China?
When you decide to import something, the main driver is the quality of the product you will be importing and the cost.
It should still be enough for you to gain a healthy profit. But before you decide to do it, you have to understand these things first.
Ceramic mugs Quality Testing and Certifications
Should Have FDA Approval
FDA or Food and Drug Administration is the authority responsible for protecting the public health by ensuring the safety, efficacy, and security of human and veterinary drugs, biological products, and medical devices.
They have also issued a memorandum of understanding pertaining to the ceramic tableware imported from China to the US.
The MOU states that CNCA, through its network of provincial, municipal, and local inspection offices called CHINA Commodity Inspection Bureaus (CCIBs or CIQs).
Require that all ceramic products imported from China to the US will contain acceptable levels of leachable lead and cadmium. You can check the memorandum of understanding in this link.
Should Have SGS Approval
SGS or Société Générale de Surveillance is an independent company that provides inspection, verification, testing and certification services.
They test the product’s quality and performance against various health, safety and regulatory standards to make sure that the product meets the requirements of standards set by governments and other standardization bodies.
Similar to what the FDA does, ensuring that the ceramic mugs produced are certified by SGS to be free from any harmful materials and safe for public use. You can visit their website for more info about what they do.
ASTM Approval Is A Good Bonus
ASTM is an international standards organization that develops and publishes voluntary consensus technical standards for a wide range of materials and products.
An ASTM approval on the ceramic mugs you plan to import means that it is of high quality and safety. For more info about ASTM, you can visit their site here.
Production Process Of Ceramic Mugs
Production of ceramic mugs will involve eight steps.
Step 1 - First thing you have to do is take the porcelain stone from the mining site and process it.
Do this to remove the impurities and so that it will become a brick-like mud.
Then mix water to the mud and step on it with your fee to remove the air in the mud. This will mix the water properly with the mud.
Step 2 - Draw the mud group into the carousel of the car. This will allow you to form the body of the mug.
Step 3 - Use an ink blank and rotate it according to the inner arc of the blank.
Let it dry and press the outer wall of the blank evenly. Then the billet is placed on the profitable bucket of the brake.
Afterward, rotate the disc. Make sure to use the cutter for turning. You have to ensure that the thickness of the blank is appropriate and the surface of the mug is smooth.
Step 4 - Let the blank dry out. You can place it on a wooden frame to dry.
Step 5 - Use a bamboo, bone or iron cutter to draw patterns to the semi-dry body of the mug.
Step 6 - Place the slab into the glaze basin then pour the glaze in. When the mouth is flush with the glaze, pour off excess glaze so that the upper and lower sides are even.
Then spray the nozzle with the enamel repeatedly until the thickness of the blank is right.
Step 7 - Put the finished body into a kiln and fire the kiln. The temperature must reach 1300 degrees Celsius. Leave it for the night.
Step 8 - Paint the burnt porcelain body while it is being burned at low temperature (around 700-800 degrees Celsius. This will add color to the body. Several different techniques can also be used to add design to the mug.
Ceramic Mug Packaging
Ceramic mugs are very fragile. You need to ensure that it is packed properly to avoid being broken during shipping or transit.
Aside from the box, it will be placed in, you will need several materials. First is a cushioning material like bubble wrap. If bubble wrap isn’t available, you can use styrofoam.
With regards to the box you will be using, you can have it printed with your logo to better identify the mugs you will be shipping.
You need to ensure that the box you will be using to package the mugs will be at least half a centimeter thick. This will ensure that the mug inside won’t be easily damaged.
If you are using bubble wrap, make sure to wrap it around the mug tightly and make sure that when you place it inside the box, there won’t be any wiggle room.
This is the most important part of packing ceramic mugs. The ceramic mug should not be able to move in any direction once it is packed inside the box.
This is how you ensure it won’t be broken. Of course, you can also add a Fragile label in the box just to make sure that it will be handled carefully.
Quality Assurance
Before ceramic mugs are shipped, they undergo quality assurance tests.
These tests are designed to ensure that all the ceramic mugs that will be shipped will be strong enough and won’t break at ambient temperature.
Other tests are also done to check if there are any chemicals released upon use. This is done to ensure the safety of the consumers.
Delivery Time
The acceptable delivery time for stock ceramic mugs is 7-15 days.
For custom or branded orders, this will usually take 20-30 days before they can be delivered.
The length of the delivery time will also vary with the number of ceramic mugs to be delivered.
Chapter 3: Importing types of ceramic mugs from China
There are three main types of ceramic mugs being imported from China: ceramic travel mugs, ceramic thermos mugs, and ceramic coffee mugs.
Ceramic travel mug - this type of mug will have a lid to make sure that the drink won’t get spilled. They are designed for people who love to enjoy a hot beverage on the go.
Ceramic thermos mug - this type of mug is designed to keep the heat of a beverage trapped inside the thermos mug for as long as it can.
The inner lining of the thermos is made of ceramic while the outer layer is usually made of stainless steel or some kind of metal to help keep the temperature in.
It forms a vacuum inside to prolong the retention of heat.
Ceramic coffee mugs - this is the most common type of ceramic mug you can find.
They are usually customized with cartoon drawings, Christmas designs or city names. Some manufacturers even do personalized designs according to the customer’s specifications.
Chapter 4: How to find ceramic mugs manufacturer in China
There are plenty of ceramic mug manufacturers in China. Finding the best one for you can be very tricky at times. But there are ways to make it easier.
Alibaba
First, you can use Alibaba as your reference. Alibaba is China’s largest online store.
You can find lots of individual products in that website. But what makes it quite different with let’s say Amazon, is that it also lists down manufacturers of specific products like ceramic mugs.
This is especially useful for people who want to do bulk orders or companies looking for suppliers.
The trick with using Alibaba to find suppliers for ceramic mugs is to use TradeManager.
This is Alibaba’s chat software. It will allow you to communicate with the supplier so you can negotiate the details of your order.
Also, there are kinds of sites like Alibaba you can find suppliers.
Exhibits
Exhibits are also a good place to find the right supplier. Most suppliers worth their salt often join exhibits to showcase their products.
The good thing about exhibits is that you can personally talk to the company’s representative to iron out details or ask questions about their products.
And if you like what you see and hear, you can quickly arrange something with them.
Google Research
If you don’t have time to go to an exhibit, the quickest way to find a supplier for ceramic mugs is to do a Google search.
Most suppliers have their own website. You can see their catalog and other details like shipping methods, pricing and a lot more.
The best way to identify if a supplier is truly legit is to check out their About page and their contact page.
Legit companies will have an extensive background of their company in their About page. Plus, they also provide contact forms for possible customers to contact them.
Chapter 5: How to ship mugs from China
There are three main methods to ship ceramic mugs from China: through express and airline, by sea or by railway.
Express & Airline
These two methods are quite similar. The only difference is Express will arrive earlier than the airline freight and will arrive at your doorstep.
Express shipping will ship your order from door to door. The process will start from a pickup point (like a factory) to a designated address.
This is the most expensive type of shipping but arrives at the soonest.
Airline Freight, on the other hand, is shipped from airport to airport. You will then have to pick up your order from their air cargo office in the airport.
This is less expensive than the express method but it a bit slower.
Sea Freight
As you can probably tell, sea freight is done by sea.
Your order will be loaded to a ship from the port closest to the factory you will be ordering and will then be delivered to the port closest to your address.
You will have to claim it in the cargo office in the port. This type of shipping method will usually take 3 to 6 weeks before the order arrives (depending on the location).
Railway Shipping
Last but not least is railway shipping. Railway shipping offers the opportunity to ship goods from one place to another.
Using different types of cars or vehicles to transport goods. It is done through a railway carriage running on a rail transport system.
It is the least expensive mode of shipping but also doesn’t cover that much distance.
Thus, it can only be done when the order is shipped locally or if the nearest port/airport is too far, then the rest of the shipping method will be done through railway to complete the delivery.
Conclusion
This is all the guides that we write for you.
Don't worry that if you can not learn all tips for the first time, but you can make fewer mistakes.
If anything you want not mentions above, welcome to contact us directly
Hope this can help you.
