Hi TT,
How is that sort of thing viewed by ROC manufactures?
The small manufacturers don't really care. They pretty much all view business as brutal.
The large manufacturers don't like it. They also have a problem with their IPR being ripped off. They are also concerned that 'Made in China' will continue to get a bad rap because of this cheating. Alibaba, Taobao, and TMall all have a problem with fake goods, I have seen one estimate of up to 90% of all goods sold. But why should the likes of Jack Ma worry if they are selling 10fold what they would if they only handle legit goods.
I also see that Amazon UK is now clamping down on ROC suppliers. This is to avoid being caught up in tax evasion issues
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/jun/21/amazon-uk-reviews-chinese-traders-ahead-vat-clampdownIt is worth remembering what happened with Japanese products.
In the 60s 'Made in Japan' had a bad rap. Low quality and cheap knock-offs abounded. Everything was about being cheaper than everyone else, and this is not sustainable. Ever shrinking margins = ever shrinking profits.
In the 1970s companies like Sony and Datsun were starting to innovate, the only way to add increased value and make a profit. Other Japanese companies followed. Some companies were breaking into the European and American markets. Maybe we laughed at the neighbour who was driving a 'rice cooker'.
By the 1980s 'Made in Japan' was rapidly becoming synonymous with innovation, high tech, quality, and reliability. Honda, Nissan, Toyota, Suzuki, Yamaha, Mitsubishi, Sony, Panasonic, Canon, Fujitsu. We no longer laughed at the guy driving a Jap car.
By the 1990s many of us were driving or had owned a Japanese car, and had Japanese hifi, video recorder, and TV.
We saw the same development pattern in Korea. I am sure a few of us have owned a Korean domestic appliance, if not a car.
China is, I believe, at the stage where they are beginning to innovate. The government here is pushing it. Chinese companies are buying up big western manufacturers and getting access to the expertise (this is not just copying technology despite what some cynics think). A Chinese company owns Volvo, they now own the in-house expertise of probably one of the worlds top auto industry innovators.
The bottom end of the market has always been about working harder and manufacturing cheaper, including cutting corners and cheating. One third of the worlds cigarette lighters are still made in one factory in China. Probably most of the food safety scandals have also occurred in recent years.
The top end of the market is now about innovation. 70% of the worlds drone market has been cornered by one Chinese manufacturer. They have just produced the worlds fastest supercomputer. China will probably land the next man on the moon.
I was asked this question a few years ago, maybe on here. At the time I answered that Chinese companies and workers are very industrious. The work harder and harder, but if they ever learn to work smarter, watch out. Well now they are starting to work smarter, and still cheap. And unlike Japan, China is not a small country.
A few years ago it cost more to by power tools here than in UK. Now thanks to the growth in Ecommerce, manufacturers are selling dirence to the public. Tools are cheaper now in China, and quality is better. I don't know what the cost of things are in the UK but let me give you one example. I have just installed a dust extraction system in my workshop. 2200w dust extractor, 25m of 100mm main ducting, 4 branches with all of the gates, adaptors, clips, accessories and smaller hoses. Total cost around USD 360/GBP 260, including all delivery. The heart of the unit is an industrial machine (not a shop vac with cyclone) that cost about USD 105/GBP 76.
Have I been cheated buying on line here. Yes, but only once. As I said in a previous thread. Using GoogleChrome, you can translate the Chinese Webpages for the products on Taobao, Alibaba, TMall, and read the comments (usual caveats apply here). You can also look at the volume of sales in China, which can be a good indicator of who is legit, but no guarantees.
Sorry for the long reply.