By Fabien Gaussorgues We have worked with multiple jewelry manufacturers in Europe, the US, and Australia. In this time, I realized that their knowledge is often far below what one would expect from industry experts which leads to many … [Read more...]
How To Cooperate With Your Chinese Supplier, Part 1: Be Prepared for Many Chinese Factory Closures This Coming CNY
It is coming again. Chinese New Year (CNY for short). All Chinese manufacturers will close sometime in early February and re-open slowly toward the end of the month. The more they rely on migrant labor, the longer the break (on … [Read more...]
How To Cooperate With Your Chinese Supplier, Part 2: Still Hoping Your Manufacturer meets Your Quality Standard?
Are you frustrated because a Chinese manufacturer has proven unable to meet your quality standard? Do they keep making promises of imminent improvement? And are you seeing no improvement? So typical. I have had several discussions … [Read more...]
How To Cooperate With Your Chinese Supplier, Part 3: 4 Habits of Your Chinese Suppliers You’ll Have to Get Used To
Expats living in China tend to be bothered by many aspects of the local culture. Here are a few common questions I was asked many times: How can they be so self-centered and so unaware of what happens around them when they drive, walk, … [Read more...]
How To Cooperate With Your Chinese Supplier, Part 4: Training Sessions on Supplier Development (In Guangzhou & Shenzhen)
This week and next week I am holding a training session on this topic: Half-Day Training: How To Set Up a Supplier Improvement Program Practical Tools for Quality and Procurement Professionals Dates and places: 30 Nov. in … [Read more...]
How To Cooperate With Your Chinese Supplier, Part 5: How Likely Are Your China Suppliers To Be Shut Down?
The number of Chinese factories that are shut down by the government because of their environmental impact keeps growing. More and more supply chains get disrupted. Some companies that relied mostly/solely on one source are dying. So the … [Read more...]
How To Cooperate With Your Chinese Supplier, Part 6: China Suppliers Lack Transparency… What Implications for Buyers?
This email was forwarded to me without identifiers about the supplier or the customer. I thought it was interesting for our readers. I was told it was written by a project manager in a Western-owned trading company. The buyer was pushing … [Read more...]
How To Cooperate With Your Chinese Supplier, Part 7: Dangers of Subcontracting and Losing your Core Competencies
In the rush of the 2000's to outsource production to Chinese suppliers, many American and European companies have lost some of their core competencies... And they can no longer in-source those activities. I came across this passage in a … [Read more...]
How To Cooperate With Your Chinese Supplier, Part 8: After You Order, Your Chinese Factory Announces a 2 Months Delay?
By Fabien Gaussorgues Last week, an American buyer shared his frustration about their contract manufacturer in Shenzhen with me. The manufacturer has to delay production for 2 months because the raw material factory will be closed for … [Read more...]
How To Cooperate With Your Chinese Supplier, Part 9: Managing China’s Unique Production Challenges
As China's economy matures and their infrastructures get better, some severe production challenges are not going away. They are actually getting more acute! This article is not about the challenges of dealing with Chinese suppliers & … [Read more...]