Entrepreneur's Journal November 20, 2009, 1:50PM EST

Why Brooklyn Industries Manufactures in China

(page 2 of 2)

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These first bags cost us more per piece than making them in Brooklyn but we were able to offer our customers more value without charging much more money.

In 2000 we had made enough money to move out of the factory and into our own apartment, just as I had my first child. At the same time we decided that our real passion was not in manufacturing but in retail. We made the bags, printed t-shirts, and sold them in the store. But we weren't particularly good at manufacturing, and besides, things had just gotten more difficult. In 2001 we closed the factory and switched primarily to retail.

In 2002 a Japanese company took Vahap to Hong Kong and Shanghai to visit factories and discuss manufacturing for us. In the beginning we made fewer than 100 of any garment or bag, so most factories spoke to us only as a favor to the Japanese company that introduced us. Vahap was impressed with the factories he had visited. He had pictures of factory floors that were very clean, where workers walked around in slippers, and rooms that were well-lit. The prices were fairly expensive, but the quality was good, and the factories were well-run. It was different than what we had read about in the press. My view of Chinese manufacturers began to change from antagonism and skepticism to partnership and learning.

I began going to China in 2007 when my youngest child was four. I wasn't sure if I could establish the same business relationships my husband had, partly due to my gender and my nationality as an American. I was concerned about culture clashes. But as our business grew and I took on the role of CEO and operator, it was my responsibility to go to China and carry on the relationship with our factories.

In preparation, I turned to a mentor, Charlie Sun, who helped me understand how the people running the factories think. When we first met as neighbors, he, too, was manufacturing, making plastic bags in Brooklyn. Eventually he closed his factory and began manufacturing in China, where he travels frequently. He taught me several important lessons. First, ask the factory owner how business is and what is happening in the local Chinese economy. Ask what new labor laws have been passed. This knowledge enables better communication and negotiating. Second, just because a factory is not perfect, there are still ways to try to improve them. I was taught it was important to express your concerns, keep giving them business, and work toward making changes.

On my first trip to the factories, I practiced Charlie's rules without understanding them. I sat at dinners and asked questions. That first year many of the factory owners seemed slightly skeptical. They were respectful but often complained about how small our orders were and about how we were too demanding. However, as our business has grown and the factory's other customers have shrunk or gone out of business, our relationship started to blossom. Together we have charted ways to improve quality and cut costs. We discuss what they are paying their employees, work hours, and benefits. We have also begun to discuss China's booming economy and the possibility that they might supply domestic retailers.

One evening in Dong gong Province this August, I sat having a delicious dinner at a restaurant with our bag manufacturer. The main owner was sick and stayed home. His wife, her two teenage daughters, her three-year-old son, and our "merchandiser" were our hosts. The television played a sitcom that everyone found amusing. We discussed schools, and babysitting, and how the factory was doing. The wife joked that I should be learning Chinese if she was learning English. Next summer, I will try to return with a smattering of Mandarin and my two sons in tow.

—Edited by Stacy Perman

More essays are available in our ongoing series.