Sourcing product from China just got even riskier. Theses risks have never been higher and they just keep increasing. The Russian war and COVID in China are the key causes for this increased risk and both are nearly certain to get far worse.
My law firm represents many foreign companies that do OEM manufacturing around the world — mostly China, but India, Mexico, Brazil, Vietnam, Thailand, Taiwan, Korea, Malaysia, Indonesia, Bangladesh, and Cambodia as well. In our discussions with our clients that manufacturing in foreign countries, we nearly always discuss what they can and should be doing to
Omicron is incredibly contagious and China is not well-equipped to slow it down to the same extent it has done with previous COVID variants. Omicron will likely lead to shutdowns of China’s factories and convince more foreign product buying companies to diversify out of China.
How to Lock in Product Prices with Overseas Manufacturers to avoid NOT getting your products when you need them most.
The three key issues in nearly all the contract manufacturing agreements we draft (be they for China, Vietnam, Pakistan, Mexico, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia or wherever) are 1) price, 2) quantity and 3) delivery date. Yet many product buyers that have their products manufactured overseas focus so much on issues like intellectual property protection and control of molds, that they neglect these three key issues.
What can you learn from what Nike is doing? You can learn that there are plenty of countries other than China that manufacture quality items at a price that makes sense for a highly sophisticated international company like Nike and that alone ought to open your eyes to the manufacturing world outside China. Due to tariffs and shipping costs, manufacturing outside China makes increasing sense for many companies.
Common factors used for choosing a location for an international business.
At least once a month someone will tell us they do not need a China-centric contract with their China-based manufacturer because their China-based manufacturer is owned by an American or a European company. To which I always say, “no it isn’t.” Here’s the deal. No American or European or Australian company (or any other non-Chinese
How and why to move your manufacturing from China and where to move it.
Follow these three rules for an effective China contract.
About a year ago, I spoke at a Berkeley Law School class regarding hostage taking in China. I presume I was brought on to speak about this because I helped Professor Chris Carr write an academic article on hostage taking in China, Commercial Hostages: Local vs. Foreigner Business Disputes in China. At my Berkeley talk,
