Three weeks ago, I attended the "Made in Asia" seminar organized by the French Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong. I am going to share two videos from this event, in two different articles. Here is the video of the panel entitled "How human … [Read more...]
The trend to buying lower quantities from China
Wholesalers and retail chains make up the vast majority of the products imported from China. They buy large volumes, and then sell the good out of their inventory -- either to several domestic customers, or in their own stores. This is the … [Read more...]
How small Chinese manufacturers think
There are constant misunderstandings between some importers and their suppliers. The reason is that most purchasers are not familiar with the way Chinese manufacturers think. And they are incapable of placing themselves in their supplier's … [Read more...]
How to manage Chinese staff: 3 steps to empowerment
After 5 years working full time in China (and a lot of trial-and-error), I start to understand how to manage Chinese staff for best results. I think one can distinguish three levels, from micro-management (everybody hates it) all the way … [Read more...]
How Chinese manufacturers reduce their costs: “the sub-supply chain”
Last week I described a few ways Chinese manufacturers differentiate their products, based on an article from Global Sources. Now let's have a look at how they cut their operating costs. It is pretty ugly, as described by … [Read more...]
List of good books to read before coming to China
I just found an interesting Linkedin Q&A: If you had to read one book (okay, two or three) on China before going to work there what would it be? Is this question naive?? Here is the response from my friend Etienne Charlier, manager … [Read more...]
Adapting to the mentality of your Chinese suppliers
I recently read How to Win Friends and Influence People. It was written by Dale Carnegie, an American author, in the 1930s. And I kept thinking "this is a good description of how to adapt to the mentalities of Chinese suppliers!" Here are … [Read more...]
The Chinese approach to quality assurance
I spent part of last week with one of my clients' quality assurance manager. I recognized certain patterns that are widespread in factories and buying offices here, and that are very detrimental to quality. Here are the two bad habits that … [Read more...]
Are low-tech factories closing in china?
A few months ago, Steve Dickinson wrote about what would happen to low-tech factories along the coast of China in Factory Closings In South China. All Part Of The Plan: Low value added/high labor content manufacturers from Wenzhou in … [Read more...]
There are cheaters everywhere — not just in China
I always tell importers not to trust Chinese manufacturers’ certificates. I am trying not to cast doubt on ALL Chinese suppliers, because some of them are honest. On the other hand, it is better to push inexperienced importers to be on the … [Read more...]
- « Previous Page
- 1
- …
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- …
- 11
- Next Page »