In light of the financial downturn, many foreign invested and domestic companies in China have been laying off their employees in masses. Though much of the focus has been in the manufacturing sector with stories of massive lay-offs and factory shutdown, very few industries will be completely immune to the downturn – forcing many employers to consider downsizing as an option to weather the storm. This, coupled with the…

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Follow up well afterwards

According to our experience, most of the exhibitors and visitors will not actively follow up after the exhibition, maybe because they are busy with catching up with other work postponed due to the trip. Even though you prepare very well before the exhibition and have a wonderful discussion with the right suppliers, the trip will be wasted if you do not…

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Poor quality product from China continues to be a major issue for both importers and factories. As a buyer, you can protect yourself and also educate your clients with some simple on-line research on product safety and performance standards. With the right documentation you can then clearly communicate these standards to your Chinese factory, and this way often prevent a major QC lapse.

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This is the body of a presentation that I give for Global Sources at the China Sourcing fairs. Global Sources asked for a presentation that was aimed at helping new buyers to China understand what some of their options for financing are now that the world economy is so bad. There are, to be honest, no new options (TT’s and LC’s are still the standard), but there are some unique situations that may offer some new opportunities for buyers coming to China.

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Many small and medium sized companies that engage in OEM manufacturing/ outsourcing in China fail to take the steps necessary to protect themselves. When problems arise, they can do little or nothing to protect themselves because they have no legal basis for protection. The fact is that outsourcing disputes must be resolved in China, under the Chinese legal system. The Chinese legal system has improved greatly over the past ten years and taking a few…

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