China’s “economic miracle” and how to gain from it
China is a wonderful country, with its traditions, culture and centuries-old history. Besides, its economy is rapidly growing and offers numerous business opportunities. What makes doing business with China the largest source of income both for experienced entrepreneurs and for beginners? Let’s try to figure it out.
What we know about China
China is one of the most beautiful, interesting and mysterious countries in the world with ancient culture and history. It is the birthplace of the world's oldest civilization that gave unique inventions to mankind: the technology of printing, porcelain utensils, the finest silk, and the most delicious tea. But in the XXI century this amazing country is famous not only for the Great Wall, Feng Shui and giant pandas.
Nowadays China (People’s Republic of China, PRC) is the world’s second-biggest economy. Here are some facts about PRC:
- it is world's largest goods exporter
- it is the second-largest goods importer
- its economy exceeds $10 trillion
- its 10-year average Gross Domestic Product growth rate is 8.9%
- its Growth forecast for 2017 comes up to 6.5%
So, economy of such a scale influences the growth or deceleration of the economies of other countries and the entire world. The movement of prices in commodity markets also depends on economic activity in PRC.
Doing business with China: advantages and challenges
Chinese manufacturing industry is significantly ahead of the field. This country is much faster and more successful in implementing the latest technical developments, introducing innovations in production. PRC of the new millennium is able to offer consumers goods for every taste. The quality of products is steadily growing, while prices remain relatively low. Such Chinese brands as Lenovo, Huawei, Xiaomi are known worldwide.
As to potential challenges, culture gap is likely to cause particular communication problems. Conducting traditional face-to-face business you will inevitably come across distinct cultural differences. If you want to do business effectively with your Chinese partners, you should strictly follow their etiquette. Something may matter nothing to you, but be a big thing in China.
The other possible barrier to success is the inability to operate more effectively than others. Since trade with China is highly popular, to distinguish yourself from the crowd of competitors is your #1 asset.
If you need a guide to doing business with China, the following information will be useful to you.
Best Chinese companies to deal with
E-tailing is one of the industries with the highest growth potential for doing business with China. The payments system works properly, logistics are improving, and online providers are reputable. No wonder that customers prefer to save their time and effort and transact online. Especially since PRC is home to some of the world’s largest, most successful, and innovative Internet-based companies, such as Alibaba and its online retail service AliExpress.
Alibaba Group, a worldwide known Chinese e-commerce company which owns several trading platforms simplifying interaction between manufacturers and customers, is famous for being an exceptionally successful business venture. Nowadays Alibaba gives 6.5 million sellers and 443 million customers from more than 240 countries and regions the opportunity to communicate freely.
Alibaba’s incredible commercial success throughout the globe can be explained by the market share it has in its homeland. The company is considered to be the absolute market leader in PRC – and, for the record, online retail is the fastest growing sector in the country. Moreover, Chinese consumer market holds the title of the fastest-growing one in the world.
What has let Alibaba capture and benefit from the steady growth of China consumer market is the company’s ability to unmistakably detect and penetrate new growth markets both in the home market and all over the world. As the result, the company gets ready to offer its customers more attractive purchasing options, including the lower priced ones, which, in turn, gives it the reputation of a thoughtful and trustworthy corporation, and lets it take the leading market position.
A risk-free business with China for everyone
Alibaba commercial success extends far beyond China – the company makes a huge effort to establish a top position all over the world. The unrivalled opportunities that Alibaba offers its partners are not available exclusively to retailers, manufacturers and corporations. Individuals can benefit from the company’s thriving business as well – all they have to do is become an affiliate of AliExpress, a retailer that does exceptionally well in Russia and rapidly wins over a considerable share of other foreign markets, and get profit from every sale that was made with their assistance. Affiliate model avoids the usual pitfalls of a traditional trade and let you take the best of China’s business opportunities.