Choosing the right wood supplier in Malaysia for your woodworking project is a big decision.
There are so many things to think about, from the cost and quality of raw material to the availability of shipping options.
To help you make an informed choice we’ve compiled this list of processes you should be knowing before deciding on a woods supplier.
Remember, the goal is to find someone with who you feel comfortable working and who has your best interests in mind.
The Factors To Consider When Choosing a Wood Supplier In Malaysia?
The supplier should have a good amount of woodworking experience to ensure quality.
The wood supplier should be able to meet your requirements or be willing to work with you on obtaining the desired results.
A reliable wood supplier in Malaysia will also be able to give you accurate prices, even when shipping is involved.
You want someone who can offer creative and unique solutions for your design needs.
This could involve offering woods from unique parts of the world, different types of finishes, or custom fabrication capabilities.
For example, your wood supplier could be able to bend or carve certain pieces, depending on what you need.
If you need a large quantity of wood, the supplier should have access to larger quantities and be able to cut bulk orders.
It is also important for your wood supplier in Malaysia to have a variety of hardwoods, softwoods, boards, and veneers available.
The shipping process can be stressful for both parties.
Therefore, it’s good if your wood supplier offers fast but safe shipping options.
Your woodworking project might be time-sensitive or require short lead times.
In this case, it’s best if your supplier has quicker transit times enabled by closer proximity or delivery services; if they have their own house delivery which adds more points!
The Procedures of Finding a Reliable Wood Supplier In Malaysia
The first step in finding a reliable wood supplier by looking at their website.
This will give you an idea of what the supplier has to offer before moving forward.
Look for specific information such as sustainability claims or any testimonials that are mentioned and research them online.
You also want to look at photos from different angles, as well as pictures of the process involved with producing your desired project.
This gives you an opportunity to see if they have modern machinery or whether they use other methods that fit your needs.
See how easy it is to use their site.
If it’s difficult find contact information like contact page, WhatsApp, email address, or available for calling.
Then this could be a red flag that the supplier isn’t very organized internally (or maybe just not into web design).
I would recommend doing a call better than just email them, as you don’t have to wait for a reply.
They should be quick to respond and have a specific plan on what kind of wood they will get.
How To Ensure If The Wood Supplier is Reliable Or Not
Do you know any woodworking friends or communities who have worked with the supplier?
If so, ask them if they had a good experience and would recommend working with the company.
Also ask your friends if they’ve experienced problems, where it was fixed easily or resulted in a hassle.
Sometimes you may not really know anyone who has used their services but most companies now are on social media, which can give you an idea of what kind of service their customers receive. (Facebook, Instagram)
Look at the overall impression these platforms give out:
Do they seem to be responsive?
Are there hours available for contact specifically regarding business?
Are they active on social media platforms? What people are talking about them?
Check Online Reviews From The Good and Bad
Almost all of us have bought goods and services online so we’re aware of the importance of online reviews.
Checking out what people who purchased from your wood supplier in Malaysia have to say about their experience can give you a good idea of how well they perform in customer service and it gives you an insight into the quality of work that they deliver.
It would be helpful for you to look at their Before & After photos of some projects done for other clients.
It adds more points if a wood supplier in Malaysia shares a blog post with their future customer on their website.
This showing that the company is active and interested in connecting with the customer and educate their future customer to be smarter when comes to buying for any of their woodworking projects.
Common Questions To Ask Your Wood Supplier
When you are in a buyer position, remember to ask any questions that you really want to know for your woodworking project.
Do not feel shy to ask, because it doesn’t help you anyway.
You can get recommendations from friends or relatives who have purchased wood products before.
Note down any information you can find out about the supplier and their product. Some buyers might ask for:
1) What is the quality of the wood they will use for your project?
Sidenote, new or reused woods can bring benefits to you when expert know-how to fully utilize to meet your needs for your project.
2) How much does it cost (unit price) or how much if you do a large quantity purchase?
3) Colours available?
If buying plywood or pinewood, do they offer a wide range of colors?
Can their selection match your requirements? or could they color the wood for the one you expect?
4) Wood Size Availability?
Normally this is not an issue with sawn timber but it is critical for all other wood products if you are dealing with special sizes and shapes or customized designs.
For customized furniture and cabinetry, timbers come in standard sizes only so availability will depend on whether a piece can be re-designed to fit two or three of the standard sizes available.
5) The 1st draft idea or previous projects showcase for reference
You can request the pictures if you want to do that.
This would help to know if they are the ones who are able to help you and deliver what you want in mind.
6) Ask if can visiting the supplier’s factory
This is very important!
It helps build trust knowing that you will be visiting the same people who are actually making the items you want, rather than some random person online somewhere halfway across town.
You don’t really know what kind of person works at these factories, but with face-to-face contact, you can get a good idea if the people are friendly and professional.
The more questions they are willing to answer, the better the chance that the wood you will receive is of quality.
If they don’t let you see their factory, this may be a red flag regarding how much trust should be given to them as your supplier.
If offered an opportunity to meet with someone in person at their location or at a trade show/convention near where you live.
It is worth taking time out of your schedule just to see for yourself what kind of operation they have going on in terms of professionalism and customer service provided.
Long story short: Face-to-face contact builds trust!
What Will Affect Wood Price In The Market
The wood price can be different from each supplier and each wood product.
You might wonder why they have differences in the same wood product?
It is because of many reasons such as: (but not limited to):
Raw Material Source
Thus, it affects directly to their cost.
For example, for tropical woods like mahogany or teak which are in high demand by Malaysian and Indonesia market.
The timber prices will go up with a higher percentage compared to other timbers which have lower demands and availability comparing with the first type of timber mentioned above.
The Seasonal Selling Period Also Affects The Sale Price
Usually, suppliers will sell more during events like Chinese New Year and Hari Raya.
Or event about interior design with furniture related will also affect wood products price.
Amount Of Raw Material In Stock
Meaning if the Wood supplier has less stock, he will likely sell them at a market price
Wood Supplier in Malaysia who have a big amount of wood on hand they more likely to sell it at a lower price due to the need to make their business turn over faster.
Distance
From their factory/warehouse/shop to your place will affect the transportation cost and hence affects directly to the wood product they are selling.
If you order a bigger quantity, it is possible that they give a better discount as well because it would be cheaper for them compare with 2nd batch purchase (discount will depend on your deal)
How To Negotiate With Your Supplier
Some of us may not familiar with how to negotiate with suppliers regarding prices, so here I’m going to list some tips.
1) Make sure you have clearly asked for the quotation so that you will get what they offered to you from the beginning.
2) Suggest a starting price and then begin the negotiation process where you are aiming to meet your budget or target price.
After that, try to keep an open mind when negotiating with all suppliers by putting your requirement on paper first before making a firm offer or committing to purchase it:
For instance; ‘I can offer RM (amount of money) per item’ which is less than their original asking price but still give them a profit margin as well.
Try not to raise your voice while talking with them because this may cause misunderstanding between both parties; especially if they don’t speak English at all, which is the case in most local’s suppliers.
3) Ask them to consider a bundle price instead of individually pricing each wood product if the quantity asked for is more than they have or during their seasonal selling periods when demand is high.
By bundling, you could get them wholesale prices up to 30% (or even higher) but it will depend on the type of wood products and your negotiation skill with them, so choose wisely!
4) In ‘bulk’ buying, make sure that all wood products are priced reasonably per piece by comparing with other suppliers first before doing any transaction at one go.
Remember that buying in bulk means getting lower additional / discount on certain items as well especially for hardwoods like teak and rosewood.
This will save you from extra cost / additional or running around just to get these pieces done later on.
5) If you have the access to a local who has connections with people in the wood industry, ask if they could help you get into contact with suppliers because it would be faster for them to make inquires about some specific wood products that are hard to find.
Also, do your homework by asking for references and checking its legitimacy online before going ahead with any transaction.
6) Calling over other trustworthy buyers can also give you referrals as well where they usually buy certain things at one go for a better discount.
This will also save you a lot of time on traveling and if you are new in this, at least it would reduce the risk of losing money or getting cheated by fake suppliers using your contact details.
7) Be patient when finding a reliable wood supplier in Malaysia, because not all deals will go smoothly as planned, and make sure to check out their credentials before buying anything from them.
Making Payment and Delivery Arrangement With Wood Supplier In Malaysia
Once you have come to an agreement on the price, wood product specification, and quantity, what is your next move?
It is important that you don’t make a decision or sign any contract before reading through all terms and conditions of their offered quotation.
This also includes understanding about delivery arrangements with them as well; whether it would be by their own transportation or 3rd party logistic.
If deliver your wood product with 3rd party logistic, definitely the price will increase, so I would suggest that make sure you communicate well about the prices.
Another point worth mentioning here is to check the wood products in front of them with your own eyes and ensure that it meets the requirement or specification you are looking for before making any payments at all.
What Is The Best Way To Find Wood Supplier Near Me?
Search through Google or social media sites with popular keywords for example:
“Pine Wood Supplier”, “Custom Make Wood Furniture Supplier Malaysia” and etc…
You will be surprised how big this industry is in Malaysia.
Some of them are selling raw wood products and also make wood furniture like us.
But remember that not all suppliers may have a website.
Many still do business by word-of-mouth only so it’s better if you can go directly to their company with good products instead of finding them online.
Organize a visit from your chosen source, let them give you some tips and advice about what woods suit certain conditions and which are better left alone.
Take that advice with a grain of salt as they will be biassed towards their own product, but it is still good to hear what they have to say.
Ask them to see their factory or at least some examples of the woods they use and also samples from their competitors so you can decide for yourself and make your choice in the end.
Your Wood Supplier In Malaysia Reputation Matters
Even if a company seems to have all the right answers upfront, it’s still essential for you to do your own research.
Any wood supplier in Malaysia will be able to give you samples or pictures of previous projects that they’ve completed for other clients.
You can look through these to see if they’re a good fit for you.
You want to make sure that the work is consistent with your needs as well.
It should not necessarily match exactly; rather, it needs to be comparable enough that there won’t be any issues later on.
Keep in mind that woodworking is largely about producing beauty, a quality that can only be judged subjectively.
Although you should request specific pictures and drawings from the supplier to ensure there won’t be any problems with production, keep in mind that wood itself is very flexible.
There are many more questions you should ask when choosing a wood supplier in Malaysia.
If your chosen supplier can’t provide these answers to you in writing before signing any contracts, it might be a good idea to keep looking for one who will.
There is nothing worse than receiving poorly dried lumber and not knowing how much it cost at the time of purchase.
Let’s Wrap Up
Knowledge is power!
Asking key questions from the start will help ensure that all parties involved make educated choices as well as prevent unpleasant surprises later on down the line.
There is no need to worry about this process because Papan Pine Wood offers the guaranteed quotation with value-added services.
Most importantly, we have a team of professional woodworkers who are able to answer your questions and can suggest the type of wood that suits our client’s requirements.
Our aim is to make our customers satisfied with their decks and meet their target budget without sacrificing the best quality.
If you want us to provide some quotations or projects sample? Please feel free to contact/ WhatsApp us at any time!
Leave a Reply