Japan: 'Made in China' labels dropped to boost sales

Chinese manufacturers have stopped using "made in China" labels on clothes sold in Japan in an effort to improve sales, it's reported.

The move is an attempt to overcome perceptions that Chinese-made clothes are poor quality, the South China Morning Post website reports. Instead, clothes are being labelled "made in PRC" - the People's Republic of China - because many Japanese customers don't know what the acronym stands for, the website says.

 

Ha Ha. This wouldn't be a surprise. Japanese have very low perceptions of Chinese quality. I witnessed this in the skincare market where a client wanted to save money by switching from a Japan made formulation to one made in China. The consumer research was a blowout and the plan was shelved.

Andrew
eBiz Japan

 

Although dishonest it's a good marketing move. I have often put a product back on the shelf or rack when I have noticed the "Made in China" label.

 

Why? I understand some products, but for instance, most hardware used today is "made in China" - iPhones, Samsung phones, most laptops, almost every gadget you use daily is "made in China". Also, about 40% of the hardware Internet is running on is now "made in China".

There are plenty of products where the production country has nothing to do with quality - it's more "is it an actual, legit product, or a cheap knockoff" - and of course, that is often a problem with Chinese products (there are a LOT of knockoffs) - however, those knockoffs will seldom have the "made in China" stamp to begin with, using other manufacturing locations to try and instill more confidence in the buyer.

 

The "why?' is that its consumer perception and your right that the actual product quality may have little to do with it. So yes the iPhone may be mostly made in China and it isn't an issue. In part because of the category; but in part because its perceived as being American.

But in other categories - Food ; skincare ... the Japanese are hyper sensitive and the perception gets exaggerated further. In part because of the bad PR coming out of China e.g. the China Gyoza dumpling scandal in Japan and in part that in category like skin care they are more fearful of dangerous products causing problems to sensitive skin anyway (and believe that their skin is different!)

 

Very well put, I believe that you hit the nail on the head. Chinese marketers are well aware of this, and have done their homework as to consumer research.

 

I must admit that I forgot to quote - what I was replying "why" to was actually your preceding post, @Spoiltdiva - ie, why do you put stuff back on the shelf only because it's "made in china"? (I'm assuming now that you're not Japanese). I mean, if I'm buying something, I'm looking at the product - couldn't really give two flying... somethings about where it's made.

 

O.K. Watashi wa nihonjindakedo, sore mo mondaide wa arimasen ka?
Now thanks to you I will receive a warning for "inappropriate language".

 

They'll push it if it "flies". For the longest time one country shipped toys to the US painted with a lead-based paint. How was it even possible? Well, there were no standards requiring to test that paint for lead contamination or if they were, they were not enforced. Fortunately, there was enough outcry from the general public that that nonsense was stopped.

The crap that they have sold over the years here in the US has cost some people their health (just Google it). Wasn't it a toothpaste just a few years back that made some people really, really sick? Same is true for shampoos, cosmetics and even accessories. Some of those knockoff bags, jackets and whatnot can be really bad for your health (laced with toxic paints, chemicals and even fungi).

 

I don't think dishonest is the correct word. They are not lying about where the item was made. Deceptive more like it.

It's a completely different market nowadays. My Dad used to own an electronic repair business so I know a bit about this. Products are not made to last anymore. It is quite often cheaper to buy a new one then it is to repair it.

 

Well ,made in China or made in PTC influence much?If you really want it and it's really not bad,id doesn't matter at all.

 

I began importing from China in 1987, after exporting to China and other Asia/Pacific countries for 9 years. I had visited a huge number of factories in China on my selling trips (with my Chinese agent) and often saw factories producing two different qualities.

One production line was churning out trash quality to satisfy the greed of western buyers who kept forcing down prices. The other line was producing top quality versions of the same product. Should we blame the Chinese or the greedy buyers?

In fact the reasons I turned to China for supplies after I sold my exporting business were:

• My local manufacturers had poor quality control, so I was getting complaints from my B2B customers.
• They were very slow producing to my orders.
• Service was virtually non-existent.

I had built up a network of contacts among manufacturers in various industries in China, and I knew where to buy. The results of changing from local manufacture to imports from China were:

• I was now able to get superb quality.
• Delivery time from my China manufacturers was no more than half the time it took when buying local.
• The service was brilliant. Nothing was too much trouble, compared to being treated as a nuisance by locals if I needed something slightly different.
• BONUS: Even though I was buying the best quality, my costs fell by over 50%, including when adding freight.

Walter Hay