
The Real Reason Why U.S. Startups Produce in China (Hint: It's Not the Cost) - aerosmile
http://www.honeybuns.co/blogs/news/the-real-reason-why-startups-produce-in-china
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javiayala
As someone who has experienced a similar process through a relative of mine,
is really interesting to hear a detailed story that not only talks about the
process but also about the feeling of manufacturing outside of your home
country. Finding the company that fit your product and your quality standards
is extremely time consuming but once that serendipity happens you start
feeling the snowball effect of the next items in the list. It really is all
about finding the right match for your product.

I wonder if the Kaizen philosophy
([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaizen](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaizen))
applies for Chinese people as well. Can someone comment on this?

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betsie8larkin
Yes - it does feel like there is some serendipity involved. I think my
likelihood of getting lucky increased when I let go of the geographic
limitations. Curious about Kaizen philosophy in China as well...

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dori8057
What a great read! As a consumer,this is making me reconsider the stigma
attached with China-manufactured products and that I should just write-off
certain products that are China-made when shopping.

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betsie8larkin
I felt the same way before actually going there, meeting the workers and
factory owners and seeing the work that they do. In my personal experience
their drive and perfectionism is unmatched. Thanks for your comment!

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fantasia
Really surprising to hear that luxury brands are already using China for
manufacturing - I was definitely under the assumption that luxury fashion was
primarily manufactured in Europe and the US...

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betsie8larkin
It's a fairly well kept secret. Chinese manufacturing isn't suffering too
much, but it's unfair to deny them credit for the great work that they are
doing because Italian brands don't want to admit that their products weren't
100% made in Italy.

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betsie8larkin
Hello Everyone, I'm the author of this piece and would be happy to answer any
questions other founders might have about factory sourcing.

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MZilberg
Great article! Do you think that China is the only country or are there other
countries that dominate manufacturing in the apparel space?

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betsie8larkin
That's a great question - I've talked to a bunch of other physical product
startups in both apparel and hardware. China is not the only good option - Sri
Lanka, for example, is great for lingerie. I've also heard good things about
central and South American countries for knitwear. China seems to dominate in
hardware, but I'm sure there are other places doing good work in that area.

