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The market of the future is in China
The days as a low-cost country are but a memory. Today, China is one of the most important and largest markets in the world.
– A major part of the world’s growth, production, research and, above all, future consumption is right here, says Carl Erik Sars, Co-founder and board member of UnitedLog (former United Logistics Group).
UnitedLog is represented as a service provider in Supply Chain Management in the Chinese market since the beginning of 2004. The office in Shanghai has seven employees. That number will likely increase to 20 within a year.
– The need for our services keeps increasing. This is due to our Western customers are expanding their business in China and partly because the local Chinese companies request our services and “global knowledge” in Supply Chain and logistics, says Carl Erik Sars.
UnitedLog specialises in strategy, information support and management. Their business areas are Consulting (former Establish), Solutions (former United Solutions) and Outsourcing Services (former United Operations). In Consulting, the focus is on business development in supply, production and distribution processes. Solutions assists companies in developing smart, efficient and innovative IT solutions for external logistics. Outsourcing Services is running, optimising and streamlining logistics and information.
One problem facing companies setting up business in China today is that logistics are still unstructured, says Carl Erik Sars.
– The infrastructure is not developed outside of the big cities. Bureaucracy in, for example, customs is complicated and compared to the Western world logistics costs are very high. In China, logistics costs are around 20 percent of delivery value, while in Europe and the US it is around 7 percent. Since there are no total transportation suppliers, it is not easy to transport goods between different regions in the country. But since we are working with local people and have good knowledge of the Chinese market, we can assist companies in finding the right logistics and decrease costs. One competitive edge is understanding the Western as well as the Chinese business culture. In 5-10 years, Carl Erik Sars believes that the infrastructure will be more developed and stable. Until then, logistics is a big business obstacle but also an opportunity when you know how to deal with it.
With globalisation, competition between companies is getting fiercer. Being flexible and perceptive is more important than ever. UnitedLog assists companies in creating flexible logistic systems and streamlining production, distribution and purchasing on a strategic, tactical as well as operational level. UnitedLog assists many different companies, but in China there is a somewhat larger demand in workshops, telecom and retail.
Carl Erik Sars
Co-founder and board member of UnitedLog
carlerik.sars@unitedlog.com
www.unitedlog.com
Contact Shanghai office
