Poorly Made in China by Paul Midler

It took me quite some time to finish reading "Poorly Made in China" written by Paul Midler.  Not that it requires certain level of technical knowledge to allow full comprehension, quite the opposite, it was an easy read.  I just did not have the luxury to read the book on my preferred time since I did not own a hard copy and had to read from my sister's kindle.  Lucky though that my sister has been preoccupied with more important things that I was able to finish the book during the holidays.

The book offers answers to the long-standing question that has kept many wondering: "How come almost all products are being manufactured in China?"  We already knew of the cheap outsourcing cost, but the book goes further by illustrating how China is able to afford manufacturing at such low prices.  One instance cited is the practice of operating at zero profit.  Selling at low prices is one of the strategies used by Chinese manufacturers in attracting customers.  They may not gain in monetary value now, but they do benefit in other areas: the reputation of having to act as supplier for large, international corporations, having the access to unique product samples (provided by the customers) that may be offered to other customers, etc.  They give up profit that can be earned now in exchange for more profit in the future.  In addition to this, Chinese manufacturers make it appear easy for importers to start a supplier-customer relationship with them.  All it requires is the provision of samples.  China possesses superb mimicry skill that enables it to reproduce provided samples at incredible level of accuracy and speed.

It does not take long for importers to realize that everything is not as easy as what the manufacturers make it appear.  The book points out two major issues that the importers have to deal with: quality issues and disregard for the existing partnership.  The manufacturers often make important decisions that result in huge losses to the importers on its own, without discussing or even informing its partners.  This is very different from what I learned in school on the importance of good customer relationship, yet, it works very well for the manufacturers, because the importers have no other choice but to stick with the partnership.

While I was about to feel despair for the situation where the importers are in, the author was in time to spark a light of hope when he told an anecdote on how one importer was able to temporarily reverse the situation.  Even though this is a unique case, it still shows that the situation may be corrected in some ways.  

Paul Midler did a great job as a narrator.  He was able to clearly convey his point in a very interesting manner.  I strongly recommend this book to anyone who wants to have a peek into China's manufacturing industry.    

Reflection
Honestly, it was hard for me to believe some of the author's accounts.  I am a Chinese-Filipino.  My ancestors came from Mainland China, yet, I was never taught to act in the same way as how the Chinese manufacturers acted in the book.  In fact, we value honesty very much.  I can still remember the story of the 2 siopao owners told in Chinese class when I was still in elementary.  One insists to use the best part of the pork for his siopao, while the other one uses the not so good part.  At first, the second owner benefited from his strategy.  His customers soon found out about this.  As he lost his customers, the second owner was forced to shut down, while the first owner continued to prosper.  Maybe, history really plays an important role in shaping our values.  That even though we came from the same lineage, with different pasts and experiences, we turn out to share completely different cultures.