One of the main reasons to source from India is that the country specializes in producing unique and handcrafted products not found in other countries.

India suppliers focus on design and regularly develop and launch new products they have created in-house. Suppliers are very protective about their designs. At trade shows, exhibitors often won’t let buyers take photos of products in their booths.

There are also a wide range of indigenous handicraft styles that are unique to the country. For example, blue pottery from the state of Rajasthan, or cane and bamboo products made in the Eastern states of Assam, Meghalaya and Sikkim.

One advantage of selling handcrafted products is that they can command higher prices and therefore have higher profit potential.

With the US tariffs on China-made products, many importers are looking to source products from alternative markets, and India is one of them.

India is not in a trade war with the US, and even though India was recently removed from the GSP (Generalized System of Preferences) list of developing countries that have preferential access to the US, this will not impact ecommerce sellers importing products from India.

This is because most of the items given preferential access were industrial and chemical products that ecommerce sellers would not be importing anyway.

Since a lot of Indian products are handmade, suppliers are usually willing to cater to small orders.

While minimum order quantities typically range from 200-500 units, suppliers will often cater to orders as low as 20-50 pieces (except for apparel and textiles). They may charge a slightly higher price for smaller orders.

This is a huge advantage for Amazon sellers, especially if you’re just starting out with a small budget, or if you’re an experienced seller and want to test a new product line.

One of the main areas of contention in the trade war between the US and China is intellectual property protection. But when you source products from India, you won’t have to worry about your supplier copying your designs and selling them to other buyers.

In general, Indian suppliers have more respect for their buyers’ IP than typical Chinese suppliers. That doesn’t mean your IP will never be compromised, but it’s much less likely to happen in India than in China.

English is the second official language in India, and most people you deal with at your supplier will speak English, although some are more fluent than others.

This is very advantageous when it comes to communicating with your supplier, especially when you are developing or modifying a product to sell as your own private label.

A wide range of raw materials are readily available within India including cotton, silk, jute, marble, metal, wood, bamboo and others. In comparison, other countries such as Vietnam need to import such raw materials from China.

India is the world’s largest producer of cotton and accounts for 26 percent of global production.