Finding new suppliers
Due to the impact coronavirus is having by disrupting supply chains around the world, many of our customers have been asking for help when it comes to finding alternative suppliers or manufacturers and verifying their credentials.
Here we’ll explain how you can use the Creditsafe platform to find and export a list of potential suppliers in the UK or overseas.
There are many steps to consider when building your supply chain, including design, transport & logistics, due diligence and negotiation. Today, we will focus on finding manufacturers and suppliers.
Domestic vs. International suppliers
When looking for suppliers, if you plan to manufacture or wholesale, you’ll need to decide whether you want to source domestically from within the UK or from overseas.
Usually, overseas suppliers are based in Asian countries like China, India, and Taiwan. That’s because it’s often cheaper to source your products overseas, especially in these countries. However, with many companies now looking to source new suppliers within the UK, Europe and USA, it’s possible to quickly find and export a list of suppliers in a matter of minutes using our global business database.
Using NACE classification to find suppliers
NACE is a European industry standard classification system similar to the Standard Industry Classification (SIC) used in the UK for classifying business activities. This classification allows businesses from all over the UK, Europe and the USA to be accurately classified making it easier to find similar types of businesses across multiple countries.
A complete list of NACE codes and business descriptions can be found here.
Building your supplier list
Signed in to your Creditsafe account, you can navigate to Marketing Solutions > International Prospects under the main left-hand side menu. If you do not see this option please contact your account manager so that they can add it to your account.
Search by country
Start your search by selecting the countries where you would like your supplier or manufacturer to be based.
Search by NACE code or description
Search for suppliers or manufacturers using a NACE code or description to find companies who manufacture, distribute or supply certain types of products.
A quick keyword search for ‘beer’ returns beer manufacturers.
A search for ‘food’ returns manufacturers and wholesalers of food products.
Choose suppliers who are financially stable
Selecting companies who are creditworthy ensures that you only choose companies who are financially stable. This is extremely important to ensure that you build a strong supply chain with suppliers who are less likely to become insolvent.
Its also possible to filter your list of suppliers by the length of time their business has been trading. This can be useful if you’re looking for long-established suppliers.
Exporting your list of suppliers
Once you have completed your search, you’ll be able to review the number of suppliers and manufacturers in each country and export the list into Excel.
The Excel file will provide you with details on all the possible suppliers and manufactures based on your search.
Your exported supplier list will include:
- Company name and registration number.
- Company address and phone number.
- Senior decision maker contact name.
- NACE code and business description.
- Turnover and employees.
- Credit score and credit limit.
- Website address.
- Plus, much more.
Additional tips and advice
For additional help and support to improve your supply chain, please contact your account manager or request a call back from one of our experts.