POORLY MADE IN CHINA: AN INSIDER’S ACCOUNT OF THE TACTICS BEHIND CHINA’S PRODUCTION GAME by Paul Midler (Wiley), 256 pages, $29.95 cloth. Rating: NNNN
The subtitle of this book neatly sums up what to expect, but Paul Midler's journey through southern China and its export manufacturing industry is a bumpy ride.
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Hired as a middleman for Western importers and Chinese manufacturers, Midler unveils the schemes concocted by China's factory owners to make a profit from inferior goods.
He describes "quality fade," the slow degradation of product quality in everything from bath soap to cigarette lighters, and explains the strong-arm tactics used by manufacturers to raise prices and leave importers with a tough decision: pay up or find a new supplier.
We all know about China's ability to reverse-engineer any product; they've become masters of mimicry. Midler goes deep into the factories to shine a light on that process, even divulging what can cause crises like the lead toy disaster of 2007.
Poorly Made In China also dispels some myths about overseas manufacturers. Factory workers may be exploited, but they aren't feeling depressed and overworked. Most have a swelling patriotic desire to help China become a financial superpower. Even though employees get only two days off every month, few are complaining.
The book illuminates some of the many communication problems straining relations between East and West. According to Midler, Western business leaders have rushed headlong into greater levels of interdependency with China, a nation whose reliability as a producer and partner is questionable.
After reading this investigative travelogue, you won't look at the label "Made in China" the same way.
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