Where and what is made?

Adidas cap is trendy and comfortable. I liked a wallet the moment I saw it. Prospirit digital watch has all the function I need. I bought them all and few others while shopping in Australia. Awesome.

Each of the above purchase and many more, I may or may not mention in the later part of this blog, I discovered one thing in common. None of the products were made in Australia. I know the answer is off shoring, cutting down cost, and many more pleasant and unpleasant things about globalisation.

My Adidas cap is made in Bangladesh, another read China, and the purse was made in India. I paid awesomely huge price in Ngultrum (Which is at par with Indian Rupees) for each of these products. Having read the book by Thomas L Friedman, his book enlightened me, the world is flat now. These products are designed here, assembled in the low cost countries and brought here to fetch higher prices.

But why have they not supplied these products to market like Bhutan? If the cap was made in Bangladesh, why did they send rejected ones to Bhutan and good ones to Australia?

The obvious answer is purchasing power, which Bhutanese consumers haven't attained. Over the period of time, consumers from the third world might loose the brand image. The Adidas cap made in the developed world would not appeal us any longer. By the time the third world consumers acquire the ability to purchase, they may not have the taste for it.

I know that India produces quality leather goods. They are made in Kolkatta, Banglore and many other cities. I have used them and other produce of India. Next thing was I wanted foreign goods. Foreign goods meant products from Australia, Europe and America, not India, China or Bangladesh. I took pride to own them. I still do. May be not- for long.

Where is the western world with outsourcing, off shoring and Foreign Direct Investment? Don't you think that Western worlds are loosing the image that they worked hard for such a long time? May be or may be not. I think it depends on what we want, the brand or the purpose that commodity meant to serve.

OR may be the answer lies in teaching of Buddhism- Always in hurry to get nowhere.

It is truly a blessing for consumer from the third world. One day, I might think of asking my Bangladehsi friend to send me a cap meant for Australian. And also remind him he can't charge the price that he charges his Australian consumer. We are closer, you know. Or I might not ask at all and settle with what is "made in China".

Susan who lives in Fremantle, suburban town in Perth, says she can't trust anything Chinese. I never did either. God help us both. They are striving hard to be the producer of the world. Chinese are very ambitious and hard working people- that would also be the dictionary meaning of Chinese in the new list of words in the near future.

Bhutan is yet to have free trade with China, but their products were in the market for a long time. There is one dedicated shop in front of the Post office in Thimphu for Chinese imported goods. When the glass is over filled, there are spills. We use to get the spills in the past. It was messy, then. Now the Chinese goods are taking shapes. Once in a while, I buy Chinese toys for my daughters, may be all the time. I concluded from the news coverage in Europe in 2007, when Chinese products failed to meet standard, Chinese toys were all over the world.

It was also obvious that China adopted a very good marketing strategy for the long run. They are making the future generation of the world to get friendly with the Chinese products at the early stage of life by making and supplying toys.

Have you ever wondered why we can't live without Emadatshi? The answer is simple- we grew up eating them everyday. We miss them after few weeks away from home. We miss the burning sensation of hot chillies on our lips and mouth even at more than forty degree Australian heat. Chinese marketing strategy is as simple as that.

My daughter is growing up eating Emadatshi and she is also playing with the toys from China. She will develop the trust after sleeping with Chinese Barbie dolls and teddy bear in her bedroom. Do I have to worry about that? I don't know.

But my daughter may not never look for an Adidas cap made in the USA, Australia or UK. I guess It might come true.

Up Above and Down Below

Why is Australia growing when every other economy are in the down turn? This is not a million dollar question for a country lot smaller than Australia in the midst of high Himalayan Mountains- Bhutan.

Australian Bureau of Statistics has released its September headline; the economy grew by 0.6 percent in June quarter 2009. The notable countries among the league are India, China, Indonesia, Poland and Korea. The GDP growth of India in April-June quarter was 9.3 percent, China’s GDP is said to have advance at 7.9 percent annual clip in the second quarter as announced in the G20 meeting and few are maintaining on the positive side while rest of the world are struggling to get out of negative side of the graph.

The country, which is also doing well and is usually, ignored both in good and a bad time is Bhutan. It does not have economic strength to lift the world or provide cushion to the falling ones. The GDP grew by 21.4 percent in 2007-08 as per the economic indicators published by the Royal Monetary Authority of Bhutan. By now, anyone would conclude that it is because of the growth in production of electricity from its swift flowing rivers.

Australia, on the other hand, has growing economic ties with China, the sixth largest economy of the world and fastest growing with a tremendous potential to consume Australian Iron ore and other raw materials. It was reported that Australia exports more than 17 per cent to China, while sourcing more than 17 per cent of its imported goods from there.

Australian International trade history shows that its trading partners were Great Britain and rest of Europe. Since 1970 the trade pattern shifted to Asia and pacific regions when Britain joined European Union, where it lost its trade advantages with it. So it lead to the exploring markets closer to home, and China being one of them.

Bhutan, on the other hand, had maintained close ties with India ever since it opened to outside world in the early 60s. More than 80% of its produce is exported to India while importing close to 70% from it. The growth in export was brought about by the hydropower projects.

Australia and Bhutan, on the other hand, have negligible trade activities. According to the data compiled by the Australian Foreign Affairs and Trade, Bhutan ranks at 217^th in total trade. This figure cannot be a permanent seal in the globalised world of 21^st Century.

As of now what appears certain to me is the similarity in the geographical shapes of Bhutan and Australia dismissing the size and their locations. And it cannot be denied that these two countries are bound to grow in the midst of crisis. The only reason, I assume, is because they are economically closely linked to the future economic giants of Asia.