Twice a year, hundreds of thousands of foreign buyers descend on the Canton Fair in Guangzhou expecting to find suppliers and close deals on the spot.
And they often succeed. The first Canton Fair of 2025 recorded $25.44 billion in on-site export deals, according to the China Foreign Trade Centre.
However, this approach frequently leads to disappointment. The issue? Three days on the show floor isn’t enough time to figure out which manufacturer is genuinely capable of meeting your needs.
Trade shows are full of impressive displays and smooth-talking suppliers, but as Divles Amadei, a China sourcing expert with 20 years of experience, warns: “You will miss 70% of everything that’s going on because the show is the show and when they come to the show they will show you what they want to show.”
Instead, the key to trade show success is having boots on the ground visiting potential suppliers before you arrive.
Watch the Full Interview
Many of the insights in this article come from Divles Amadei, a China sourcing expert with 20 years of experience, whom we spoke with at the first 2025 Canton Fair. Be sure to check out the full interview for broader advice on sourcing in China!
The Pre-Fair Ground Game
The biggest mistake buyers make is treating the Canton Fair as a complete sourcing solution rather than a verification exercise. All the things you really need to know (production capabilities, quality control processes, and manufacturing limitations) cannot be found out at a trade fair.
“There is no way you can do better negotiation or get better opportunities unless you are here to see how things are moving,” Amadei explains. But “here” doesn’t just mean the exhibition halls; it means Chinese factories, production lines and supplier offices.
Smart buyers identify potential factories months in advance and send teams to conduct supplier assessments before the fair opens. Amadei recommends factory visits 2-4 weeks before trade shows. This timing allows you to verify production capabilities against supplier claims, assess quality control processes firsthand, build relationships with key decision-makers, and identify potential bottlenecks.
The trade show then becomes a final step after months of groundwork, similar to how world leaders rarely meet without extensive diplomatic preparation beforehand. This allows you to walk into fair discussions from an informed position and negotiate strategically rather than react on the fly.
Need a Suppler Vetting?
We offer supplier assessment services that give new buyers the groundwork they need for successful China sourcing. Contact us to find out more details.
Focus on Relationships, Not Deals
Running a pre-fair ground game is equally important for buyers meeting existing suppliers.
Discussions about modifications or price alterations work best when you have a team on the ground delivering accurate intelligence about your suppliers before you arrive in Guangzhou. What capacity constraints are they facing? What’s driving their pricing? What can they actually commit to? None of these answers can be discovered on the trade show floor alone.
The Bottom Line
The Canton Fair remains a powerful sourcing tool, but only if you use it correctly. The most productive fair visits happen when you arrive with existing market knowledge, established supplier relationships, and realistic expectations about what a few days in Guangzhou can accomplish.
Need help getting started? We offer comprehensive supplier assessments that provide the groundwork new buyers need for successful China sourcing. In our experience, the investment in pre-show preparation and local intelligence often pays for itself through better supplier selection and more favourable terms.
Good luck at the fair!
