A Guide to China’s Key Product Hubs

 

China is known as a global manufacturing powerhouse, producing an estimated 80% of the world’s manufactured goods across countless industries. Whether you’re sourcing products for e-commerce, apparel, electronics, home goods, or industrial supplies, different regions in China specialize in different product types. This guide will help you decide where to go when traveling to China in search of factory-based products, and why these hubs matter.

Why Targeting the Production Hub Matters

Many people travelling to China say “I’ve booked a flight to Guangzhou and I’m looking for hair factories”. That is a huge problem, and I’ll explain why. China is actually divided into specialized industrial clusters spread across provinces. Each region has developed deep expertise, large factory networks, and robust supply chains that focus on a small selection of goods. In other words, not everything is made everywhere. So it is extremely important to go directly where your target item is made, and not just anywhere in China. This will save you lots of money and valuable time.

So where are things made? I’ll walk you through tech, beauty, fashion, furniture, and small commodities. 

Guangzhou — The common go-to

Guangzhou is one of China’s oldest and biggest manufacturing hubs and is often a first stop for business travelers. Located in Guangdong Province, it’s part of one of the most dynamic manufacturing regions in the world. This is my first and only recommendation for first time travellers who want to look for business ideas and get a taste of what China has to offer.

So if you’re looking for jewellery, clothing, accessories (bags, belts glasses), cosmetics; Guangzhou is a great place to start. It is full of wholesale markets, tens of thousands of trading and manufacturing companies, including more than 30,000 foreign-invested firms— making it a major base for international sourcing.

If you’re reading this after you’ve already booked your flights to Guangzhou, but unsure on which markets to go to, what items to find where; get my Curated Must-Have Guangzhou Guide which covers wholesale markets, food, and tourist activities.

Watch on of my trips here where I go through a few markets that I’ve included in the Guangzhou Guide:

 

Shenzhen — Electronics and Tech Manufacturing Powerhouse

Just south of Guangzhou is Shenzhen, known as China’s “Silicon Valley” due to its dense tech ecosystem and huge electronics manufacturing base. It is home to over 17,000 factories across consumer electronics, telecommunications equipment, smart devices, IoT products, and more.

So if you’re looking for smartphones, accessories, smart devices, wearables and electronics components or a few levels above that; rapid prototyping and electronics assembly; Shenzhen is definitely the place to target.

Foshan - House of Furniture 

Foshan has over 1000 furniture factories that cover all types of furniture and all types of designs, styles and price ranges. It is responsible for majority of the furniture sold all over the world. So if you’re looking for furniture directly from the source factory, Foshan is the destination.

Yiwu — The World’s Small Commodities Hub

Yiwu, is a hub known for small commodities such as toys, home goods, stationery, fashion accessories, gifts, and packaging materials. There is a famous massive wholesale market with thousands of suppliers all in one place you can visit. A lot of the items you may see on platforms such as Amazon or Shopify, are actually sourced from here.

Henan Province — Hair 

When one looks at the history of hair products such as wigs and extensions, it is tracked back to this province. Today, a lot of hair factories still run here, specifically in Xuchang. So if you are looking for factories for human hair and synthetic hair, this should be your destination. And I cannot say this enough: There are no hair factories in Guangzhou, only resellers.

There’s More

There are obviously more items that China produces and manufacturers. If you are looking for items I did not discuss in this article, contact us. 

Keep in mind, that some items are manufactured within hubs, others are scattered all over China. So the key is to do your research before you plan your trip. I always advise clients to go to hubs as opposed to just any supplier in any city. This gives you more options to choose from, and also probably a better quality seeing as these hubs have a stronger sense of competition as every other factories producing the same items. 

If you have done some research and are still not sure on where to go, book a consultation with us and we will guide you in exactly what you need to do to get hold of the correct suppliers and manufacturers that match your current business needs.

Practical Tips for Planning Your China Factory Trip

1. Match the Destination to the Product
As explained in the article, make sure you are going to the correct destination.

2. Match the scale of your needs to the effort you are putting to finding the supplier

For example, some people might travel to China and want to do some personal shopping of electronics. If you are not already in Shenzhen, it is not worth it to travel all the way to Shenzhen, just to buy a few gadgets. Electronics will typically be affordable across China, so any market or supplier will do. If you are travelling to purchase high quantities, that is when going to a manufacturer will be worth the effort.

3. Reach out to suppliers before you arrive in China

Days go by extremely quickly in China, and trying to co-ordinate, call, connect with, translate, locate etc. always takes much longer than expected. So do as much as you can before you arrive. We have had so many clients try to do everything after they have arrived and I can guarantee you that this fails. It’s best to move with purpose and structure. 

If you need help navigating this process, definitely reach out to us and get expert guidance.

I share more valuable practical tips on my TikTok, and have a comprehensive guide catered to business travellers who are coming to China and unsure of how to make sure it runs smoothly: ULTIMATE PRE-TRIP HANDBOOK

Should You Use An Agency To Help You Navigate China?

If you don’t want to deal with the stress of finding a suitable supplier, a good enough hotel, the correct destination, securing a meeting at a factory, inflated product pricing, shipping logistics, interstate travel, booking a driver, and all that comes with an action-packed business trip in China; an agency is a good idea. Having all of these variables taken care of will serve your needs better and allow you to focus on your trip’s objectives. 

Things to keep in mind if you choose to use an agency; 

• Quality services require advance planning. Sometimes people reach out just days before their trip begins. Short notice seldom works in business. Secure your plans well in advance.
• Match your budget to your expectations. If the services you need are high quality and dense, which in this space they typically are, the budget you set should be realistic. 
• Always do what makes sense to you and your business. Compare various scenarios and calculate the long-term benefits vs losses of using an Agency. If it makes strategic and logistical sense, go for it. If not, find a better alternative.

So Is China For You?

Absolutely yes! It continues to be a top destination for businesses, founders, entrepreneurs and market opportunists. I would recommend it as a prime focus for your business plans. 

2026 promises to have millions of business travellers angling towards China. I hope you will be one of them.