Improving the Odds of Success
With Your China Strategy
Looking beyond the glitter of China gold, here is a no-nonsense look at what it takes to
enter the China market where all too often the risks outweigh the rewards.
by Dan Watson, Blairgowrie Associates
Contributing Editor
Throughout history there have been many instances of allur- ing success that has led many people to chase a perceived golden opportunity only to end up very disappointed. In recent times there has been a genuine gold rush atmosphere when it
comes to Western companies eyeing what they perceive as the untapped market opportunities inside China. It seems as if every company has to have a genuine China strategy.
According to recent studies, 400 out of the Fortune 500 U.S.
companies now have a presence inside of China. As you might
imagine, this hot pursuit of a China strategy has given rise to numerous China consultants/experts offering their services to assist
with such an undertaking. In 2005 it was reported that Western
companies were pouring more than $1 billion USD/week in new investment into China. Even with today’s poor economic conditions
Western companies are still moving into China. I think it’s safe to
state that a China Rush is still very much in play today.
History also tells us about another gold rush that happened
back in the late 1800s. Similar to the current China Rush, the
Alaska Gold Rush drew people from all over the world to the
Klondike region of northwestern Canada following the discovery
of gold there in 1896. The so-called gold rush was short lived, ending in 1899. It was mostly spurred on by media campaigns (
newspapers) and suppliers of goods to the prospectors rather than actual
success of those who were working in the so-called gold fields.
At its height of activity from late 1897 to mid-1898, there were
estimated to be slightly over one hundred thousand people, mostly
individuals with no prior prospecting experience, headed for the
Alaskan gold fields. The Gold Rush period is remembered mostly
for the hardship endured by the would-be prospectors. These
prospectors have been immortalized by pictures of their ascent of
the Chilkoot Pass in a seemingly endless single file and by books
like The Call of the Wild.
Unfortunately, few Gold Rush participants struck it rich, and it
is estimated that the total money spent just getting to Alaska exceeded the value of gold found during the actual Gold Rush period. This same sort of experience appears to be the outcome of
the massive influx into China of Western companies who have cho-
www.coatingsworld.com
October 2011
