Tooling & ownership
Who Owns the Mold in China? A $30,000 Case Study
What happens when a brand pays for tooling without written ownership — and the contract terms that prevent it.
Read the case →By Product Category
Home & Kitchen
Glass Storage Jars with Bamboo Lids
Type: Amazon FBA Seller (USA)
Product: 6-piece glass jar set
Quantity: 100,000+ sets/year
Stopped $18K/month losses from mold, glass bloom and broken jars. Listing back to Amazon Choice in 4 months.
Read the case →
Home & Kitchen
Stainless Steel Canning Rack
Type: Amazon FBA Seller (USA)
Product: 2-pack stainless rack
Quantity: 10,000 pcs/year
Material analysis exposed a false 304 claim. Result: unit cost -51%, MOQ -70%, lead time -50%, Net 30 terms.
Read the case →
Home & Kitchen
Glass Salt & Pepper Shakers
Type: Private-label Brand (USA)
Product: 4 oz glass shaker set
Quantity: 15,000 sets/year
MOQ -85%, lead time -55%, with premium styrofoam and printed color box retained.
Read the case →
Home & Kitchen
PP Flexible Cutting Mats
Type: Amazon FBA Seller (USA)
Product: 4-pack coloured PP mats
Quantity: 8,000 packs/year
Food-contact compliance Failed → Passed at the same $1.00 unit price. MOQ honestly unchanged.
Read the case →
Arts & Crafts
DIY Craft Kits (10+ Components)
Type: Amazon FBA Seller (USA)
Product: Toy set, 10+ components
Quantity: 5,000 sets/year
10+ suppliers consolidated. Unit cost -10%, almost zero new quality-related reviews in 2 years, return rate down.
Read the case →More cases are documented every month. Client names, ASINs and supplier names are always anonymized.
Deep Dive Articles
Negotiation
Did My Agent Actually Negotiate the Price? The Chat Log Test
A documented method for checking whether the "negotiated" price came from the factory or from the agent's own margin.
Read the case →Supplier integrity
Agent Switched Suppliers: 6 Forensic Methods to Catch Them
The evidence trail that reveals a substituted supplier — packaging, tooling marks, material and paperwork.
Read the case →Cost audit
How to Audit Your 1688 Agent Invoice: Step-by-Step with a Real Example
A line-by-line walkthrough of an actual agent invoice, showing where padding appears and how to check each figure.
Read the case →Landed cost
$10,000 Order Cost Comparison: DIY vs Black-Box Agent vs Transparent Agent
The same order priced three ways, with every cost line exposed so the difference is verifiable rather than claimed.
Read the case →Supply chain
Amazon Seller Supply Chain Optimization: 15% Cost, 4.7 Reviews
How packaging and sourcing decisions affect FBA fees, damage rates and the review score that follows them.
Read the case →