Men wanted for hazardous journey

Did you know that 15 years ago, I went on a business mission to China with my brand and product, having no idea what to expect there? Learn what I found

15 years ago, I went on a business mission to China with my brand and product, having no idea what to expect there.

Back then, I was selling Spanish gourmet products: good wine, great Jamón—you know the deal. I was operating under my own brand and exclusively online. You could say I was one of the pioneers of the DNVB phenomenon here in Spain.

But let me tell you how this story ended before you start congratulating me 😆.

Selling these gourmet products online in Spain 15 years ago was complicated. There were many reasons for this, but mainly because customers could easily find these products on every corner (long live Spain and its products! 🐷🍷).

I had read that "there are more millionaires in China than Spaniards in Spain". These millionaires had a high purchasing power and a desire to enjoy great products from a well-known brand: "Marca España". They were eager to savor good ham and drink fine wine.

It seemed like a "blue ocean." If I could strike a few deals in China to ship and sell my goods there, the rest seemed much easier than fighting in the crowded red ocean of the Spanish market, which was still reeling from the 2008 crisis—remember that?

So, I caught a flight to Shanghai and started having meetings. Everything was going smoothly; there was very little resistance to my ideas, and the Chinese entrepreneurs I met were eager to collaborate. Well, aside from the language barriers, of course.

It was already the fifth day of meetings when I saw a familiar face. Not because I knew him from before, but because my contact was Russian, which felt like being halfway between Spain and China. He spoke excellent English, and we understood each other perfectly from the start. Albert (a strange name for a Russian guy) was "one of my kind." He was Western, laughed at my jokes, ate pizza, and loved Madrid and its nightlife. We had great chemistry.

I explained my plan and progress to Albert, and for the first time, he gave me a puzzled look. After a few seconds of thinking, he wanted to accompany me to the next meetings with potential Chinese partners I had lined up for that day. I was delighted to have him with me, even though he barely spoke during those meetings and just observed the Asians.

Late at night, after numerous meetings with the Chinese, we went for a drink at a bar with a view of Pudong (the views were stunning, I promise):

Albert then told me something that stuck with me (still does to this day):

In China, doing business with Western professionals is complicated because a "serious" business conversation has multiple layers of communication. There's one thing that is said, and another that you have to interpret.

To "save face" (a very important concept there), a Chinese person won't tell you something negative or derogatory "to your face." They won’t outright say NO, especially not in front of others. They will hide it in a perfectly polite sentence for you to interpret the underlying message.

I could give you more details about this idea surrounding Mianzi, which is much more complex, but what you need to know from my story is that ALL the Chinese people I met were telling me—without saying it directly to save my "face"—that my product was bad, my brand was ridiculous, and that I shouldn't even think of selling in China under those conditions. That I should go back to my country and leave them alone.

Where I saw successful meetings and business potential, they were telling me, in their way, that there was no business to be done.

Albert had no problem telling me directly and saving me from what could have been a massive business failure. I’m grateful to him to this day.

You learn a lot from traveling, right? 😱

Lesson Learned: Going after "blue oceans" was something very difficult, risky, and costly 14 years ago. Especially if you venture into the unknown with insufficient resources and knowledge.

Men wanted for hazardous journey

Every time I remember this story, I inevitably think of another difficult, risky, and costly expedition. A real one: The mythical expedition of Ernest Shackleton to traverse Antarctica and the South Pole, where men were sought for a dangerous journey, with:

• low pay,

• much cold,

• constant danger,

• long months of total darkness,

• and doubtful return.

That’s right: honor and recognition in case of success.

It's a beautiful story and all true, except for maybe that newspaper ad, which is thought to have never existed. What we do know is that more than 5,000 volunteers applied to accompany Shackleton to traverse Antarctica on foot.

"Back then, ships were made of wood, and men, OF STEEL."

How does it look today?

Today, everything is much easier, whether it’s going on vacation to Antarctica or opening sales in China or other distant countries.

In both cases, the important thing is to do it with the right information and contacts to help you overcome the geographical and cultural distance.

In fact, over the past few years, I’ve resumed business with Chinese professionals (trained in Western business schools), and I see that these social norms have softened a bit. Now, they do tell me the bad things to my face.

Of course, you have to go to dinner with them and lower their cultural defenses 😉

What awaits you if you decide to sell in a distant country?

A dangerous journey: dangerous for your company’s finances, because you will have to invest previous profits in an expedition without guaranteed success.

Low salary: the beginnings will surely be at a loss. You’ll have to sell at a loss while trying to gauge the market potential, the fit of your product, and the keys to reaching new consumers successfully.

Long months of darkness: yes, success will take time to appear on the horizon. Arm yourself with patience and don’t expect to succeed on the first try.

Constant danger: you’ll have to stay very alert to avoid cultural mistakes (like the one I made) and not anger the business partners you work with.

Doubtful return: consider it this way, it’s NOT certain that the mission will succeed. Don’t embark on this adventure as the only solution to a bad situation in your local market; you need to be strong before going into the unknown.

Honor and recognition in case of success: no doubt, we will all admire you if you succeed in conquering a distant market.

And the profits can be spectacular 😉