Many e-commerce brands want to move production closer to home, hoping for faster delivery and easier communication. But when it comes to real sourcing, the European market works very differently from Asia — here’s what that really looks like.

In the last few years, I’ve noticed more and more clients wanting to replace their Chinese suppliers with European ones.
The reasons are clear and understandable:

• long delivery times from Asia,

• higher shipping costs,

• communication issues,

• and the wish to have “Made in EU” on the label.

It all sounds great in theory — until we start the real sourcing process.

One of my clients recently asked me to find a European manufacturer for a wooden product that sells well on his dropshipping website.
The retail price is around 100 €, so we expected it could work.

But when we started searching, we quickly ran into two main challenges:

1️⃣ Pricing:
The production cost from most EU manufacturers was already close to his selling price.
Even before packaging, logistics, or profit — the math simply didn’t fit.

2️⃣ Dropshipping structure:
The client wanted the manufacturer to handle dropshipping directly — meaning produce, pack, and ship one by one as orders come.
But in Europe, this model is not common among traditional factories.
Many were open to keeping stock and sending it to the client’s customers,
but only after a minimum order or prepaid quantity.
They simply don’t have the capacity or systems to handle small, individual shipments like Asian suppliers do.

So in this case, we couldn’t move production to Europe — not because of quality or trust,
but because the economic model and logistics just didn’t match the client’s dropshipping business.

This experience reflects a bigger truth in sourcing today:

Moving production closer isn’t always cheaper or easier — it’s a strategic choice that must fit your product type, sales volume, and business model.

Still, EU-based production makes sense when:
✅ the product is premium or customized
✅ delivery speed matters more than cost
✅ sustainability or brand image is a priority

The best approach is often hybrid — combine global sourcing for price competitiveness,
and local manufacturing for flexibility and quality control.

💬 Have you ever tried moving your production from China to Europe?
What was your biggest challenge — cost, capacity, or communication?