It all comes from China, but much of it—on the order of 60 percent of the worlds cheap consumable goods—comes from just one city: Yiwu. Yiwu is a small town by Chinese standards pop. The city attracts business visitors from all over the world. Buyers come year-round to survey goods and make bulk orders that end up in hardware stores, souvenir shops, and big-box retailers on every continent.
According to one estimate by a local trade group, more than 60 percent of all Christmas decorations, especially lights, originate in Yiwu. The Christmas market covers an area larger than a stadium. The largest market, a hodge podge with a little of everything, stands on acres and holds more than 58, individual stalls. Factories in Yiwu make many of the goods, but the spirit of production also extends to the suburbs and countryside, where people sew in their own homes and then sell the products to a market, where a person takes a cut to sell them to a buyer from, say, Korea, Japan, or the United States.
By one estimate, more than 1, shipping containers leave Yiwu each day for foreign ports. Being around so many cheap products began to feel surreal for Petralla.
Things were for sale everywhere, in stories, on the sidewalk, even in the streets. He passed stalls full of people selling the same objects, all produced nearby. Squirt guns, soccer balls, jewelry, stuffed animals, hair ties, phone cases. Everything for sale for pennies. Beginning in the s, the city began to transition to production center for tradable goods. City officials invested in infrastructure and factories. As Yiwu has built its 21 st -century economy on quantity, it has in the past few decades begun to invest more in quality as well.
The same occurred for zippers, once cheap and disposable, after significant investment to make them sleeker and stronger. So much production and commerce results in a culture of competitiveness, where people try to outsell their neighbors. When you receive your product sample, look to see how it was shipped to you, i. You should also note how long the sample took to get to you, because this will give you an idea on how long it will usually take when you order from your manufacturer.
Upon receiving the sample of your product, you should inspect and test the quality of it and if it looks like how you want it to look. This is an important step, and allows you to negotiate with your manufacturer about your product so you can get it exactly how you want it.
This might take multiple samples, and a lot of back-and-forth communication with your manufacturer. Samples also allow you to test your product, and check that it does what you want it to do.
The timing of the holiday changes every year because it is based on the lunar calendar, and not the Gregorian calendar we usually follow. Officially, Chinese New Year only lasts for a week but manufacturing companies in China and their offices usually shut down 10 days before to give workers time to travel home.
This means that in the weeks leading up to the holiday there is a big rush to manufacture and ship products before businesses shut down. This rush can lead to increased costs and a much longer lead and shipping time. It can also take businesses up to a month to return to normal after Chinese New Year as after the holiday it is very common that people either change jobs or not return to their job at all. This leads to longer production and shipping times as manufacturers try to find new employees.
If there are any problems with this inventory quality, shipping times, etc make sure you contact your manufacturer in China straight away. Communicate with your supplier — Since your manufacturer has likely gone through shutting down over Chinese New Year in the past, you can always ask them about the experience and potential problems you might have.
Focus on quality control — Quality control issues are frequent before and after Chinese New Year, because there is so much going on with manufacturing more products and workers not returning from holiday.
There are 3 main ways to ship your product from China; sea freight, air freight and air courier, with each option having advantages and disadvantages. Sea freight — This is the standard ocean shipping that most people are familiar with. Your products get loaded into containers and get sent slowly across the ocean. The main advantage of using sea freight for shipping your products is that it is the cheapest option.
Air freight — This is where your products are shipped via an air carrier, which may be commercial or charter. However, businesses use this option when they have a lot of products they need shipped and they need them fast.
Air courier is the fastest and easiest option, so the majority of businesses use this option. The main advantage of this service is that the courier takes care of everything for you, they do the paperwork and will invoice you for any customs duty when your product arrives. Cost is again the major disadvantage when using an air courier, as it can get very expensive depending on how many products you want shipped and how big they are.
Getting your product manufactured in China can be confusing and stressful. We hope that this article helps you get started with manufacturing in China. The next step is creating your company so make sure to read our article Branding your business: how to create a brand from scratch.
Check out some of our articles and resources to help launch products faster with MetaFuro. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website. Free Trial. Product Resources Resources Page Everything you need to know about securing business communication Ultimate guide to avoid email phishing Ultimate guide to product sourcing Ultimate guide to product manufacturing Everything you wanted to know about China manufacturing Our 5-Step, comprehensive process to verify Chinese manufacturers 4 simple ways to protect your IP in China.
Contact Us About. Everything you wanted to know about China manufacturing. More to learn on MetaFuro! How to run a cyber risk assessment for your business Before we discuss in detail what cyber risk assessment is all about, let us first.
Kevin Hamano October 28, Where just a few months ago, many. Kevin Hamano April 21, I feel. Aimee Littleboy April 3, View All Resources. Check out MetaFuro for a Free Trial! This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.
Cookie settings Accept. Close Privacy Overview This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Use precise geolocation data.
Select personalised content. Create a personalised content profile. Measure ad performance. Select basic ads. Create a personalised ads profile. Select personalised ads. Apply market research to generate audience insights.
Measure content performance. Develop and improve products. List of Partners vendors. The Chinese economy thrives as a manufacturing powerhouse and the nation's products seem to be everywhere. Some may think the ubiquity of Chinese products is due to the abundance of cheap Chinese labor that brings down the production costs , but there is much more to it than that. In addition to its low labor costs, China has become known as "the world's factory" because of its strong business ecosystem, lack of regulatory compliance, low taxes and duties, and competitive currency practices.
Here we review each of these key factors. China is home to approximately 1. Moreover, the majority of Chinese were rural and lower-middle-class or poor until the late 20th century when internal migration turned the country's rural-urban distribution upside-down. These immigrants to industrial cities are willing to work many shifts for low wages. As of Jan. The huge labor pool in China helps to produce in bulk, accommodate any seasonal industry requirement, and even cater to sudden rises in the demand schedule.
Industrial production does not take place in isolation, but rather relies on networks of suppliers, component manufacturers, distributors, government agencies, and customers who are all involved in the process of production through competition and cooperation. The business ecosystem in China has evolved quite a lot in the last 30 years. For example, Shenzhen , a city bordering Hong Kong in the southeast, has evolved as a hub for the electronics industry.
It has cultivated an ecosystem to support the manufacturing supply chain , including component manufacturers, low-cost workers, a technical workforce, assembly suppliers, and customers. American companies like Apple Inc. AAPL take advantage of China's supply chain efficiencies to keep costs low and margins high. Foxconn Technology Group a Taiwan-based manufacturer of electronics has multiple suppliers and manufacturers of components that are at nearby locations.
For many companies, it's economically unfeasible to take the components to the U. Manufacturers in the West are expected to comply with certain basic guidelines with regards to child labor, involuntary labor, health and safety norms, wage laws, and protection of the environment. Chinese factories are known for not following most of these laws and guidelines.
Historically, Chinese factories have employed child labor, have had long shift hours, and have not provided the workers with compensation insurance.
Faced with mounting criticism, the Chinese government has claimed to institute reforms that protect workers' rights and provide for fairer compensation. However, compliance with the rules in many industries is low and change has been slow.
0コメント