1 00:00:00,320 --> 00:00:04,088 Well, hello, I'm Matt Edmundson and you are listening to 2 00:00:04,144 --> 00:00:09,080 the E commerce podcast. You know what? Since 2002, really long 3 00:00:09,120 --> 00:00:13,032 time, I've been building, selling and yes, occasionally failing 4 00:00:13,096 --> 00:00:17,848 at online business. I love creating unique equity partnerships 5 00:00:17,864 --> 00:00:20,424 with e commerce brands and helping them grow from where they 6 00:00:20,432 --> 00:00:22,792 are to where they want to be. That's what I do now on a day to 7 00:00:22,816 --> 00:00:26,520 day basis. So I want to learn about e commerce as much as you and 8 00:00:26,560 --> 00:00:30,776 to do that every week I get to chat with great guests just like 9 00:00:30,848 --> 00:00:34,660 Omer. I'm a to have you on the show, man. Tell us a little bit about 10 00:00:34,700 --> 00:00:37,720 yourself, where you're from, what you do and all that good stuff. 11 00:00:38,060 --> 00:00:42,212 Thank you for having me. My name is Omer, originally from Israel, 12 00:00:42,276 --> 00:00:46,500 and for the past decade I'm in Asia. I cannot believe I'm saying 13 00:00:46,540 --> 00:00:49,840 a decade. I sound so old. 14 00:00:51,660 --> 00:00:56,100 You sound old. I've been doing e Commerce since 2002. That makes 15 00:00:56,140 --> 00:00:56,900 me feel really old. 16 00:00:56,940 --> 00:00:58,400 Yeah, it's older, I have to say. 17 00:01:02,370 --> 00:01:04,842 Brilliant. So yeah, for the past decade you've been living in 18 00:01:04,866 --> 00:01:05,550 Asia. 19 00:01:05,970 --> 00:01:12,250 So it started by traveling and long story short, I help brands to 20 00:01:12,290 --> 00:01:16,794 source profitable products from Asia, China, Vietnam, India, 21 00:01:16,882 --> 00:01:21,578 Japan and many other countries. We help in all the process 22 00:01:21,634 --> 00:01:26,910 of supplier finding, sourcing, quality control. Yeah. 23 00:01:27,810 --> 00:01:32,362 Wow, that sounds like fun. I mean, how, if I can ask, how old 24 00:01:32,386 --> 00:01:35,194 were you when you started traveling to Asia? Did you sort of 25 00:01:35,202 --> 00:01:38,410 have the travel bug, sort of fresh out of uni and then you just 26 00:01:38,450 --> 00:01:39,962 kind of got caught in it? 27 00:01:40,146 --> 00:01:45,802 So I've never been in university beside learning Chinese 28 00:01:45,866 --> 00:01:50,090 in the university in China, but I was, I think I was 23 years 29 00:01:50,130 --> 00:01:57,106 old, I'm not sure. And I've been backpacking in Asia and actually 30 00:01:57,178 --> 00:02:01,234 when I came back to Israel to prepare for university, I decided 31 00:02:01,282 --> 00:02:07,922 I want to go to China to learn Chinese. And after a year in China, 32 00:02:08,026 --> 00:02:11,522 before I, before I was supposed to come back to Israel to 33 00:02:11,546 --> 00:02:15,010 university, I've. I've been thinking, wait, if I'm already in 34 00:02:15,050 --> 00:02:19,170 China and I know to speak Chinese, do I really need to go back 35 00:02:19,210 --> 00:02:24,498 to university? Or maybe I can just start, you know, grinding and. 36 00:02:24,554 --> 00:02:25,270 Yeah. 37 00:02:26,330 --> 00:02:31,842 Wow, fantastic. I don't come across many people who deliberately 38 00:02:31,906 --> 00:02:36,150 and intentionally learn to speak Chinese. That's quite a unique 39 00:02:36,890 --> 00:02:41,266 form of grit. I have a very good friend of mine, she's like my 40 00:02:41,338 --> 00:02:46,674 adopted sister. She's lovely, she's British, but she's also Chinese 41 00:02:46,722 --> 00:02:50,834 and she tries to teach me Chinese and I fail miserably. So 42 00:02:50,842 --> 00:02:53,410 the fact that you have done that, I think is remarkable. Good 43 00:02:53,450 --> 00:02:54,670 on you for doing that. 44 00:02:55,530 --> 00:02:59,314 Yeah, well, the reason I studied Chinese, so I was thinking, 45 00:02:59,362 --> 00:03:03,330 should I go to learn Chinese or Japanese? And Japan sounds very 46 00:03:03,370 --> 00:03:10,114 expensive. So eventually I decided to go with China. Yeah. And 47 00:03:10,202 --> 00:03:14,818 by the way, I was one of the worst student in the class back then. 48 00:03:14,874 --> 00:03:15,378 Right. 49 00:03:15,514 --> 00:03:19,666 But I think I'm the only one in from my class back then that's 50 00:03:19,698 --> 00:03:23,676 still actually doing business in China. I guess it's all about 51 00:03:23,748 --> 00:03:24,640 practicing. 52 00:03:25,140 --> 00:03:28,972 Yeah, I guess it is. I guess it is, because I. And this is where 53 00:03:28,996 --> 00:03:34,348 I think, you know, when it comes to sourcing products from China 54 00:03:34,404 --> 00:03:38,076 Freecom businesses, I know a few people that seem to have cracked 55 00:03:38,108 --> 00:03:42,188 it in whatever business they're in. But I know that it still 56 00:03:42,244 --> 00:03:45,100 scares a whole bunch of people because it's not just the language, 57 00:03:45,180 --> 00:03:50,750 it's the culture barrier that exist between obviously the west 58 00:03:50,790 --> 00:03:57,022 and the east, between Asia and between, you know, the sort of America's, 59 00:03:57,086 --> 00:04:00,334 Britain's, Australia's type. I mean, Australia and New Zealand are 60 00:04:00,342 --> 00:04:04,046 a little bit unique, aren't they? Because I suppose they're quite 61 00:04:04,078 --> 00:04:06,862 close to Asia. So I think they've understood the culture of 62 00:04:06,886 --> 00:04:11,502 dealing with Asia a lot more. What are some of the things that 63 00:04:11,526 --> 00:04:16,814 you find are quite consistently bad from Western companies 64 00:04:16,902 --> 00:04:22,638 when it comes to understanding Asian culture and get in our heads 65 00:04:22,654 --> 00:04:25,486 around a few key principles before we start trying to source 66 00:04:25,518 --> 00:04:26,890 products from there. 67 00:04:27,590 --> 00:04:32,446 So I guess the worst thing that Western people do is thinking 68 00:04:32,478 --> 00:04:37,294 like Western, you know, so they approach to a Chinese person 69 00:04:37,382 --> 00:04:43,022 or Japanese or whatever. And, and they think that whatever they 70 00:04:43,046 --> 00:04:48,968 will say, the Chinese person will understand it as they would 71 00:04:49,024 --> 00:04:54,424 understand it not not only in like the language, I mean, the meaning, 72 00:04:54,472 --> 00:05:04,760 the subtext. And so this is, I guess the biggest mistake. And, and 73 00:05:04,800 --> 00:05:09,832 because I don't think I can teach someone in one hour or even 74 00:05:09,936 --> 00:05:14,060 one year how to think like a Chinese or Japanese or whatever. 75 00:05:14,470 --> 00:05:19,054 Probably the biggest tip I can give is assume they don't understand 76 00:05:19,142 --> 00:05:24,530 you and you don't understand them. And if this will be your assumption, 77 00:05:25,750 --> 00:05:29,886 you will probably avoid most of the misunderstanding. 78 00:05:30,078 --> 00:05:36,446 Okay, yeah, it sounds remarkably straightforward, Omer, 79 00:05:36,478 --> 00:05:40,832 but I get why you would say that, because I think certainly in 80 00:05:40,856 --> 00:05:44,416 Britain, you know, if we, a general response is if you don't 81 00:05:44,448 --> 00:05:50,176 understand, we'll say the same thing slower and louder because surely 82 00:05:50,208 --> 00:05:53,296 then you'll understand. If I say the same thing slower and louder, 83 00:05:53,328 --> 00:05:56,112 you will understand, which is obviously not the true. And I think 84 00:05:56,136 --> 00:06:00,576 there's, there's a lot to be said for this cross cultural understanding, 85 00:06:00,608 --> 00:06:08,122 which I think you, you miss a lot of the subtleties of how is, 86 00:06:08,306 --> 00:06:12,122 how is it at the moment in terms of trading with Asia? I'm kind 87 00:06:12,146 --> 00:06:16,874 of curious about this because at the time of recording we've had, 88 00:06:16,962 --> 00:06:19,834 you know, the announcement from the Trump administration about 89 00:06:19,922 --> 00:06:26,602 tariffs and we can, you know, political politics aside, I, you 90 00:06:26,626 --> 00:06:29,658 know, there's obviously some issue with international trading 91 00:06:29,674 --> 00:06:37,424 in the States. What's the sort of thinking there, you know, in Asia 92 00:06:37,472 --> 00:06:40,672 with the, with the tariffs And I guess more importantly, if I can 93 00:06:40,696 --> 00:06:45,056 ask you, what are the opportunities there for us as e commerce 94 00:06:45,088 --> 00:06:46,860 entrepreneurs to be thinking about? 95 00:06:47,640 --> 00:06:50,816 Right. So like you said, politics aside, it's going to affect 96 00:06:50,848 --> 00:06:56,224 a lot of businesses and you say Asia but like to be honest, it's 97 00:06:56,272 --> 00:07:00,710 mostly going to impact people that source from China. Not in Asia, 98 00:07:01,050 --> 00:07:08,514 not from Asia in general. And I've been lucky because during COVID 99 00:07:08,682 --> 00:07:13,746 few years back when China, you know, like in one day everything 100 00:07:13,818 --> 00:07:18,018 got locked, locked down like the factories and everything. And 101 00:07:18,074 --> 00:07:22,290 back then I, I remember I got a little bit scared because my old 102 00:07:22,330 --> 00:07:27,852 business was based on China. And back then I decided I'm going 103 00:07:27,876 --> 00:07:32,220 to start learning how to do sourcing from outside of China. Though 104 00:07:32,340 --> 00:07:35,004 it's little bit complex because before this I was living 105 00:07:35,052 --> 00:07:37,884 in China for a few years. I was speaking Chinese and new countries 106 00:07:37,972 --> 00:07:41,692 is totally new things. But back then I decided I'm going to 107 00:07:41,716 --> 00:07:50,364 do this. And now when this whole tariff thing came up for me, 108 00:07:50,452 --> 00:07:53,912 it's actually a big opportunity because I'm, for the 109 00:07:53,936 --> 00:07:58,264 past few years I'm traveling around Japan, Vietnam and other countries 110 00:07:58,352 --> 00:08:01,912 and I know how to source from all of these kind of countries. So 111 00:08:01,936 --> 00:08:05,240 for me it's a big opportunity because all of the customers that 112 00:08:05,280 --> 00:08:09,140 source from China and suddenly got scared and they're looking for 113 00:08:09,600 --> 00:08:14,232 suppliers outside. I can provide it. So for me it's a good 114 00:08:14,256 --> 00:08:21,784 opportunity and I guess that anyone that, that is ready to explore 115 00:08:21,832 --> 00:08:25,780 new country might find some good opportunities in there. But 116 00:08:26,160 --> 00:08:33,752 it's also important not to, you know how to say it, not to do 117 00:08:33,776 --> 00:08:39,912 your next step out of panic because during COVID many, many companies 118 00:08:40,096 --> 00:08:45,224 try to find quickly suppliers outside of China. And then when Vietnam 119 00:08:45,272 --> 00:08:52,030 got locked down China, the Chinese factories were opening. So 120 00:08:52,570 --> 00:08:56,994 we also need to remember that in many cases China are still going 121 00:08:57,002 --> 00:09:01,698 to be the best option. Okay. So like don't force yourself to find 122 00:09:01,754 --> 00:09:06,386 suppliers outside of China, but you do need to explore maybe 123 00:09:06,418 --> 00:09:10,002 the product I'm making in China, I can make it outside of China 124 00:09:10,106 --> 00:09:15,744 better or cheaper or more unique. And if so, you definitely 125 00:09:15,792 --> 00:09:19,344 have to go and look for this opportunity because you can Save 126 00:09:19,392 --> 00:09:25,248 money and you can be the competition. It's really interesting 127 00:09:25,344 --> 00:09:31,328 just to understand like if now menu making the same product in China 128 00:09:31,384 --> 00:09:36,512 and selling it in the USA and I was quick enough to find a supplier 129 00:09:36,576 --> 00:09:42,750 in India that can make the same product in a, in a cheaper price 130 00:09:43,210 --> 00:09:48,178 and we both sent to the USA and I don't have the tariff, I'm 131 00:09:48,194 --> 00:09:51,150 going to earn and make more money than you on the same product. 132 00:09:52,170 --> 00:09:55,058 Yeah, absolutely. I mean, it's interesting you say that because 133 00:09:55,114 --> 00:10:03,310 years ago, I'm going back 2000, 2006, we had a business that 134 00:10:04,330 --> 00:10:09,454 sold from a place called Jersey. Now, Jersey to the Brits 135 00:10:09,502 --> 00:10:12,798 is a small island off the north coast of France. Okay. It's 136 00:10:12,814 --> 00:10:16,302 kind of, it's independently British is the best way. Now, how 137 00:10:16,326 --> 00:10:19,870 to describe Jersey? So Jersey wasn't necessarily subject to the 138 00:10:19,910 --> 00:10:24,350 tax rules that the UK was. And at the time, it's different now, 139 00:10:24,390 --> 00:10:29,370 but at the time there was a VATS advantage. So VAT is sales tax. 140 00:10:30,310 --> 00:10:33,502 So when you shipped products from Jersey with a value, I think 141 00:10:33,526 --> 00:10:36,962 it was less than £20 from memory. If you shipped goods less 142 00:10:36,986 --> 00:10:40,802 than £20 from Jersey to the UK, you didn't have to charge the 143 00:10:40,826 --> 00:10:44,482 customer VAT. Okay. Now, bearing in mind our sales tax is 144 00:10:44,506 --> 00:10:48,402 20%. So still more than the tariffs. Well, maybe about the same 145 00:10:48,426 --> 00:10:52,258 as the tariffs Trump will put on Chinese products. But we had this 146 00:10:52,394 --> 00:10:56,434 tax that we didn't have to pay shipping from Jersey that somebody 147 00:10:56,482 --> 00:11:02,814 from the UK did have, if that makes sense. So we could be 20% cheaper 148 00:11:02,962 --> 00:11:10,166 than our competitors and still make the same profit. And so for, 149 00:11:10,318 --> 00:11:15,366 I think it was probably for about three or four years, maybe 150 00:11:15,398 --> 00:11:18,150 not that long. Maybe, maybe about three or four years, we took 151 00:11:18,190 --> 00:11:22,970 a, we were able to take advantage of this tax differential 152 00:11:23,710 --> 00:11:27,850 and it helped us become much more profitable than our competitors 153 00:11:28,760 --> 00:11:32,048 because we either sold at the same price, made more profit, or 154 00:11:32,104 --> 00:11:34,896 we sold at a cheaper price, still probably made more profit, 155 00:11:34,928 --> 00:11:39,216 but was still cheaper than our competitors. I mean, ethics aside 156 00:11:39,248 --> 00:11:41,792 about, you know, is that a good thing or a bad thing? It's just 157 00:11:41,816 --> 00:11:44,880 a thing in the free market economy. And I kind of feel now with 158 00:11:44,920 --> 00:11:49,312 the tariff situation that Trump is introducing, there is what 159 00:11:49,336 --> 00:11:53,040 I would call a Jersey moment, whereby if, like you say, if you 160 00:11:53,080 --> 00:11:56,916 can source products, the same product, the same quality, etcetera, 161 00:11:57,088 --> 00:12:03,500 but somehow ship that in effect tariff free, you can take 162 00:12:03,540 --> 00:12:07,068 advantage of that. And we created a business of rapid growth 163 00:12:07,124 --> 00:12:10,172 during those years that I don't think we would have been able 164 00:12:10,196 --> 00:12:12,320 to do had we have not had that advantage. 165 00:12:12,820 --> 00:12:21,228 Right. So it's definitely an opportunity. But like I said before 166 00:12:21,284 --> 00:12:25,110 and they want to say again, I don't tell people don't buy from 167 00:12:25,150 --> 00:12:28,070 China now because of the tariff. There are many products. 168 00:12:28,190 --> 00:12:32,694 I think most of the products China probably is still going to 169 00:12:32,702 --> 00:12:37,846 be the most attractive in term of variety and pricing and how quickly 170 00:12:37,878 --> 00:12:41,526 they can make the product. So just to understand, right now I'm 171 00:12:41,718 --> 00:12:46,470 making products in Japan. I'm in Japan at the moment. The lead 172 00:12:46,510 --> 00:12:51,440 time to make product is six months. In China, it would be probably 173 00:12:51,520 --> 00:12:59,264 45 days. So it's not like go away from China. No, it's nothing 174 00:12:59,312 --> 00:13:03,104 like this. And I think if, if you still need to look at the numbers. 175 00:13:03,152 --> 00:13:07,712 Okay. And again, in many cases you will find out China is more attractive 176 00:13:07,776 --> 00:13:11,584 even with the tariff. Even if the, if Trump will increase the tariff 177 00:13:11,632 --> 00:13:16,444 again, China will still be attractive. But I do think it's a 178 00:13:16,452 --> 00:13:22,380 good opportunity for brands to explore countries beside China. Again, 179 00:13:22,420 --> 00:13:24,492 not just because of the tariffs. The tariff should be the 180 00:13:24,516 --> 00:13:28,604 opportunity. There are different qualities, more unique 181 00:13:28,652 --> 00:13:33,228 products, maybe customization you can do. So I do think everyone 182 00:13:33,284 --> 00:13:38,780 should explore it, assuming you see yourself in the game for 183 00:13:38,820 --> 00:13:41,878 long term, you know, just for a few months. Because it's a process 184 00:13:41,934 --> 00:13:43,010 that take time. 185 00:13:43,790 --> 00:13:47,782 Yeah, that's true. That's. It's very sage advice, isn't it? 186 00:13:47,806 --> 00:13:51,046 Because, and I love what you said here about learning from COVID 187 00:13:51,198 --> 00:13:56,982 You know, everybody panicked during COVID and you know, so they 188 00:13:57,006 --> 00:13:59,638 went to Vietnam. Vietnam then shut down. And I can see a similar 189 00:13:59,694 --> 00:14:03,222 sort of thing going on here whereby everyone leaves China to 190 00:14:03,246 --> 00:14:08,016 go to Vietnam and then Trump interposes par tariffs on from Vietnam. 191 00:14:08,048 --> 00:14:10,768 You know, he'll just sort of goes from one place. You just don't 192 00:14:10,784 --> 00:14:15,232 know what's going to happen, do you? And so I like that. I mean, 193 00:14:15,256 --> 00:14:19,920 we, the fact that we have that whole thing in quite recent living 194 00:14:20,000 --> 00:14:23,776 memory with COVID means that we should definitely, you know, remember 195 00:14:23,808 --> 00:14:26,720 that and learn from that. Which, which, which makes a lot of 196 00:14:26,760 --> 00:14:30,688 sense. Makes a lot of sense. Omerr. Before we carry on, let me 197 00:14:30,744 --> 00:14:34,032 just take a brief second, everybody listening to the show to 198 00:14:34,056 --> 00:14:37,176 talk to you about something that is happening in both Australia 199 00:14:37,248 --> 00:14:42,344 and New Zealand right now. We have, we have something called Cohort. 200 00:14:42,392 --> 00:14:45,704 You may have heard me talk about this on the show before. Cohort 201 00:14:45,752 --> 00:14:48,536 used to be a paid membership program. It's now, we don't charge 202 00:14:48,568 --> 00:14:51,112 for it. It's just a, it's not even a membership. It's just like 203 00:14:51,136 --> 00:14:56,100 a community, a group. And we are launching Cohort in Australia. 204 00:14:56,800 --> 00:15:01,160 So if you're in the Australia, New Zealand part of the world and 205 00:15:01,200 --> 00:15:03,384 would like to come and meet fellow e commerce entrepreneurs. 206 00:15:03,432 --> 00:15:07,402 We just connect once a month online via Zoom and just chat. How 207 00:15:07,426 --> 00:15:10,122 is it going? How's E commerce, what we all learned and share some 208 00:15:10,146 --> 00:15:13,002 insights and stories. We would love to welcome you to that. Just 209 00:15:13,026 --> 00:15:17,802 reach out to me@ecommercepodcast.net or just reach 210 00:15:17,826 --> 00:15:20,666 out to me on LinkedIn. Go find me on LinkedIn @edmondson and I will 211 00:15:20,738 --> 00:15:24,554 share with you the details. We would love to see you in that. So 212 00:15:24,562 --> 00:15:27,178 yeah, do come and join us in that. Do you get to Australia much 213 00:15:27,234 --> 00:15:30,732 Omerr? New Zealand or is it just you stay Japan, China, that 214 00:15:30,756 --> 00:15:31,760 sort of belt. 215 00:15:32,100 --> 00:15:37,052 So yeah, I've been in the past because I have some customers in 216 00:15:37,076 --> 00:15:42,124 there. Actually I'm going to the UK once in a while. I have customers 217 00:15:42,172 --> 00:15:49,708 in there also but for the past I think it's almost 15 months, 16 218 00:15:49,764 --> 00:15:53,596 months, I'm not sure. I've been only in Asia, like I didn't 219 00:15:53,628 --> 00:15:55,440 have time to go anywhere else. 220 00:15:55,870 --> 00:16:00,150 Oh wow. Wow. Beautiful, beautiful people, beautiful food 221 00:16:00,190 --> 00:16:01,446 in a beautiful part of the world. 222 00:16:01,518 --> 00:16:06,614 Beautiful food, yeah, good food. This is the important part. 223 00:16:06,702 --> 00:16:11,238 This is why I do this business, you know. Well, one long 224 00:16:11,294 --> 00:16:16,038 time ago I had a friend that told me the reason you do business 225 00:16:16,094 --> 00:16:22,310 in China is to finance your trips to Japan. And it's true. So 226 00:16:22,350 --> 00:16:26,614 now, now I, I've been upgraded and now I also do business in Japan. 227 00:16:26,662 --> 00:16:29,026 So I can food in Japan. 228 00:16:29,218 --> 00:16:33,938 Fantastic. On that topic, you know, of the multiple different countries 229 00:16:33,994 --> 00:16:36,914 in Asia and Japan is still on my bucket list. I'm not going to 230 00:16:36,922 --> 00:16:40,754 lie. I've not managed to make it yet. But I, I've been to Malaysia, 231 00:16:40,802 --> 00:16:43,458 I've been to Singapore, I've done a whole bunch of them. I've 232 00:16:43,474 --> 00:16:46,002 not actually made it as far as Japan, but I will be there at some 233 00:16:46,026 --> 00:16:52,418 point. The default thinking is still, I think for a lot of e commerce 234 00:16:52,434 --> 00:16:55,474 entrepreneurs I need a product, I need it cheaper. So therefore 235 00:16:55,522 --> 00:16:58,954 I need to source it from China. And like you said, most of 236 00:16:58,962 --> 00:17:02,550 the time that makes a lot of sense. What are some of the countries 237 00:17:03,250 --> 00:17:06,490 that people aren't thinking about that maybe we should, you know, 238 00:17:06,530 --> 00:17:10,906 should we be thinking about say Thailand or Vietnam? If it's 239 00:17:10,938 --> 00:17:14,938 clothing, should. Where are some of the other sort of the good 240 00:17:14,994 --> 00:17:18,150 places to go to in Asia that we're perhaps not thinking about? 241 00:17:18,850 --> 00:17:22,986 So I'll give a quick brief for some of the main countries. Okay, 242 00:17:23,018 --> 00:17:27,230 so I will start with Japan and Japan is not going to be cheap at 243 00:17:27,270 --> 00:17:30,810 any Rate. But in Japan, you might be able to make unique products 244 00:17:31,270 --> 00:17:35,934 that no other country can make. And to me, with my experience, 245 00:17:36,022 --> 00:17:39,742 I think that making a unique and good product can be sometimes 246 00:17:39,806 --> 00:17:44,450 much more valuable than making cheaper product. So this is for Japan. 247 00:17:45,030 --> 00:17:51,384 Korea is a cosmetics empire. So if you want to make a good cosmetic 248 00:17:51,432 --> 00:17:59,320 brand, it's the right place. Yeah. Vietnam textile, plastic, some 249 00:17:59,360 --> 00:18:05,496 metals and wood and bamboo. But Vietnam is a place for mass production. 250 00:18:05,608 --> 00:18:09,704 So many products in China you need MOQ of 1,000 pieces minimum. 251 00:18:09,752 --> 00:18:13,960 Other quantity in Vietnam, you're gonna need 5,000 pieces. 252 00:18:14,040 --> 00:18:14,860 Okay. 253 00:18:17,030 --> 00:18:20,830 Thailand, I have to say, and I've been in many factories in Thailand, 254 00:18:20,990 --> 00:18:24,958 they can do some textile and stuff. But I still couldn't find 255 00:18:25,014 --> 00:18:29,758 any, like, actual advantage in making products in Thailand because 256 00:18:29,814 --> 00:18:32,686 every time when I compared it in China, China was better. 257 00:18:32,838 --> 00:18:33,246 Right. 258 00:18:33,318 --> 00:18:39,486 And India, it's definitely something people should look at a 259 00:18:39,638 --> 00:18:46,896 wood product, electronics and other products. But again, each country 260 00:18:46,968 --> 00:18:56,240 like this come with a whole lot of business culture and things 261 00:18:56,280 --> 00:18:59,600 that are different from China. So just for example, production time 262 00:18:59,640 --> 00:19:04,672 in India, it's kind of like they are giving you the time and 263 00:19:04,696 --> 00:19:09,572 you hope it's going to be anywhere around this time. This is 264 00:19:09,596 --> 00:19:16,292 just for example. So each country have some advantages and 265 00:19:16,316 --> 00:19:20,660 opportunities and unique products. But I know I'm repeating 266 00:19:20,740 --> 00:19:23,908 because I think it's the most important part. Eventually people 267 00:19:23,964 --> 00:19:27,620 need to look for the best supplier that can provide the best 268 00:19:27,660 --> 00:19:31,268 product in the best price. I don't think you should be looking 269 00:19:31,324 --> 00:19:34,932 into a country, you should be looking into a supplier. And if you 270 00:19:34,956 --> 00:19:39,376 find a supplier in China or Vietnam or India, go for it. 271 00:19:39,528 --> 00:19:45,056 Yeah, yeah. No, again, sage advice. It's. It makes a lot of sense, 272 00:19:45,088 --> 00:19:49,280 doesn't it? But. And I can see why businesses like yours, I might 273 00:19:49,320 --> 00:19:53,792 do well, because I would look at that and I would go, I have no 274 00:19:53,816 --> 00:19:56,432 idea. I have no idea about the culture. I have no idea about the 275 00:19:56,456 --> 00:20:00,592 language. I don't know if I'm going to get ripped off. Like, am 276 00:20:00,616 --> 00:20:03,472 I just pouring money into a black hole? Will the quality of the 277 00:20:03,496 --> 00:20:08,460 product be good? I suppose one thing that I would, a big question 278 00:20:08,500 --> 00:20:10,988 I would have in my head about dealing with China and we do deal 279 00:20:11,044 --> 00:20:15,516 with Asia. I have to be honest with you. One of the big questions 280 00:20:15,548 --> 00:20:19,240 always in the back of my head is to do rightly or wrongly is the 281 00:20:19,540 --> 00:20:24,252 connection with child slave labor. Like, is there openness? Is 282 00:20:24,276 --> 00:20:27,200 there transparent? How do I know what's going on in that factory? 283 00:20:27,620 --> 00:20:30,172 How do I know they're not going to take my idea and copy it? 284 00:20:30,196 --> 00:20:33,392 So there's a lot of, there's a lot of hurdles I have to overcome 285 00:20:33,456 --> 00:20:39,984 before I think about getting manufacturing in China. Am I weird 286 00:20:40,032 --> 00:20:42,928 or is that true for a lot of people? Are they sort of similar 287 00:20:42,984 --> 00:20:43,780 barriers? 288 00:20:44,520 --> 00:20:52,576 I think everybody think about these things now. I guess for child 289 00:20:52,648 --> 00:20:57,152 abuse and slavery and stuff, it's very easy to check this stuff. 290 00:20:57,216 --> 00:21:00,672 Like you can do factory audit and very quickly you can know who 291 00:21:00,696 --> 00:21:04,620 is working in the factory, how many hours. And so there is a very 292 00:21:04,660 --> 00:21:10,332 quick and easy solution for this, for copying your ideas. I have 293 00:21:10,356 --> 00:21:16,780 to tell you that I think I stopped thinking about this long 294 00:21:16,820 --> 00:21:21,084 ago because I do sourcing. But many times I also develop the products 295 00:21:21,172 --> 00:21:24,700 and then suggest to my customers, which are companies and 296 00:21:24,740 --> 00:21:29,132 brands. And I have to tell you that this is something I learned 297 00:21:29,196 --> 00:21:34,384 actually from some big companies in the uk, very big ones, 298 00:21:34,512 --> 00:21:39,824 I cannot say their name, but they don't spend a moment about thinking 299 00:21:39,872 --> 00:21:44,400 if the Chinese supplier will copy them. They just keep innovating 300 00:21:44,480 --> 00:21:48,784 and thinking about the next product. And yes, sometimes the Chinese 301 00:21:48,832 --> 00:21:51,680 copy them. Yeah, it's happened. But you know, also your 302 00:21:51,720 --> 00:21:58,512 competitor can copy you. Right. So I don't think it's the 303 00:21:58,536 --> 00:22:03,782 right thing to spend time on will he copy me? And if it's really 304 00:22:03,806 --> 00:22:07,770 important for you, do the patent or trademark or whatever. 305 00:22:08,590 --> 00:22:13,670 But I believe that it's much better to, if you have an idea, find 306 00:22:13,710 --> 00:22:16,422 the best supplier, push the product to the market as fast as 307 00:22:16,446 --> 00:22:20,790 possible and hope that you will do good enough job, that even 308 00:22:20,830 --> 00:22:24,406 if somebody will copy you, everyone will feel he is the copy 309 00:22:24,438 --> 00:22:26,330 and you are the original. 310 00:22:26,750 --> 00:22:31,764 Yeah, well, again, wise advice. I think that's true for I 311 00:22:31,772 --> 00:22:33,780 think whether you order from China or whether you don't. Right. 312 00:22:33,820 --> 00:22:36,916 Your competitors in fact are going to be copying you and you've 313 00:22:36,948 --> 00:22:40,520 always got to think, push and innovate and so on and so forth. 314 00:22:40,940 --> 00:22:43,972 It makes a lot of sense to do that. And if you're not doing that, 315 00:22:43,996 --> 00:22:48,292 I think you've got some fundamental problems. Anyway, what 316 00:22:48,316 --> 00:22:50,788 products do you see working well at the moment? What products 317 00:22:50,844 --> 00:22:55,280 are coming out of Asia that actually starting to sell well online? 318 00:22:55,580 --> 00:22:59,520 Because I know fidget spinners don't have the kudos that they, they 319 00:22:59,560 --> 00:23:02,784 once had, for example. But what are some of the things that 320 00:23:02,872 --> 00:23:03,660 are working. 321 00:23:05,880 --> 00:23:13,152 Well? To me, I feel that because there are much more competition 322 00:23:13,216 --> 00:23:16,032 now compared to before. Like every year you have more and more 323 00:23:16,056 --> 00:23:19,328 E commerce sellers. Right. It doesn't matter on Amazon, Shopify, 324 00:23:19,424 --> 00:23:25,008 whatever platform it is, I feel you have to be. It's not about 325 00:23:25,064 --> 00:23:29,072 like what specific Products, you just have to be much more unique 326 00:23:29,216 --> 00:23:32,672 these days to succeed. Like unless you have a lot of money, you 327 00:23:32,696 --> 00:23:36,352 know, and you can really spend a lot on ads and then you don't have 328 00:23:36,376 --> 00:23:40,592 to be unique because you have eyeballs on your product, but you 329 00:23:40,616 --> 00:23:45,840 have, but if not, you need much better quality products or much 330 00:23:45,880 --> 00:23:50,608 cheaper or much cheaper price on the product. And both things are 331 00:23:50,664 --> 00:23:55,356 hard to get. Like if you, if every, if everybody got this, a certain 332 00:23:55,428 --> 00:23:58,876 price and you want to be able to sell it in much cheaper price 333 00:23:58,948 --> 00:24:01,964 and still to make money, it's going to be really hard to find the 334 00:24:01,972 --> 00:24:06,460 right supplier. And if you want to be able to make much more 335 00:24:06,500 --> 00:24:10,172 unique or special quality compared to other, it's also going 336 00:24:10,196 --> 00:24:18,604 to be very hard. So I feel the time you need to spend today on finding 337 00:24:18,652 --> 00:24:22,332 the right supplier and making the product in the right way, because 338 00:24:22,356 --> 00:24:25,732 it's not only finding the supplier. Like you can find many 339 00:24:25,756 --> 00:24:30,052 good supplier and they're going to make shitty quality. You 340 00:24:30,076 --> 00:24:33,988 need to know how to do the quality control and stuff. I think 341 00:24:34,044 --> 00:24:38,180 this is the way, I know it's not exactly what you asked, but this 342 00:24:38,220 --> 00:24:42,852 is the way to be different and succeed. Because I don't think I 343 00:24:42,876 --> 00:24:46,292 can point on a specific product and tell you, oh, now there 344 00:24:46,316 --> 00:24:51,016 is this kind of textile or this kind of watch that. Because 345 00:24:51,088 --> 00:24:54,472 every product that come out now with tick tock and everything, 346 00:24:54,576 --> 00:24:57,740 after three months you're gonna see it everywhere. 347 00:24:58,080 --> 00:25:02,872 Yep. Yeah, yeah. I love, I love this comment about, you know, 348 00:25:02,976 --> 00:25:10,072 make it unique. That really resonates in the sense that I, for 349 00:25:10,096 --> 00:25:13,304 a while, I don't see as much now, but for a while you came across 350 00:25:13,392 --> 00:25:17,682 people who would try and sell the same product everybody else was 351 00:25:17,706 --> 00:25:20,610 trying to sell out of China. Usually you go to some site like 352 00:25:20,650 --> 00:25:24,402 Temu or Aliexpress or something like that and you would 353 00:25:24,426 --> 00:25:28,962 buy a product, pick any random product, I don't know the plastic 354 00:25:29,026 --> 00:25:33,026 widgets, and you would go, well, they cost 10 cents to make 355 00:25:33,098 --> 00:25:36,082 and I can sell them for three bucks. Well, why would I not try 356 00:25:36,106 --> 00:25:40,946 and sell those? But there was nothing unique about the, either 357 00:25:40,978 --> 00:25:44,690 the product or the way that they were trying to sell it. And 358 00:25:44,730 --> 00:25:47,730 everything was bland. It was like they just gone and got the same 359 00:25:47,770 --> 00:25:51,458 template from Shopify and copied it like 10,000 other people 360 00:25:51,514 --> 00:25:55,122 did and just use the same text that 10,000 other people did. And 361 00:25:55,146 --> 00:25:58,386 there was nothing about them, there was nothing about their brand, 362 00:25:58,458 --> 00:26:02,946 their voice, you know, their uniqueness, like that type of thing. 363 00:26:03,098 --> 00:26:06,082 And it's interesting you say that because I think and it's not 364 00:26:06,106 --> 00:26:09,986 just with products from, from Asia. I think it's just with e commerce 365 00:26:10,018 --> 00:26:14,910 sites, full stop. There has to be something really unique about 366 00:26:15,030 --> 00:26:18,606 that that differentiates you from Amazon, that differentiates 367 00:26:18,638 --> 00:26:21,022 you from all the other commodities out there in, in the 368 00:26:21,046 --> 00:26:25,774 world. And that enables you to really stand out in the consumer's 369 00:26:25,822 --> 00:26:29,422 mind. And so it's interesting that you've, you've noticed that 370 00:26:29,446 --> 00:26:32,238 as well, you know, with products coming over from China. 371 00:26:32,294 --> 00:26:35,182 So it's not a definitive. Well, the fidget spinner has now 372 00:26:35,206 --> 00:26:38,046 been replaced by the spinning fidget. I don't know. But it's, it's 373 00:26:38,078 --> 00:26:43,378 more a case of actually whatever you do do something unique 374 00:26:43,554 --> 00:26:50,194 and I, I really like that. How can you make and I'm assuming on, 375 00:26:50,282 --> 00:26:53,298 on that then Omer that actually the factories in China, 376 00:26:53,354 --> 00:26:57,122 in Vietnam or wherever, they are quite keen to work with you to 377 00:26:57,146 --> 00:27:00,510 help you put your unique flavor and taste on it. 378 00:27:01,370 --> 00:27:05,522 So it depends because the Chinese, the Chinese, they just want 379 00:27:05,546 --> 00:27:08,792 to sell, they just want the cash and many times they will just 380 00:27:08,816 --> 00:27:14,760 put you oh, these products sell very good buy this. They just 381 00:27:14,800 --> 00:27:18,584 want the cash. Many times they don't think long term. This is specifically 382 00:27:18,632 --> 00:27:23,992 for the Chinese. So I think it's actually, I really think you 383 00:27:24,016 --> 00:27:27,640 need to understand it's your responsibility as a buyer to try 384 00:27:27,680 --> 00:27:32,312 to come up with the unique thing. Don't ask the supplier how 385 00:27:32,336 --> 00:27:34,840 can I make this more unique? And there are many people who ask 386 00:27:34,880 --> 00:27:40,264 this. I will even say more. If you go to one of the trade shows 387 00:27:40,312 --> 00:27:45,896 in China for example, and you will go to, you will ask the Chinese 388 00:27:45,928 --> 00:27:49,512 supplier, why should I buy from you? Most of them will give 389 00:27:49,536 --> 00:27:54,632 you the same answer because of our quality and price. Now most of 390 00:27:54,656 --> 00:27:58,072 them going to say the same thing. So you just understand all 391 00:27:58,096 --> 00:28:00,552 the pricing are the same, all the quality are the same. There is 392 00:28:00,576 --> 00:28:05,368 nothing unique about this. Like for me, for the brands I'm working 393 00:28:05,424 --> 00:28:10,696 with, our way to make it unique is really to take a product 394 00:28:10,848 --> 00:28:16,200 and existing product and develop a much better, better product. 395 00:28:16,320 --> 00:28:20,744 And when this is what you do and it takes a lot of time, it takes 396 00:28:20,872 --> 00:28:24,264 a lot of time. It takes time to find the right supplier. You need 397 00:28:24,272 --> 00:28:29,122 to make sample and again and again. But when you do it, you are 398 00:28:29,146 --> 00:28:33,250 really unique. And by the way, you don't need to be worried about 399 00:28:33,290 --> 00:28:37,458 somebody copy you because when you actually develop a product it's 400 00:28:37,554 --> 00:28:40,706 really hard to copy you. And even if somebody succeed to copy 401 00:28:40,738 --> 00:28:45,346 you, it's gonna take him about six months or one year just to get 402 00:28:45,418 --> 00:28:53,388 to the same quality or the same design. So for me, I think trying 403 00:28:53,444 --> 00:28:59,212 to invest more in product development is the right way to be 404 00:28:59,236 --> 00:29:02,492 unique these days. Of course there are more ways. Sometimes you 405 00:29:02,516 --> 00:29:07,772 can be unique just by giving a great customer service. But I think 406 00:29:07,876 --> 00:29:11,580 I assume that most of the listener here are not huge companies, 407 00:29:11,700 --> 00:29:15,404 huge corporation that have the money to invest in great customer 408 00:29:15,452 --> 00:29:20,048 service or a lot of paid ads and stuff. So sometime if you're 409 00:29:20,064 --> 00:29:23,968 going to take the extra two or three months to develop the product, 410 00:29:24,024 --> 00:29:27,900 little bit more to make it to be more unique, once you launch it, 411 00:29:28,200 --> 00:29:33,616 you're going to have much more heaven time. I think there is a phrase 412 00:29:33,648 --> 00:29:39,392 like this in Amazon that they promote you. So it's the same like 413 00:29:39,416 --> 00:29:41,232 you're going to develop a product and you're going to have 414 00:29:41,256 --> 00:29:45,444 longer time that nobody can compete with you and you're probably 415 00:29:45,492 --> 00:29:49,284 going to be able to sell your price in your product in higher price 416 00:29:49,452 --> 00:29:54,612 because it's the only product in the market. Is it have this specific 417 00:29:54,676 --> 00:29:56,520 design or feature or whatever? 418 00:29:57,100 --> 00:30:00,084 Yeah, no, I love it. Love that. I love that phrase, heaven 419 00:30:00,132 --> 00:30:05,316 time. I think that's a great phrase. So it's your responsibility 420 00:30:05,428 --> 00:30:10,792 then as the founder, the owner of the business to make sure that 421 00:30:10,816 --> 00:30:15,000 the product development is done right and done well. A quick 422 00:30:15,040 --> 00:30:19,048 shout out to the episode I did with Norm Farrar. He talks about 423 00:30:19,104 --> 00:30:21,768 how he does this for his process, how he improves a product, 424 00:30:21,824 --> 00:30:24,660 actually he takes a standard product and how he makes it better. 425 00:30:25,200 --> 00:30:28,360 If you want to go check that out, just go onto the website ecommercepodcast.net 426 00:30:28,400 --> 00:30:32,344 search for the episode with Norm, who is a great guy. And you'll 427 00:30:32,392 --> 00:30:38,926 enjoy that episode. I have no doubt whatsoever. I'm curious, right? 428 00:30:38,998 --> 00:30:41,070 There's people going to be listening to the show that is getting 429 00:30:41,110 --> 00:30:43,918 started in E. Com. There are people like me that have been around 430 00:30:43,974 --> 00:30:48,530 a little while. You know, you've got a wide range of listeners. 431 00:30:50,630 --> 00:30:54,574 One of the questions I can hear, you know, the people asking, 432 00:30:54,622 --> 00:30:56,782 I try and think about the questions that maybe listeners would 433 00:30:56,806 --> 00:31:04,010 ask if they were sat here. What are the advantages maybe of 434 00:31:04,500 --> 00:31:09,004 giving you a call and using you to help me with this problem 435 00:31:09,092 --> 00:31:14,828 versus trying to do it myself versus the costs. I mean, everyone's 436 00:31:14,844 --> 00:31:17,420 always, you know, concerned about money and costs and things 437 00:31:17,460 --> 00:31:21,324 like that. So there's going to be a. What we like to call in economic 438 00:31:21,412 --> 00:31:26,812 terms, a cost benefit analysis is the official term. I think so 439 00:31:26,916 --> 00:31:29,240 I'm curious, how would you answer that question? 440 00:31:30,750 --> 00:31:37,110 Right. So I would say that my average customer makes at least 1 441 00:31:37,150 --> 00:31:41,926 million annually and at least this is really the minimum. And I 442 00:31:41,998 --> 00:31:48,822 say this because maybe in some cases it's not the best decision 443 00:31:48,926 --> 00:31:52,370 to work with somebody like this. Like if you're a beginner and 444 00:31:53,230 --> 00:31:58,902 you know you have a very small budget, do it yourself. I try to 445 00:31:58,926 --> 00:32:02,422 post some content on YouTube and Instagram and LinkedIn. You can 446 00:32:02,446 --> 00:32:06,870 watch, you can learn. Do it yourself. I think you should work 447 00:32:06,910 --> 00:32:12,742 with company like me and with a person like me when, number one, 448 00:32:12,766 --> 00:32:18,614 you have time constraint, like you're a big company and time is 449 00:32:18,702 --> 00:32:22,636 more important than money and I can save you a lot of time. Or 450 00:32:22,708 --> 00:32:25,484 when you're trying to make something unique that you probably 451 00:32:25,532 --> 00:32:30,252 don't have the skill to make by yourself, I think you should work 452 00:32:30,276 --> 00:32:33,420 with me if you need the results. And it's not just about 453 00:32:33,460 --> 00:32:38,044 the budget. I do think, and I really say this, that if you're in 454 00:32:38,052 --> 00:32:42,412 the phase where, in the phase in your business, that budget is 455 00:32:42,436 --> 00:32:45,132 the most important thing. There are many things you can do 456 00:32:45,156 --> 00:32:49,392 by yourself. You don't have to pay for everything. Right. Most of 457 00:32:49,416 --> 00:32:53,312 the business owners in the, in the beginning, they probably going 458 00:32:53,336 --> 00:32:56,592 to do the marketing by themselves. It's all good. Later 459 00:32:56,696 --> 00:33:00,060 when they will grow, they will probably pay to a company to do it. 460 00:33:00,360 --> 00:33:02,496 So I think it's kind of the same here. 461 00:33:02,568 --> 00:33:09,580 Yeah, yeah, very, very, very sensible, sensible approach. So really 462 00:33:10,520 --> 00:33:13,040 the cutoff then is about a million turnover. So if you're doing 463 00:33:13,080 --> 00:33:17,242 a million a year as a bare minimum, then you can think like 464 00:33:17,266 --> 00:33:20,698 you say, if time is important to you, then, you know, give Omerr 465 00:33:20,714 --> 00:33:25,722 a ring. I think it's a big. You say you've put out content to 466 00:33:25,746 --> 00:33:28,670 help someone who's just starting out to do it themselves 467 00:33:29,170 --> 00:33:33,002 on your YouTube channel and so on and so forth. We will of course 468 00:33:33,026 --> 00:33:36,346 have the links to that, hopefully. Omerr in the show notes, 469 00:33:36,378 --> 00:33:39,722 if we've done our job correctly and you can obviously go 470 00:33:39,746 --> 00:33:43,060 and watch those to your heart's content, which, which would 471 00:33:43,100 --> 00:33:52,884 be great. So let me sort of bring this, bring this background 472 00:33:52,932 --> 00:33:58,800 a little bit. We're talking to you. We've got a unique product. 473 00:33:59,980 --> 00:34:04,692 We're sourcing it from somewhere in Asia to sell in our 474 00:34:04,716 --> 00:34:07,044 country, obviously keeping an eye on things like tariffs and so 475 00:34:07,052 --> 00:34:09,766 on stuff. I mean, to be fair, you know, the tariffs effect that 476 00:34:09,828 --> 00:34:13,458 the U.S. they don't. We. It doesn't really affect me in the uk, 477 00:34:13,594 --> 00:34:16,514 you know, we, we have our trade agreements with China. I don't 478 00:34:16,562 --> 00:34:19,870 see Keir Starman changing those at any point in the near future. 479 00:34:21,130 --> 00:34:24,590 So it's. I think I, I appreciate that. It's more a US issue. 480 00:34:27,290 --> 00:34:31,170 Where do you think it's all going Omerr, over the next five years, 481 00:34:31,210 --> 00:34:35,430 what's your sort of prediction for the west dealing with the east 482 00:34:35,900 --> 00:34:40,372 in terms of supply of these types of products? Are we still going 483 00:34:40,396 --> 00:34:43,412 to be doing it because it's cheaper or better or higher quality? 484 00:34:43,476 --> 00:34:47,348 Do you, do you see the roadmap of development in Asia and think 485 00:34:47,404 --> 00:34:51,092 actually it's still a pretty safe bet? I'm kind of curious where 486 00:34:51,116 --> 00:34:52,160 you see it all going. 487 00:34:52,460 --> 00:34:57,556 Well, I need to be honest because I'm not. I am like keeping 488 00:34:57,588 --> 00:35:06,290 an eye on the future but I try not to make assumptions that based 489 00:35:06,330 --> 00:35:12,226 on nothing basically because so I do try to look at processes 490 00:35:12,258 --> 00:35:16,002 that already happening and I can only assume probably going to 491 00:35:16,026 --> 00:35:21,650 keep happen. So for example, the distance between the end user 492 00:35:21,730 --> 00:35:25,490 to the factory going to get shorter and this is a process that 493 00:35:25,530 --> 00:35:31,964 already happening. Like in the past six years ago, a customer in 494 00:35:31,972 --> 00:35:36,812 the USA end user in the USA would be buying from the shop, that 495 00:35:36,836 --> 00:35:39,852 would be buy from the distributor, that will be buying 496 00:35:39,916 --> 00:35:43,932 from the importer, buy from a trading company in China that would 497 00:35:43,956 --> 00:35:49,532 buy from a factory and this distance already got shortened shorter. 498 00:35:49,676 --> 00:35:57,126 Okay. So I guess this process is going to keep going and I see 499 00:35:57,198 --> 00:36:00,822 more and more factories starting to sell to the end user, 500 00:36:00,886 --> 00:36:05,478 which is a bad news for probably most of the businesses because 501 00:36:05,534 --> 00:36:09,638 if you are an Amazon seller or an E Commerce seller and right now 502 00:36:09,694 --> 00:36:14,022 you buy from a factory and you sell to the end user and the factory 503 00:36:14,086 --> 00:36:17,734 going to start sell directly to the end user, you might have a 504 00:36:17,742 --> 00:36:22,782 problem. So this is something that's already happening and I can 505 00:36:22,806 --> 00:36:29,646 only assume it's going to keep happening. And so I think this is 506 00:36:29,718 --> 00:36:35,390 one thing people really should focus on and just I'm getting back 507 00:36:35,430 --> 00:36:39,214 to what I said before. Make a unique product, develop a product. 508 00:36:39,382 --> 00:36:42,526 Because if you are, if you make your own product, it doesn't 509 00:36:42,558 --> 00:36:46,148 matter if a factory going to sell directly to the end user, it's 510 00:36:46,164 --> 00:36:52,100 your product. But if you just buy and sell, you know, like regular 511 00:36:52,180 --> 00:36:59,364 stock, the normal items that everybody can buy, you're going to 512 00:36:59,372 --> 00:37:00,880 have a problem. I think. 513 00:37:01,740 --> 00:37:09,044 Yeah, that's fascinating and I get it and I why would factories 514 00:37:09,092 --> 00:37:14,630 not sell direct to consumer? Right. We see it all the time over 515 00:37:14,670 --> 00:37:18,070 here in this country, so why would they not? I think there's still 516 00:37:18,110 --> 00:37:22,214 going to be an opportunity for people like me to bridge the culture 517 00:37:22,262 --> 00:37:25,894 gap, if you see what I mean in the sense that going back to what 518 00:37:25,902 --> 00:37:30,070 we said at the start of the show, I think a few Companies like 519 00:37:30,110 --> 00:37:35,334 banggood and TEMU have managed to make it so that I actually feel 520 00:37:35,502 --> 00:37:39,244 kind of confident buying a product off their website. But I 521 00:37:39,252 --> 00:37:41,852 think there's always going to be that uncertainty where if I could 522 00:37:41,876 --> 00:37:45,420 get the same product from a local website, would I be more likely 523 00:37:45,460 --> 00:37:49,612 to buy. It's an interesting question, isn't it, about sort of 524 00:37:49,636 --> 00:37:53,100 world economics and where it's all going. But I'm intrigued by that. 525 00:37:53,220 --> 00:37:57,420 I'm a listen. This is the part of the show, good sir, where I ask 526 00:37:57,460 --> 00:38:02,204 you for a question for me. So this is where I've been doing this 527 00:38:02,212 --> 00:38:04,044 for a little while. If you're new to the show, welcome, by the 528 00:38:04,052 --> 00:38:06,572 way, it's great to have you. But for a while I've been saying 529 00:38:06,596 --> 00:38:10,060 to my guests, can you please give me a question which I will then 530 00:38:10,100 --> 00:38:13,452 go and answer on LinkedIn? I will put the answer to this question 531 00:38:13,476 --> 00:38:16,600 on LinkedIn. But Omer, what's your question for me? 532 00:38:17,460 --> 00:38:20,892 So you've been probably dealing with suppliers in Asia and 533 00:38:20,916 --> 00:38:23,980 China specifically for a while, because you do it for many 534 00:38:24,020 --> 00:38:30,044 years. Tell me, what was your biggest disaster, if there was any. 535 00:38:30,212 --> 00:38:32,400 Working with a Chinese supplier. 536 00:38:32,910 --> 00:38:36,982 Biggest disaster working with a Chinese supplier. Very good, very 537 00:38:37,006 --> 00:38:39,526 good. Well, I will answer that question on LinkedIn and if I remember, 538 00:38:39,558 --> 00:38:41,926 I'll also tell you my biggest disaster working with an American 539 00:38:41,998 --> 00:38:47,942 supplier. That was much more. That was much bigger, actually, which 540 00:38:47,966 --> 00:38:51,830 is ironic. But yeah, I will. I will be posting the answer to that 541 00:38:51,870 --> 00:38:54,022 question on LinkedIn, if you don't follow me already. Come follow 542 00:38:54,046 --> 00:38:59,372 me. LinkedIn Madmanson. But I'm a listen. Really appreciate you 543 00:38:59,396 --> 00:39:03,676 man. Appreciate you coming on and sharing the insights and thoughts 544 00:39:03,708 --> 00:39:07,820 that you have and your expertise about the whole thing. 545 00:39:07,940 --> 00:39:11,132 If people do want to reach out to you, if they've got maybe more 546 00:39:11,156 --> 00:39:13,836 questions, looking for a little bit more advice. Maybe I've 547 00:39:13,868 --> 00:39:16,524 not asked the question that they wanted answering, but they're 548 00:39:16,572 --> 00:39:19,612 burning to ask it anyway. Or maybe they want to work with you. 549 00:39:19,636 --> 00:39:22,320 What's the best way to reach out? What's the best way to connect? 550 00:39:22,980 --> 00:39:27,068 Can DM me on Instagram or LinkedIn and we can schedule a quick 551 00:39:27,124 --> 00:39:27,720 call. 552 00:39:28,240 --> 00:39:32,056 Fantastic. And of course, we will put those links to your Instagram 553 00:39:32,088 --> 00:39:36,216 and to your LinkedIn in the show notes, which you can get along 554 00:39:36,288 --> 00:39:41,000 for free. Get along for free, along with the transcripts, the show 555 00:39:41,040 --> 00:39:44,280 notes and all that sort of stuff for free on the website ecommercepodcast.net 556 00:39:44,320 --> 00:39:47,704 of course, you can just scroll down in your podcast player and the 557 00:39:47,712 --> 00:39:49,896 links will be in there. We'll put the links in the YouTube description 558 00:39:49,928 --> 00:39:52,904 if you're watching this on YouTube as well. But do reach out 559 00:39:52,912 --> 00:39:56,998 to Omerr. I'm sure sure he would love to hear from you. I'm 560 00:39:57,014 --> 00:40:00,342 a listen man, really, like I say, really appreciate it. It genuinely 561 00:40:00,406 --> 00:40:04,214 great. Loved every minute on it of it. Thank you for coming on 562 00:40:04,222 --> 00:40:06,278 and share. I've learned a lot actually. I've got some notes here. 563 00:40:06,334 --> 00:40:08,518 I've got some questions for our team as well, which is always 564 00:40:08,574 --> 00:40:11,526 good. But thanks for coming on man. Genuinely really appreciate 565 00:40:11,558 --> 00:40:12,134 it. 566 00:40:12,302 --> 00:40:14,850 Thank you for having me. Thank you for your time.