Episode Number:

52

November 24, 2025

Ricky Ho, Founder & CEO of SourceReady, breaks down how AI, data, and global manufacturing are reshaping the way brands source products. From the post‑pandemic supply chain shift to the rise of AI sourcing agents, Ricky explains exactly how sellers can find reliable manufacturers, protect product quality, and scale with confidence.

Meet Ricky: The Builder Bringing Transparency to Global Sourcing

Ricky Ho grew up inside the world of manufacturing—literally. As part of a third‑generation factory family producing for Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger, he saw firsthand how inefficient and confusing sourcing truly is for most brands. Before launching SourceReady, he founded Treelab, a supply‑chain ERP backed by Sequoia Capital and Tencent, achieving a successful exit at just 23.

Today, he’s on a mission to make sourcing transparent, compliant, and effortless through AI.

The New Sourcing Reality: Diversify or Get Disrupted

Global sourcing has changed—fast.

  • The pandemic and US–China tensions exposed how fragile single‑country sourcing really is.
  • “China‑plus‑one” is no longer optional; it’s the new baseline for resilient supply chains.
  • Smaller brands struggle most because they lack the manpower and access that big retailers have.
Why It Matters: Relying on one region—no matter how efficient—puts your business at risk. Sellers now need alternatives, visibility, and real supplier data.

Small Brands vs. Corporations: Different Game, Different Rules

For enterprise companies, sourcing teams span continents. For small brands, it’s often a single founder juggling everything.

Ricky breaks down the mindset shift you need:

  • Great manufacturers choose their clients—not the other way around.
  • Vision matters. A strong introduction and future roadmap dramatically increase your chances of being accepted.
  • Chasing low‑bar suppliers leads to higher risk, inconsistent quality, and zero scalability.
Smart Play: Pitch suppliers the same way you pitch investors. Show where you're going—not just what you want today.

Trading Company vs. Manufacturer—And Why It Matters

Most sellers don’t know this: About 65% of suppliers on Alibaba aren’t manufacturers. They’re trading companies.

Why that’s a problem:

  • They profit from the price difference, which often pushes factories to cut corners.
  • You lose control, visibility, and consistency.
  • Product images on Alibaba aren’t vetted—many factories upload thousands they can’t even produce.
What To Do Instead: Work with agents only on a fixed service fee—not per‑order margins. And prioritize suppliers with verified, real brand customers.

The Biggest Mistake Sellers Make When Vetting Factories

Ricky is blunt: judging suppliers based on Alibaba photos is a rookie mistake.

Here’s what actually works:

  • Evaluate factories based on the brands they serve.
  • Look at export data, country‑of‑origin history, and shipment trends.
  • Use tools that translate complex customs data into supplier profiles.
Why It Works: Quality is proven by reputation—if they serve strong brands, they have strong standards.

Where Sourcing Is Going in the Next 5 Years

Ricky predicts two major shifts:

  1. Multi‑country sourcing will become the norm, not the exception.
  2. Factory networks will expand globally, offering multiple country‑of‑origin (COO) options under a single supplier relationship.

This means:

  • Brands get diversification without extra complexity.
  • Factories shoulder the operational overhead.
  • Sellers can operate like enterprise retailers—even as a team of one.
Advantage: With the right data, you can source smarter, faster, and safer.

AI Sourcing Agents: The Game‑Changer Sellers Didn’t Know They Needed

AI is already outperforming humans at the two hardest parts of sourcing:

  • Evaluating thousands of suppliers instantly
  • Managing repetitive, back‑and‑forth conversations at scale

Instead of messaging 5 suppliers, AI can contact 300 simultaneously—collecting specs, pricing, MOQ details, and compliance data, all structured neatly for comparison.

This eliminates:

  • Days of email lag
  • Repeated conversations
  • Manual spreadsheet comparisons
  • Late‑night follow‑ups
Bottom Line: AI makes the marginal cost of finding a new factory basically zero—and gives small brands enterprise‑level leverage.

Why SourceReady Exists

Ricky didn’t build SourceReady because it was trendy. He built it because the sourcing world is broken:

  • Too much data lives in inboxes.
  • Too many brands rely on guesswork and luck.
  • Too many factories misrepresent their actual capabilities.

SourceReady uses AI to bring clarity to the chaos—acting like a sourcing agent that never sleeps, never forgets, and never gets overwhelmed.

Try SourceReady (15% Off for Amazon Sellers)

Ricky is giving Amazon Sellers an exclusive offer:

It’s free to start, so you can test the platform before committing.

Connect with Ricky Ho

Final Thoughts

Sourcing used to be about who you knew or how many factories you could visit. Today, it’s about who has access to the right data and who can move the fastest.

AI doesn’t replace relationships. It accelerates them.

With the right tools, sellers can source like enterprise retailers, avoid costly mistakes, and protect product quality from day one.

Stay tuned for more episodes of The eCom Growth Show, where operators, builders, and innovators share what’s actually working inside eCommerce today.