7 Red Flags That Your "Durian Supplier" Doesn't Actually Have Product
A buyer sent an $85,000 deposit to a Malaysian "supplier" with a professional website, HACCP certificates, and detailed product catalogs. Three months later: no shipment, no refund, supplier emails bouncing. The company never had durian facilities. The certifications were faked. The professional website? Built in two days using stock photos.
The frustrating part? The red flags were visible from the first conversation. Stock photos that reversed-image-searched to other companies. Vague answers about facility location. Unwillingness to video call. Pressure to pay deposits quickly. Every warning sign was there – but the buyer didn't know what to look for until $85,000 disappeared.
Here are the seven red flags that reveal fake suppliers before you send money. Learn these, and you'll spot the frauds in the first email exchange.
Red Flag #1: Only Stock Photos, No Real Facility Images
Their website shows beautiful Musang King durian on white backgrounds. Perfect packaging. Gleaming processing facilities. All professional-quality images. But when you ask for photos of their actual plantation or freezing facility, the excuses start. "We don't photograph our proprietary freezing process for competitive reasons." "Our plantation is in a remote area without good photography equipment." "We can send photos next week when harvest starts."
Legitimate suppliers have hundreds of real photos showing actual operations – not because they're trying to prove legitimacy, but because they're proud of their facilities and use photos constantly for documentation, customer communication, and operations management. They'll send you facility photos within hours because they have them readily available.
Run reverse image searches on supplier website photos. If the same "their facility" appears on three other durian exporter websites, you've found a scammer who stole images from legitimate companies. Real suppliers use their own photos showing their specific operations, not stock imagery from Shutterstock or competitors' websites.
Red Flag #2: Vague Location and No Verifiable Address
"We're based in Malaysia" tells you nothing. Malaysia has 13 states spanning hundreds of kilometers with different growing regions for different varieties. A real supplier says "We're located in Raub, Pahang, with processing facilities in Bentong" – specific locations you can verify actually exist and make sense for durian operations.
Watch for virtual office addresses or residential addresses listed as "export facility." When you suggest a video call showing their freezing facility, real suppliers say "Sure, let me schedule that for tomorrow when the shift supervisor is available." Fake suppliers make excuses. "Our internet connection isn't good enough for video." "The facility manager isn't available this week." "We prefer to keep our operations private until after deposit payment."
Professional durian exporters welcome facility verification because it differentiates them from scammers. If someone gets defensive about showing their facility via video call or providing specific location details, that defensiveness itself is the red flag.
Red Flag #3: Pricing That Makes No Economic Sense
Musang King market pricing runs $25-35/kg typically depending on season and order size. A "supplier" offers $15/kg year-round with no minimum order, shipped anywhere worldwide. The economics don't work. Either the product doesn't exist, it's not actually Musang King, or it's a scam.
Real pricing fluctuates with harvest seasons. Peak season June-July pricing might be $25-28/kg for Musang King. Off-season February-March could be $35-40/kg because supply is limited. If pricing never changes regardless of when you inquire, the supplier isn't actually buying from plantations affected by seasonal availability – because they're not buying from plantations at all.
"Special relationship discounts" need logical explanations. "We own our plantations so we skip middleman markups" makes sense and can be verified by visiting the plantations. "We have special government connections for discounted product" is nonsense – governments don't provide durian export subsidies that enable 40% below market pricing. If the explanation doesn't make economic sense, the offer is fake.
Red Flag #4: Certifications They Can't Actually Verify
They claim HACCP certification and GACC registration for China exports. When you ask for certificate numbers to verify independently, the excuses begin. "We're updating our HACCP certification this month, we'll send the new certificate when issued." "GACC registration is confidential for competitive reasons." "We can provide certificates after deposit payment."
Real certifications have verification mechanisms. HACCP certificates include certification body contact information you can call to verify. GACC registration numbers can be checked in official Chinese government databases. Legitimate suppliers provide these immediately because verification proves they're professional – fake suppliers delay because verification reveals they're frauds.
Check certificate dates and issuing bodies carefully. Some fake certificates show HACCP issued by organizations that don't actually certify food facilities. Others show certification dates in the future or expiration dates that passed two years ago. Real suppliers maintain current, valid certifications and expect buyers to verify them independently.
Red Flag #5: Pressure Tactics and Artificial Urgency
"This pricing is only available until Friday" on a Monday email. "Another buyer is waiting for your decision by tomorrow." "Pay the deposit today to secure your allocation before peak season sells out" – in November, seven months before peak season starts.
Legitimate suppliers want your business and understand you need time for due diligence. They give you reasonable timelines to review contracts, verify certifications, check references, and arrange payment instruments. They know rushing buyers into deposits before proper verification creates problems later – problems professional businesses avoid.
The suppliers who get defensive when you ask for facility verification or reference contacts are revealing their true nature. "If you don't trust us, find another supplier" is what scammers say when verification would expose them. Real suppliers say "Of course, let me connect you with three customers who've received multiple shipments – they can tell you about our reliability better than we can."
Red Flag #6: Payment to Wrong Entities or Personal Accounts
The company name is "Golden Dragon Durian Export Sdn Bhd" but payment instructions say wire funds to "Lucky Trading International" or to "Ahmad bin Abdullah personal account." When you question the discrepancy, they explain "Lucky Trading is our parent company" or "Ahmad is our CEO, we use his account for international transactions."
Professional exporters have business bank accounts in the company name. Period. They accept Letters of Credit because they work with banks routinely and have the infrastructure to handle proper trade finance. When a "supplier" will only accept telegraphic transfer to personal accounts and refuses Letters of Credit, they're either too small/unprofessional to work with safely or they're outright fraudulent.
Third-party payment routing is another major warning sign. "Pay to our Singapore office who will coordinate with our Malaysia facility" might be legitimate if both companies are clearly related and verifiable. But if you can't independently verify both companies exist and are actually affiliated, don't send money based on trust alone.
Red Flag #7: Can't Answer Basic Durian Technical Questions
You ask what freezing technology they use and they answer vaguely "industrial freezing equipment" instead of specifics like "liquid nitrogen IQF at -100°C." When you ask about harvest timing for Musang King in their region, they don't know or give answers that contradict actual growing seasons. They can't explain quality differences between varieties accurately or describe proper thawing procedures for customers.
Real durian exporters are technical experts. They've worked with durian for years, understand varieties intimately, know processing technology in detail, and can discuss export documentation for different destination countries knowledgeably. They answer technical questions confidently because they live this business daily.
Fake suppliers rely on vague generalities because they don't actually work with durian. They've researched enough to build a convincing website, but detailed technical discussions expose their lack of real operational knowledge. Ask specific questions about processing, quality control, seasonal variations, and export procedures – then pay attention to whether answers are specific and confident or vague and evasive.
How to Verify Before Paying Anything
Multiple red flags appearing together should make you walk away completely. One red flag might be explainable – maybe they're a small operation without professional photography. But vague location plus pricing that's too good plus pressure tactics plus payment to personal accounts? That's not a legitimate supplier having a few rough edges. That's a scam operation.
Before paying any deposits, verify business registration in the company's home country. Malaysia and Thailand have public business registries where you can confirm companies actually exist. Check that the registered business name matches what the supplier claims and that registration is current, not expired.
Request references from existing customers and actually contact them. Don't just accept a list of names – call or email those customers and ask about their experience. Did product actually arrive? Was quality as promised? Were timelines met? Would they order again? Legitimate suppliers have satisfied customers willing to vouch for them.
Start with small sample orders via air freight before committing to container loads. Yes, samples cost more per kilogram ($50-80/kg versus $30/kg for containers). But spending $5,000 on samples verifies the supplier can actually deliver product as described before you risk $40,000-80,000 on full containers. Many scams are exposed when "suppliers" make excuses why they can't send samples.
Use Letters of Credit for first orders despite the 1-3% cost. The bank verification and documentation requirements prevent many frauds because scammers can't provide the required shipping documents proving they actually sent product. Suppliers who absolutely refuse to work with Letters of Credit either lack professional banking relationships (risky) or can't actually deliver product (fraud).
The Bottom Line on Supplier Verification
Fake durian suppliers exist, and they're sophisticated. Professional-looking websites, fake certifications, convincing stories about plantation partnerships – they've perfected the appearance of legitimacy. But the red flags reveal the truth if you know what to look for.
Trust your instincts. If something feels wrong – vague answers, pressure tactics, unwillingness to verify – walk away. Plenty of legitimate suppliers exist who welcome verification, provide references readily, and understand buyers need protection on first orders.
The money you save by avoiding one fake supplier outweighs any lost opportunity from being cautious. Better to miss a slightly better price from a questionable supplier than lose your entire deposit to a fraud.
Take Action
Work with verified durian suppliers who welcome facility verification, provide customer references, and maintain proper certifications. Submit an RFQ on CommoditiesHub – we pre-verify supplier facilities, business registration, and export track records so you're connected only with legitimate exporters who have actual product and proven delivery capabilities.