general sourcing / Buying guide
Yiwu agent
Yiwu International Trade City holds roughly two million products across dozens of industries, organised into districts by category. It is the default destination for gifts, toys, stationery, party goods, accessories and seasonal items.
Most booths carry minimums of 50–200 pieces, with some accepting 10–30 for a test — far friendlier than a factory order, which is precisely why buyers use it.
In this guide
How the market is organised
- District 1: toys, artificial flowers, jewellery and accessories.
- District 2: luggage, umbrellas, hardware, consumer electronics.
- District 3: stationery, sporting goods, cosmetics.
- District 4: socks, gloves, hats, daily-use textiles.
- District 5: bedding, curtains, car accessories, imported goods.
What an agent does here
Walks the aisles against your brief, photographs candidates, negotiates the booth price, aggregates dozens of small purchases into one shipment, and handles export. For mixed-category orders this is the entire value — no single supplier covers what a Yiwu order usually contains.
What Yiwu is not good for
- Anything requiring tight quality control or certification.
- Large single-SKU runs, where going direct to a factory is cheaper.
- Apparel and leather, which belong in Guangzhou.
Questions & answers
Common questions
- Can I buy from Yiwu online?
- Partially. Many booths list on 1688, but a large share of the market has no online presence, which is why agents walk it.
- When is the market open?
- Year round, closing for Chinese New Year. Confirm dates before travelling — the closure is long.
Your next step
Have a link you want checked?
Send a 1688 or Taobao product link and you get back the specification in English, the supplier check, and the landed cost to your country before you commit to anything.
Get a quote