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Thursday, March 17, 2005
Japanese goods elbow out cheap China goods
The reign in the Philippine market of cheap China-made products is almost over.
According to Hiroshi Otani, systems sales department director of Panasonic Philippines, the Philippine market is gradually going back to patronizing Japan-made products after discovering that China-made products have very “low quality.”
Panasonic Philippines is the sales division of Japanese company Matsushita Electric Philippines Corp.
This movement of the market is being complemented by the lowering of prices by some Japanese companies, such as Pana-sonic, of their products to recapture the market.
“We used to be affected by the surge of Chinese products in the Philippine market. But now, the market is going back to Japanese brands. Japanese companies are also lowering their prices but not the quality of their products,” Otani told Sun.Star.
Earlier, Norkis Group Yamaha 2Wheel Division-Vismin area marketing manager Angel Caesar Farrarons said the entry of cheap China-made motorcycles was a blessing in disguise for the country’s motorcycle industry, which was also affected initially, in terms of sales, by the surge of China-made motorcycles in the country.
He said China-made motorcycles have helped the industry educate the market on the benefits of motorcycles.
“Through the cheap China-made motorcycles, the public is allowed to experience the benefits of motorcycles. But eventually, those who have bought cheaper motorcycles will look for quality and durability,” Farrarons said.
In a separate interview, housewife Ludivina Rosales said she had learned her lesson after she bought cheap shoes made from China.
“All the cheap China-made shoes I bought for myself and my family lasted for about two to three months. I later realized that I was just wasting money. These products are good as disposable products,” she told Sun.Star.
China is now feared by many because it has become the manufacturing center of the world.
Cheap labor and economies of scale, as well as the wide availability of raw materials, has allowed it to sell its products cheaply to the rest of the world.
But companies, including those in the Philippines, have also taken advantage of this by outsourcing what they used to produce locally to China, so that they might also become more competitive in selling their products to others.
Meanwhile, Panasonic’s Otani said the company is strengthening its systems sales department in Cebu after experiencing “high sales” in its systems and solutions products last year.
The systems sales department is the after-sales support department for systems and solutions products.
Panasonic’s systems and solutions products include the plasma display, home cinema projectors and digital copiers for office solutions; closed circuit video equipment for security solutions; air curtains, personal hygiene system, and ventilating fans for comfort solutions; PABX system for communication solutions; and cellular phones for mobile solutions. (JBN)
(March 17, 2005 issue)
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