WHAT CAN WE SELL TO CHINA? WHAT DOES CHINA BUY?
It is difficult to penetrate the China market! It is impossible to penetrate the China market! It is easy to penetrate the China market!
All these statements are TOTALLY RIGHT. They are also TOTALLY WRONG. IT ALL DEPENDS UPON THE PRODUCT
Everybody knows that the East Asian consumer is absolutely hooked on luxury brand consumer items. The brand of handbag you carry or the car you drive immediately places you in a recognizable wealth bracket that is essential to achieving respect in the mind of the average Japanese, Taiwanese, Korean or Chinese consumer. Therefore the big luxury brands look upon China as their cash cow. This trend is slackening off slowly, as consumers become more sophisticated, but it is still the prevailing psychology. 25 years ago, being seen in a McDonalds hamburger restaurant was the height of chic. The present generation looks upon a hamburger meal in the same way that consumers in the West do.
The China consumer looks for foreign goods because of their reputation for high quality and the prestige connected to them. This is because nearly all average and cheaper quality items are produced within China anyway.
So, if you aren’t producing a jet set line of highly fashionable products, what kind of thing can you sell to China?
Just for an indication, here is a short list to consider:-
1) Fashion Accessories
Any range of medium priced fashion accessories involving silver, semi-precious stones etc., so long as it is designed in Europe, North America, Australia.
In order to sell these, sufficient budget is required to exhibit at 2 or 3 suitable Trade Fairs in Beijing, Shanghai or Guangzhou.
2) Inventions
Any invention involving transportation, high tech, housing, civil engineering, infrastructure, agriculture, health and medicine etc.. Whether the invention is already developed into a product, is still on the drawing board or is a new system or process, it is always a good idea to register some form of protection ( Patent, Design Registration) in China. China’s intellectual property laws are now fully advanced and policed properly.
In order to sell any of these to China, it is necessary to ascertain where the market lies, and obtain a suitable Chinese partner. These partners can be either an established distributor if it is a developed product, or a manufacturer/agency in the same field if it is a system or process. In the latter case, the technology transfer will take the form of either a lump sum payment or a licensing agreement.
3) Food, Drink, Consumables
Chinese consumers have a great curiosity for new food and drink. However, if the product doesn’t become a reasonable “hit”, it dies on the vine very quickly, and ends up as a one container load shipment. Some of the notable success stories are US fast food chains and wine. This does not mean that all fast foods are a hit – like pizzas, burgers and KF Chicken. Some, like Mexican, and Sandwich Chains have not made it big. The wine market, which has shown a massive yearly increase over the last 20 years, is beginning to be difficult for new labels to penetrate as many big distributors have established their import lines.
Overseas farm products have great acceptance from Chinese consumers. Imported items like powdered milk/baby formula are in such massive demand that there are smuggling rings bringing in large quantities. This is because of lack of consumer trust in the quality of this kind of product when it is produced locally.
In order to sell this kind of product, if the volume of sales required is large, it is necessary to attend relevant International Food Fairs in the 1st tier cities like Beijing, Shanghai or Guangzhou. If the initial volumes are smaller or more specialized, it is better to select the most suitable city to exhibit at.
We have only touched on a few items that can be sold to China. There are, of course, many, many more. Yours could be among them.
WHATEVER PRODUCT YOU ARE INTERESTED TO LOOK AT SELLING TO CHINA – WE CAN HELP YOU
WE CAN:-
1) ADVISE YOU WHETHER, IN OUR OPINION THERE IS A POTENTIAL MARKET, AND, IF THERE IS, RECOMMEND THE CORRECT STEPS TO TAKE TO ENTER THIS MARKET
2) ADVISE YOU OF ALL THE STEPS NEEDED TO PROTECT YOUR PRODUCT/SYSTEM/PROCESS LEGALLY, AND UNDERTAKE ALL REQUIREMENTS ON YOUR BEHALF
3) ARRANGE ANY AND ALL AVENUES TO MARKET, ADVERTISE YOUR PRODUCT, INCLUDING ADVISING SUITABLE TRADE SHOWS AND ARRANGING BOOTHS STAFFING, ACCOMMODATION, TRAVEL ETC.
4) INTRODUCE POTENTIAL CHINESE BUYERS IN EQUIVALENT INDUSTRIES
ONE THING WE WILL NOT DO. WE WILL NOT WASTE EVERYONE’S TIME BY NOT GIVING A CLEAR PICTURE OF WHAT WILL BE REQUIRED. WE WILL GIVE YOU OUR IMMEDIATE APPRAISAL OF THE POTENTIAL OF YOUR PRODUCT OR IDEA.
