Saturday, March 14, 2009
Asset protection or export growth: Politics suggest which matters more to China
Friday, March 13, 2009
Jewelery Queen Sees Opportunity in Downturn
Having come so far, so fast - the company is just 14 years old - she is not inclined to throw in the towel over something as trifling as a global economic crisis.
To the contrary, she says the crisis is a chance to snap up faltering rivals, shift into new markets and move up the food chain from maker of costume jewellery to designer, retailer and marketer.
"It's a dangerous time but it's an opportunity too and we are ready to take advantage of it," said Ms. Zhou, dubbed the "queen of costume jewellery" by a Chinese newspaper. "We are the top company in China in this industry. Why not take this chance to buy?"
That gung-ho attitude is common in Chinese business these days. China may be going through its sharpest downturn in years, with exports crashing and millions thrown out of work, but many companies see it not as a disaster to moan about but an opportunity to seize.
Why China may come roaring back
The small-business culture of China is one of the few parts of the world where Americans are considered sluggish and hyper-deliberative. As small companies scramble against each other to cut pennies from costs and minutes from schedules, they have become more nimble as subcontractors. But they still don’t keep much of the final rewards for themselves. Thus today’s shock is more than such companies can offset just by cutting costs.The rest of this excellent article from this month's Atlantic is well-worth a careful read.
In Beijing, in Shanghai, in Shenzhen, and elsewhere, I’ve recently visited companies that are trying to use the disruption of this moment to enter wholly new markets and do what so few Chinese firms have yet done: make high-tech, high-value products that bring high rewards.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Tips for better blogging
My favorites:
1. Pick three blogs that you respect and introduce your readers to them
2. Ask your readers to ask you questions
3. Write something nice about the coolest person you recently met
More great suggestions here:
http://michaelmartine.com/2009/03/10/ten-topics-in-ten-mins/