China… Hip, Hype or Here To Stay?
August 9th, 2006
Have you notice that nearly every product you purchase today is marked very clearly “Made in China”. When you see pictures of the skylines, of even just the small cities, you can visibly see where all the steel the country is buying is ending up. It is a massive economy that few from Australia rarely venture into.
While in the air, I was reading about an Australian entrepreneur who is now worth approx $70m and was featured in the BRW Young Rich list. What did he do? Simple… He imported power tools from China and priced them accordingly.
Likewise, I have a friend who a few years ago was one of the clients of an emerging export company. When i say emerging… really he was just starting. Fast forward a few years and this business is now turning over US$50 million per year. Scarily enough, he has an entertainment budget for his clients of $10,000 per week. Does your company do deals this way? It is unlikely as you don’t want to get in trouble but it’s amazing the power wielded by even these ’small’ players. I wish I had learned Mandarin at school. My ears are wide open! However, you don’t even have to do that as all Chinese businessmen are fluent at English, especially when dealing with import and export markets.
Even if you can’t be a part of the ‘entertainment’, realise that there are numerous benefits with being open to international markets. China is growing and expanding at a rapid rate. As well as supplying the world they are the 4th largest (soon to be third largest) consumer of international goods. The buy and they buy big. For instance, China used 1/2 of the world’s cement, with Australia exporting a large portion of this, the Australian economy can only benefit. And Australian’s have the opportunity of investing directly into these markets by having interest in domestic companies that deal in China or investing directly in Chinese companies.
The growth is amazing and we are reaping rewards at home. Are there aspects of this that encourage you or scare you or make you think? What do you think Pit Dwellers.
September 8th, 2006 at 4:38 pm
I have spent time dealing with Manufacture in China. They are very professional, very motivated and very competitive. It is always a pleasure to deal with the Chinese companies.