Should UK brands be diversifying their manufacturing into Vietnam? TK breaks down the China-Plus-One strategy — what it means, whether it's right for your product range, and how to build a dual-source supply chain without gambling on an untested factory.
In summary: The China-Plus-One strategy means adding a secondary manufacturing country — most commonly Vietnam — alongside China, rather than replacing it entirely. For UK brands, this reduces supply chain risk, lowers tariff exposure on qualifying categories, and opens access to Vietnam's growing textiles, furniture, and electronics accessories sectors. Most UK importers source 60–80% from China and 20–40% from Vietnam depending on product type. Epic Sourcing helps UK businesses design and manage dual-source supply chains across both countries.
Cast your mind back to early 2020. Most UK importers had one manufacturer, one country, one supply chain. Then the world ground to a halt — container costs hit record highs, factories closed, and shelves went empty. For many UK brands, the lesson was stark: depending entirely on a single country is a commercial vulnerability, however reliable that country has been for years.
Since then, the phrase "China-Plus-One" has moved from boardroom jargon into everyday conversation among UK eCommerce founders, Amazon FBA sellers, and high-street retailers. The concept is disarmingly simple: keep sourcing from China (because it's still world-class for most categories), but add at least one other manufacturing country to your mix. Vietnam is, by a wide margin, the most popular "plus one" destination for UK brands — and for good reason.
It's worth noting that this is a very different question to "should I try Alibaba or use a sourcing agent?" If you're still working out the basics of importing from China, our Complete Guide to Importing from China to the UK is a better starting point. Come back to this one when you're ready to think about diversification.
Vietnam has been quietly building its manufacturing infrastructure for two decades. Today it's one of the top five global exporters of textiles and footwear, a growing hub for electronics assembly, and a serious competitor in furniture and home goods. It's not a replacement for China — it's a complement. Think of it less as a divorce and more as adding a second string to your bow.
For UK importers specifically, Vietnam has a compelling tariff advantage. The UK-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (UKVFTA) provides preferential duty rates for qualifying goods — some categories at 0–5% versus standard UK Global Tariff rates on Chinese goods. When you're managing margin pressure in a cost-conscious market, that differential matters.
At Epic Sourcing, we've seen a significant uptick in UK clients asking us to find Vietnamese suppliers alongside their existing Chinese manufacturers. The most common product categories? Garments, wooden furniture, and leather goods — precisely the categories where Vietnam's factories are most mature and most competitive on quality.
Sourcing Hack #1: Don't start your Vietnam factory search on Alibaba — Vietnamese manufacturers are significantly underrepresented there compared to Chinese suppliers. Instead, work with a sourcing agent who has on-the-ground presence in Vietnam, attend the Vietnam Manufacturing Expo, or ask your existing Chinese factory if they have Vietnamese partner facilities. Many do — and they'll often facilitate an introduction.
Here's the question I get asked most often: "Should we leave China and go fully Vietnam?" My answer, almost every time: no. The China-Plus-One strategy is about diversification, not abandonment. China's manufacturing ecosystem is unmatched for depth, speed, component supply chains, and the ability to handle complex customisation at scale.
Vietnam simply doesn't yet have the same supplier density, tooling capacity, or component infrastructure for most categories. Products that tend to stay better in China include complex electronics, precision-tooled parts, highly customised packaging, and anything requiring significant component sourcing from China's own supply chain. Vietnam's sweet spot is labour-intensive, simpler-construction products — garments, basic home goods, bags, accessories, knitwear, and footwear.
The smart approach is to map your product range and ask honestly: which of these could be produced in Vietnam without compromising on quality or adding significant complexity? That category-by-category analysis is something we do with clients regularly as part of our Secret Label Package, which is built for brands who want full supply chain management across multiple sourcing countries.
Sourcing Hack #2: Before moving any product to Vietnam, ask your Chinese supplier to produce a small benchmark batch. Then request identical samples from Vietnamese manufacturers. Do a side-by-side quality comparison — fabric weight, stitching consistency, hardware finish — before committing to a switch. This removes the guesswork entirely and gives you a commercially defensible decision based on evidence.
Let me make this concrete. Imagine you're a UK lifestyle brand selling gym bags, water bottles, and resistance bands — all currently sourced from factories in Guangdong, China. Your supply chain runs smoothly most of the time, but you've been stung twice: once by port congestion, once by a factory closure. You want resilience without starting from scratch.
Under a China-Plus-One model, you might keep your water bottles in China (they require complex moulding and component sourcing) but transition your gym bags and resistance bands — simpler construction, high textile content — to Vietnamese manufacturers. Your supply chain now has two geographic bases. A disruption in one country no longer halts your entire operation.
This is exactly the kind of dual-source strategy we help UK clients design at Epic Sourcing. We have teams on the ground in both Guangzhou, China and Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam — so we can vet, audit, and manage suppliers across both countries. If you're at the early stages of thinking about this, our Private Label Package is a good starting point for brands developing custom products who want to explore multi-country manufacturing.
You might also find our companion post useful if white label clothing is part of your product range: White Label Clothing from China to the UK — The Complete Brand Owner's Guide covers the sourcing process for fashion brands specifically, including how Vietnam fits into the clothing supply chain.
Sourcing Hack #3: When building a dual-source supply chain, stagger your orders — don't immediately split 50/50 between China and Vietnam. Start with 80/20 (China/Vietnam), run a full production cycle, evaluate quality and lead time consistency, then gradually shift the split based on what the data tells you. Brands that move too fast into Vietnam often encounter quality teething issues that a slower, evidence-led transition would have caught early.
This is where things get nuanced. Labour costs in Vietnam are generally 20–40% lower than equivalent coastal Chinese factories. For labour-intensive products like garments, this translates to meaningful unit cost savings. However, Vietnam's component supply chains are less developed — factories often import components from China — which adds cost and lead time back in, and can complicate Rules of Origin for UKVFTA preferential tariffs.
On the tariff side, the UKVFTA gives Vietnamese goods a duty advantage — but only for goods that genuinely qualify under Rules of Origin. If a Vietnamese factory is assembling products using predominantly Chinese components, those goods may not qualify for preferential rates. This is one of the most common traps, and something we navigate carefully for every client whose Vietnam sourcing involves UKVFTA claims. Always verify before building your cost model on preferential rates.
For a thorough guide to UK import duties, VAT, and landed cost calculations, our Complete UK Import Guide walks through every cost element in detail. Understanding your total landed cost — not just the factory price — is the only way to make a genuine China vs Vietnam comparison.
Sourcing Hack #4: Always calculate your landed cost, not just your FOB price. Vietnam's factory price might look attractive, but factor in: freight to the UK (Vietnam has fewer direct shipping services than China, which can affect transit times and freight rates), UK import duty (check UKVFTA Rules of Origin carefully), VAT on import, plus your sourcing agent or freight forwarder fees. Only then can you make a like-for-like comparison.
Honestly? It depends on your product category, your order volumes, and your risk tolerance. If you're an early-stage UK brand placing your first 200-piece order of a single product, China-Plus-One is probably premature. Your energy is better spent finding a great China supplier and proving your market. Diversification is a second-stage move.
If you're an established brand doing regular repeat orders — especially in textiles, furniture, leather goods, or similar — and you've felt the pain of supply chain disruption, then building a Vietnam relationship alongside your China base is a genuinely smart strategic move. The brands we see doing this well are the ones who approach it methodically, with proper factory vetting and a clear category strategy, rather than making a panic switch after the next supply chain crisis.
We work with finding and vetting reliable manufacturers as a core part of everything we do at Epic Sourcing — and the same rigour applies whether we're sourcing in China or Vietnam. You can also read about the role of sourcing agents if you're weighing up whether to navigate this yourself or work with a partner.
The best starting point is a conversation. Drop us a line at hello@epicsourcing.co.uk or book a free strategy call — we'd love to look at your product range and map out what a dual-source supply chain could realistically look like for your business.
The China-Plus-One strategy is a supply chain diversification approach where businesses add at least one other manufacturing country — typically Vietnam, India, Bangladesh, or Indonesia — alongside their existing Chinese factories. The goal is to reduce single-country dependency and mitigate risks from tariff changes, geopolitical tensions, or production disruptions. Most businesses don't replace China; they add a secondary source for specific product categories.
Labour costs in Vietnam are generally 20–40% lower than coastal Chinese factories. For labour-intensive products like garments and bags, this translates to meaningful unit cost savings. However, the total cost picture depends on component sourcing, freight options, and applicable UKVFTA tariff rates. For complex products requiring China's component supply chains, Vietnam often ends up being more expensive on a total landed cost basis.
Yes, the UK-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (UKVFTA) provides preferential tariff rates — in many categories at 0–5% — for goods imported directly from Vietnam. However, Rules of Origin requirements must be met: goods must be sufficiently manufactured in Vietnam and not simply assembled from Chinese-origin components. Always verify UKVFTA eligibility with a freight forwarder or sourcing agent before building your cost model on preferential rates.
Vietnam excels in textiles and garments, footwear, wooden furniture, leather goods, bags, and some electronics assembly. It's less competitive for products requiring complex tooling, large component supply chains, or very high-mix production. If you're unsure whether your category is a good Vietnam fit, a brief supplier assessment by a sourcing agent can clarify this quickly based on your specifications and volumes.
Vietnam's factories are underrepresented on Alibaba compared to Chinese suppliers. Better approaches include: working with a sourcing agent who has on-the-ground presence in Vietnam, attending the Vietnam Manufacturing Expo or Vietnam International Trade Fair, or asking your Chinese factory if they have Vietnamese partner facilities. As with China, thorough due diligence — including factory audits — is essential before placing a production order.
Yes. Epic Sourcing has bilingual teams based in both Guangzhou, China and Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. We can source, vet, audit, and manage suppliers across both countries, and help you design a dual-source supply chain strategy for your specific product range. Book a free strategy call to discuss your requirements — we work with UK brands of all sizes, from first-time importers to established retailers managing multi-country supply chains.
The China-Plus-One conversation isn't going away. As UK brands build more resilient supply chains and trade conditions continue to evolve, dual-source manufacturing will become standard practice — not a competitive advantage, but a baseline expectation for any serious importer. The question isn't whether to diversify. It's when to start, and how to do it well.
At Epic Sourcing, we help UK businesses source smarter — whether that's from China, Vietnam, or both. If you're ready to start the conversation, we're here. Email hello@epicsourcing.co.uk or get in touch via our website.
TK Wang, Founder & Director @ Epic Sourcing
