MY TRIP TO CHINA

For over 20 years, I've been visiting our manufacturers in China at least twice a year. During my trips, I always attend the Canton Fair, spend a day at the raw materials market, and often visit a new factory to see if it's a good fit for us or our customers.

China is and remains an overwhelmingly large country and the travel distances are so great that a domestic flight is often necessary to get somewhere and sitting in a car for 4 to 5 hours is quite normal to get somewhere.

I've known our regular manufacturer, J., for many years, and he runs the company together, first with his sister, and now with his daughter. They employ about 50 people, and they produce our bags. We also have frequent contact with several other manufacturers, and they also receive orders. But I've been working closely with J. for years.

We place orders with manufacturer J. year-round, but due to the holiday rush in the last two quarters of the year, this still causes problems every year. That's another reason why I go to China every year to discuss this. Of course, there are always situations outside our production that require extra vigilance. Think of the coronavirus restrictions, the Ever Given stuck in the Suez Canal, the current attacks on container ships in the Red Sea, container prices, and the container shortage, but don't forget the Chinese government. We've seen some manufacturers in China forced to close immediately by government order, only to be allowed to reopen a week later. We're dealing with these issues.

I'll tell you more about my trip on my next trip. In April/May 2024, I'll be back in China and speaking with manufacturer J. again. The Canton Fair is back on the agenda, but I'll also be visiting a new factory in Wenzhou.

My goal for the trip is to pay close attention to the quality of our products and, of course, I'll be looking everywhere to see if we can make more use of recycled materials in our collections.

Robert Klerk November 2023