We are often reminded of the saying “Buyer Beware” … it is equally important to remember “Seller Beware”. This past week we have been using the strength of our global Supply Change Management platform to aid in securing face masks to support the ever-growing needs. Face masks are not our main business – with our broad international connections we are just doing our part to provide a much-needed service.

We have learned a lot this week – as we discovered many fake buyers and sellers. At least 80% of the inquiries are simply speculators or profiteers. We even encountered university students who have no experience in medical products or even supply chain procedures attempting to gain information from the internet for the sole purpose of making quick money. None of these individuals had the ultraistic purpose of aiding our fellow human beings. It has been very discouraging… and has certain made us as Sellers to Beware.

There are obviously many unscrupulous people working to pounce upon the panic and crisis. We expect a significant number of scams during the COVID-19 outbreak. Business is not only about exchanging information from one place to another; it is about honesty and responsibility. We at Victure Industrial aim to only work with real and trusted suppliers. We always audit our suppliers and inspect their goods using our own highly trained team of employees – often before, during and certainly after production.

As the coronavirus continues to expand across the globe – the scams will continue grow and multiply more rapidly than the virus. We encourage you as Buyers to Beware of phony claims, price grabs, and inferior products – especially related to protective suits, thermometers, eye protection, etc. Please do your due diligence with all your purchases. Know your suppliers. Please know that we are here and ready to provide you supplier inspections, audits, and quality validation.  Let’s all continue to Beware and avoid the snares and pitfalls of scams and fake business.

In the meantime, I’d like to share a couple of LinkedIn groups for your product sourcing-

1. China Sourcing, Import, Export- https://www.linkedin.com/groups/4462099/

2. Asia Sourcing- https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8909383/

3. Vietnam Sourcing- https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8815822/

4. Wearables- https://www.linkedin.com/groups/6798191/

5. Gifts and Premiums- https://www.linkedin.com/groups/4421652/

6. Shenzhen Business Networking- https://www.linkedin.com/groups/5063375/

7. Wechat- https://www.linkedin.com/groups/5123967/

8. Phone Accessories- https://www.linkedin.com/groups/4420760/

9. Bluetooth- https://www.linkedin.com/groups/4692512/

10. IFA- https://www.linkedin.com/groups/4796982/