Buyer-Supplier Dialogue: How to Explore the Mexican Market

The advantage of low prices made in China is gradually lost. How will Chinese suppliers seek survival and development? How to formulate an effective promotion strategy? How to make the order profitable, where is the future development direction of export enterprises? Mexico CyA Ms. Laura Cortes, Head of Purchasing in Mainland China, had a wonderful dialogue with suppliers at the Shenzhen Station of "Zhisheng Future Export Forum".

Laura: I am CyA company from Mexico, we are a Mexican company, established In 1999, we have more than ten years of experience in the mobile phone accessories market, we have a private label company whose parent brand is CyA, and also own brands such as Ginga, TechZone, etc. We are the largest mobile phone accessories in Mexico Company, there are currently 20 wholesale stores, the number of our wholesale stores will grow to about 30 next year, many of our customers are actually wholesalers in Mexico. Our main products are produced in China, including backpacks, audio products, Mobile phone case, charging gas, bluetooth and mobile phone gadgets.

We also have production licenses for various brands, all of which are produced under the licenses are made in China, such as the manufacturers of Hello Kitty.

First of all, let me introduce myself. My name is Laura. I am the Asian business development manager of our company. I am responsible for purchasing new products. I have a close cooperative relationship with Global Sources. In the past two years, I have Participated in 12 buyer special procurement meetings organized by Global Sources, and 50%-60% of our suppliers were found through Global Sources. In addition, I was also responsible for our company's quality control work, because our company is in Constantly growing and expanding, so we have to strictly monitor the quality, I came to China to work, I have been in the Chinese industry for four years, so I am very familiar with the Chinese market.

Many suppliers ask me about the main The question is what are the characteristics of the electronic accessories market in Mexico. I can say that this market is changing rapidly, and it is also a very large market. For example, products that did not exist eight years ago have now become very large. In the Mexican market Of course there are some large companies, such as Samsung, Apple, LG, etc., but companies like Apple only account for 8%-10% of the market share in Mexico, which may be unexpected by the Chinese, but our market is diversified The market of China is also a relatively complex market, and the competition is also very fierce. Another very important point is that Mexico is in the southern part of the United States and is very close to the United States, so Mexico is used to having products similar to those in the United States, but sold in Mexico The price of the product must not be as high as that in the United States, so Mexican consumers have higher expectations for the quality of the product, but they do not pay as much as the United States. Therefore, if you want to have a good price in the Mexican market, you must provide products of the same quality. , products that are close to American quality.

Next question, which supplier's characteristics are most important to our company when purchasing? The important thing is the price; the second is the delivery time, because the market changes very fast, so the delivery speed should be fast; the third is the quality.

To be in the mobile phone accessories market, you must seize the opportunity in market information. If you can grab some key information faster and better than other companies, you can win the competition. This is why I was sent to China. The reason for China, so that I can work closely with Chinese suppliers, so that I can provide my customers with the information they need, and be able to respond to the rapid changes in the market, which is why our company can do mobile phone accessories in the Mexican market. to the first such a large scale.

Another question is through which channels do we generally find suppliers? This is a very important question. One of our channels is through Global Sources, and the second channel is through participating in various exhibitions. In addition to exhibitions, I will also go to the local market in person. I am very familiar with the local mobile phone accessories market in China. For example, I go to markets like Huaqiangbei in Shenzhen and Guangzhou three or four times a month, and it is very necessary to visit this market frequently.

Question: I also make mobile phone accessories. Our brands are among the top three in China. It is predicted that South America will be a very important market for foreign trade in the next five to ten years, especially for some Chinese suppliers. is very important. As a Chinese supplier, how can we better enter the South American market, and do you have any good suggestions in terms of products, services and government policies?

Laura: It must be remembered that the Latin American and European markets are different, so if you sell goods to Latin America, the price cannot be the same as the price sold to the European market, that is to say, you cannot use the same expectations as the European and American prices. value. Second, South America is very far from China, so it takes a long time to send goods to South America. You have to think about some ways to reduce this cost. Third, there is the language problem. Latin American countries are not very fluent in English, nor can they speak Chinese. Of course, it will be better if you can learn Spanish and communicate better with them. Fourth, it is recommended that you go to Latin America to see and participate in local exhibitions in Latin America. This will also help, because it is not easy for these companies in Latin America to come to China, so it is better for you to go to South America. .

You may want to accept smaller orders in the Latin American market. For our company, our company is relatively large, but for a smaller company in southern Latin America, you may be able to accept smaller orders when you start doing business with him. , if they cannot accept small orders, Latin American companies may go directly to the market to buy some small quantities of products, and thus lose this part of customers. So if you want to open up the Latin American market, you should reduce the order quantity a little, and accept some small orders at the beginning. If you have a pleasant business cooperation, you can also negotiate to improve the conditions of the transaction or make the quantity larger, but Be able to accept smaller orders in the beginning.

Question: I know CyA company, because I met your colleagues at the Hong Kong exhibition. We are a trading company, but our price and quality are very good. As a relatively large company, do you mind talking to a trading company? Cooperation?

Laura: If you are a trading company, it is not a big problem. If the price and quality are better, you are a trading company. In fact, some of our suppliers are trading companies themselves, and the trading companies are in terms of quality control. It can be better. It can help us do some quality inspection work. The price is also better. This is no problem.

Question: I would like to ask, what style, what style, what type of mobile phone will be more popular in the South American market? This is the first question. The second question is, if you send it to South America, the cost will be relatively high. Do you generally have any channels or methods to avoid this problem of high cost? Can you share it with you? thanks.

Laura: To answer your two questions, the first one is about which mobile phones are more popular in South America, like traditional non-smart phones are more popular, such as phones with keyboards. There are also smart phones now, but the share of smart phones is not developing as fast as in the United States, Europe, and China, so the old mobile phones are still more popular, such as Nokia, LG, Alcatel, Samsung old mobile phones, Apple, but Apple's The share is not very large, only a part of the market share. The second question is about the logistics in South America. I also understand this situation. When it comes to freight, the problem is usually caused by some small orders. The order volume is relatively small, and the cost is relatively high. I know there are some methods, some agents usually send the freight to Hong Kong, and then from Hong Kong to South America, this may help you reduce costs, I don't know if this is the best way, but it does work Help you reduce some costs. My suggestion is that you can use some local services and local logistics companies. Although the delivery time is longer, it is relatively cheaper. If you cannot trust some local express companies, you can consider using FedEx. Courier companies are cheaper. On the other hand, you can also consider two or three suppliers to assemble, which is to adopt a method of freight group purchase, and try to help you reduce costs if you want different creative ideas.

Question: Our company mainly produces computer accessories, such as portable chargers. I have two questions: First, is your company interested in cooperating with a small company, like our company is not very large, with only a hundred employees employees, what factors do you look at most when building a partnership with you? What factors made you want to work with this company? Second, you should be very familiar with the South American market. Which styles of our products are the most popular in South America?

Laura: We don't mind cooperating with some small companies. Sometimes big companies are not the best choice. The price of big companies is relatively high, but it is not suitable for some of our markets. For example, we have some markets that require low cost. a little. For small companies, if they have their own expertise, do better in a certain field, and have better control, we will cooperate with you. For example, before 2008, we had a supplier. They were a boss and a secretary. The boss was very honest, he did business with integrity, and the product quality control was relatively good. Their company later developed into a relatively large company, and now it has more than one Hundreds of employees. I don't know if this speed of development is very fast in China, but from my point of view, I still think this company is developing relatively fast. In addition to such small suppliers, we have some suppliers with more than 1,000 employees, but this does not mean anything, the most important thing is the quality of service, the quality of products with better prices, and strict quality control , is no worse than anyone else compared to other companies, this is the most important factor. For example, mobile and portable chargers and charging accessories casings, mobile phone casings, and Samsung and Apple casings are more popular. There are also wireless products that are very popular, and wireless portable chargers are also very popular.

Question: Our products are mainly AC adapters and power supplies for CCTV. What certifications and certificates are required for AC adapters to enter the Mexican market?

Laura: If you have a certification that is acceptable for the US market, you can enter the Mexican market.