Times in China, They Are A Changin’
April 1st, 2008 | by This is China! |A Dutch friend was recently quite happy about the results of an order of textile products for a Dutch buyer. “The buyer didn’t understand anything of its own or Chinese cost structures,” my friend said, taking a swallow of Tiger beer. “All they said was, ‘We need 10,000 pieces by this date at this price.”
My friend hadn’t known if they could meet those numbers, so he didn’t make any promises at the meeting. Instead, he made calls around to suppliers he knew were still in business. “More than 6,000 factories have closed just around Guangzhou,” he said. Of course, his declaration was anecdotal; but his message was clear: A LOT of factories have closed recently in the region. He wasn’t nervous as he said it; but perhaps it was just the sheer relief of sealing the order that set his hands trembling as he reached for a cigarette. He continued, “It’s not easy any longer to get the prices you want from the suppliers. The ones that are open now are much more picky about pricing and order sizes. Why take a big order at a low price when they can instead manage a small order for a higher price?” he asked rhetorically.
“Where do you go now to fill your orders?” I asked, pleased at the free flow of information.
“Xiamen, Shandong, wherever we can find reasonably priced textile manufacturers nowadays.” He took a long draught of beer. “You know, the prices they’re asking for in the Guangzhou factories are US$1.00 higher per piece than even around Suzhou? Now that’s high, we both know, because Suzhou hasn’t been cheap for a couple years.”
“So where were you able to find the supplier for this order,” I asked.
“Guangdong,” he said, “we got a good price still from Guangdong. But it wasn’t easy, I’ll tell you,” he finished.
Times in China, they are a changin’.
