How we compare
Alibaba shows you suppliers. Viaty helps you source properly.
Marketplaces, wholesalers and sourcing agents each solve part of the problem. Here is what each one usually covers, and where Viaty is different.
What each option usually covers
Every row is a point where orders go wrong: the specification, the factory, the rules for your market, the sample, the inspection and the paperwork.
| What matters | Viaty | Supplier marketplacefor example Alibaba | UK wholesaler | Sourcing agent | Doing it yourself |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price level | Yes: Factory-direct, plus your plan or managed fee | Yes: Factory-direct | No: Includes their margin | Partly: Factory-direct plus their fee | Yes: Factory-direct |
| Your brief turned into a full specification | Yes: Steps 1 and 2 of every project | No: You write it | Partly: Their catalogue spec | Partly: Depends on the agent | No: You write it |
| Factory checked beyond ratings and listings | Yes: Capability, audits, documents and samples | Partly: Ratings, badges and years trading | No: You do not see the factory | Partly: Depends on the agent | Partly: As far as you can check |
| Rules for your market checked before you order | Yes: Checked at step 3, tested at step 7 | No: Up to you | Partly: Depends on the supplier | Partly: Depends on the agent | No: Up to you |
| Quotes compared like for like, with landed cost | Yes: Materials, packaging, testing, freight and duty | No: Unit prices | No: One delivered price | Partly: Depends on the agent | Partly: In your own spreadsheet |
| Order locked until the sample is approved | Yes: Enforced by the system | No: Not enforced | No: Usually no sample stage | Partly: Agreed, not enforced | No: Not enforced |
| Inspection before anything ships | Yes: Required. Shipping stays locked until it passes | Partly: Optional, you arrange it | Partly: Their own quality checks | Partly: Often included | Partly: You arrange it |
| One record of every document and decision | Yes: The project’s technical file | Partly: Platform messages and orders | No: Invoices | Partly: Their reports and emails | No: Your inbox |
| Someone on the ground near the factory | Yes: Trusted partner office in China | No: No | Partly: Not needed, they hold stock | Yes: That is the service | No: No |
| Small quantities of stock items, fast | Partly: Built for made-to-order | Yes: Yes | Yes: Usually the fastest | Partly: Depends on the agent | Partly: Depends on your supplier |
Based on how each type of service usually works. Individual marketplaces, wholesalers and agents differ, so check with them directly. Alibaba is a trademark of its owner and is named only as a well-known example of a supplier marketplace.
Where the difference shows
A marketplace and Viaty
A marketplace opens a window to suppliers. It cannot always tell you whether the factory is right for your product, whether the quote is complete, whether the certificates are valid, or whether the goods will meet the rules for your market. Viaty checks each of those before the order is placed.
A UK wholesaler and Viaty
A wholesaler sells you their stock at a price that includes their margin, and they carry the sourcing risk. Once your volume is high enough, buying direct can cost less. Viaty gives you a landed or duty-paid price to set against what you pay today, line by line.
A sourcing agent and Viaty
A good agent is valuable, and the quality depends on the person. Viaty runs the same checks on every order, holds the four locked approvals, and keeps every document in a file you can see, with a trusted partner office in China for the work on the ground.
When another option fits better
Viaty is built for made-to-order goods where a mistake is expensive. It is not always the right tool.
You need a small quantity of a standard item next week.
A UK wholesaler will be quicker.
You already have a trusted factory, your own quality team and your own compliance checks.
Your process may be enough. Viaty can still keep the file and the approvals in one place.
You want to browse thousands of suppliers yourself.
Use a marketplace, then bring your shortlist to Viaty at step 4.
Questions buyers ask
See the thirteen stepsNo. Alibaba is mainly a supplier marketplace. Viaty is designed to help buyers through the full sourcing journey, not just find a factory: the specification, compliance, sampling, inspection and delivery all run through one set of checks.
Yes. If you have already found a factory you like, bring it to the project at step 4. Viaty checks it like any other factory, and the rest of the steps run as normal.
Viaty can do the work an agent does through managed sourcing and its trusted partner office in China. The difference is that every order runs through the same thirteen steps and the same locked approvals, and every document stays in a file you can see.
When you need a small quantity of a standard item quickly. Buying direct from a factory pays off once the volume is high enough to cover sampling, inspection and freight.
Bring your next order.
Free to start. Brief Viaty on one product and compare the landed price with what you pay today.