The Radiant Rhino Series Part 5 : How to Choose a Product Manufacturer

I spoke to 100+ suppliers around the world.

Why?

Because this was a new product, no one could make it at scale, at the quality I wanted, and without something going wrong.

Some of the things that went wrong:

- Products breaking during shipping

- Weak scents

- And just when I finally found a supplier who could do it at scale… they got sued

Streamlining manufacturing took almost a year and a half.

Here are a few things I learned about choosing manufacturers:

- Never place a large order without reviewing samples first. Hope is not a quality-control strategy.

- Reliability matters more than enthusiasm.

- Know their production turnaround time once an order is placed. “Soon” is not a date.

- Ask about payment terms. In product businesses, cash is locked in inventory and cash flow is what keeps the lights on.

- Some founders ask for references. I never did, but it’s an option if it helps you sleep at night.

Next up: the most important thing I learned about hiring (mostly by doing it wrong first).