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The supplier discovery platform built for serious importers

Sourcing globally has never been more risky. Counterfeit factories, broker middlemen, capacity misrepresentation, sudden tariff shifts, and country-of-origin laundering cost importers billions every year. Alibaba and trade-show contacts only show you who is selling, not who is actually shipping. ShipScout shows the latter.

Every supplier in our database is reconstructed from real customs declarations filed by their downstream buyers. If a Chinese factory shipped 47 containers of LED lighting to retailers in Germany last quarter, we know it. If a Turkish textile mill claims a million-piece capacity but only filed exports for 80,000 units, we know that too. Sources include US Customs CBP, EU Eurostat, Mexican SAT, and 200+ port and customs authorities worldwide; India trade flows are delivered via licensed mirror sources.

The four-step importer workflow

1. Search by product or HS code. Type "ceramic tiles" or HS 690810. Filter by source country, minimum shipment volume, port, and date range.
2. Compare verified suppliers. Get a ranked list with 12-month export volume, top buyers, average shipment size, and consistency score.
3. Verify counterpart authenticity. Check ownership, factory address, customs filing history, and whether the supplier is who they claim to be.
4. Reach the right contact. Pull verified emails, phone numbers, and LinkedIn profiles for sales, founders and export managers, then run outreach from the built-in CRM.

Why importers leave other providers for ShipScout

Alibaba and trade-show contacts show you who is selling; legacy trade-data tools show you flat rows behind enterprise paywalls. ShipScout shows who is actually shipping, with verification, contact intel and outreach in one subscription at a fraction of the cost.

Where ShipScout importers save money

Three real importer scenarios

1. US retailer diversifying out of China during tariff escalation

A home-goods importer used ShipScout’s alternative-origin search on HS 9403 (furniture) and instantly identified 1,247 Vietnamese and 600+ Indonesian factories already exporting to North American buyers at scale. Verified the top 30 by 12-month volume and onboarded 4 new suppliers within 60 days, ahead of the tariff hike.

2. UK pharma importer doing supplier due diligence

Before signing a 12-month API contract, the importer ran the Indian supplier through ShipScout. Saw a 90-day gap in customs filings and a sudden buyer-concentration shift that suggested capacity issues. Renegotiated terms and added a backup supplier from the platform, saving an estimated $2.4M in stockout exposure.

3. Mexican electronics importer tracking competitor sourcing

Saw a rival importer’s shipment volume from a specific Shenzhen factory and traced their supplier mix. Approached the same factory with a slightly larger order at better terms. The factory accepted because ShipScout showed real demand from a verified counterpart.

Every importer plan includes

• Supplier search across 17.6M+ verified manufacturers in 150+ countries
• Verification reports with customs filing history, ownership, and consistency scoring
• Alternative-origin finder for any HS code: one click reveals every country producing at scale
• Decision-maker contact intel for sales, founders, and export managers
• Built-in outreach CRM with email and LinkedIn sequences
• Trade-policy alerts for tariff, sanction, and quota changes affecting your sourcing strategy
• Excel and API exports for procurement workflows