Global Sourcing Advisory

Stop Overpaying for Your Supply Chain. Start Building an Unfair Advantage.

25 years in Asian factories and sourcing offices. Mandarin and Bahasa Indonesian fluent. I find you better suppliers, lower costs, and supply chains that don't break when something goes wrong.

Global sourcing illustration — teams managing worldwide freight and suppliers
500+ factories walked
Shanghai-based · 20+ yrs
25+years on factory floors
500+factories audited in person
17%typical first-engagement cost cut
2languages spoken on the ground
Gavin Thomson — Global Sourcing Strategist
20+years based in Shanghai
About Me

Factory-floor reality,
boardroom-level value.

Based in Shanghai for over 20 years. I've led sourcing and quality for major retailers and manufacturers across Asia, Latin America, and the US. I've walked the factory floor in Guangdong at 7am. I've negotiated FOB terms in Jakarta at midnight. And I've seen what separates world-class sourcing from everything else.

Fluent in Mandarin and Bahasa Indonesian, I don't need a translator to tell you what's really happening on the ground. I bridge factory-floor reality with executive goals — turning sourcing complexity into measurable margin. I advise leadership teams on supplier development, sourcing transformation, and emerging market strategy. My job is to translate factory-level insight into boardroom-level value.

Mandarin 中文 Bahasa Indonesian Asia · LatAm · US Retail & Manufacturing
Book Strategy Call
What I Do

I do one thing:
I fix broken supply chains.

Whether that means finding you better suppliers, cutting 15–20% off your FOB costs, or building a factory network that doesn't keep you up at night — I do it.

Hands-on. Execution-driven. Two decades of walking into factories and walking out with answers.

01

Sourcing Strategy Development

New suppliers. New regions. Better margins. I redesign your supplier base from the ground up — competitive bids across China, Vietnam, India, Mexico. You don't get a report. You get a lower cost base and a sourcing plan you can execute next quarter.

→ 17% cost reduction typical in first engagement
02

Procurement Process Optimization

Your team is working hard. I make sure they're working smart. I fix the procurement engine — RFQ workflows, negotiation playbooks, vendor scorecards, spend visibility. Your team gets faster, your compliance gets tighter, and your margins get better.

→ 20–40% faster sourcing cycles
03

Supplier Diversification & Risk Management

One factory is a single point of failure. I qualify second and third sources across regions — so a tariff shock, a flood, or a capacity crunch never stops your line. Resilience built in, not bolted on.

→ 60% reduction in single-region dependency
04

Factory Capability & Compliance Audits

I've walked 500+ factories. I audit capability, quality systems, and compliance before you commit — and keep measuring after the first PO, so standards hold instead of slipping. You know exactly what you're buying into.

→ Defect rates cut from 8% to 0.5%
Proof

Results & Case Studies

Real engagements. Measurable outcomes. No slideware.

Kitchen & Home

17% FOB Cost Reduction

Competitively bid 3 factories across China and Vietnam; direct FOB terms & rolling volume contracts.

Outcome: 17% unit cost reduction, zero quality incidents.
Outdoor Gear

Supplier Diversification

Qualified 6 new suppliers across Vietnam, Indonesia, and Central America to mitigate tariff risk.

Outcome: 60% reduction in single-region dependency.
Hardlines

Defect Rate 8% → 0.5%

Overhauled supplier qualification and introduced in-line QC checkpoints at 3 key factories.

Outcome: Saved $340K/yr in return and warranty costs.
Next Step

Want to know
if I can help?

Every engagement starts with a 30-minute conversation. No pitch deck. No proposal fee. No follow-up spam. I'll tell you if there's a fit — and if there is, exactly what a first engagement would look like.

Your supply chain is your biggest lever for margin and resilience.

Let's find out how much room there is.

Book My Free Sourcing Assessment Call

Or email me directly → gavin_t@cyt-global.com