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Today we have a Dutch businessman based in Shanghai, Sebastian Van Der Wals, explaining his process of setting up a Hong Kong company, establishing himself in Shanghai, China, and building up his wine distribution in the Chinese market.About Bas Van Der Wals & European Finest International
Bas is founder of European Finest International, based in Shanghai, China from September 2011
At European finest, we specialize in Old World wines, with our leading suppliers being France, Spain and Italy. Our comprehension of the wine trade has given us the opportunity to strengthen our contacts allowing us to find the best for our customers across China. We offer an extensive range of wines from individual family-owned wine producers from all of the above mentioned countries and are able to offer many different appellations and all quality levels.
Topics Covered in this Episode
- Briefly introduce yourself and your company European Finest
- So how did you get into this, is this your first business?
- How was the process of opening a hk company? Can you explain how do you use your hk company for your business?
- How do your customers pay you? Do you sell B2B, B2C? Cash, paypal, invoice and hsbc bank transfer, merchant account (if merchant account can you share what provider you use). How do you manage cash flow between countries and currencies.
- Do you have other companies as well setup or do you run everything through this entity?
- For listeners today, whats the biggest tip you can offer newbies to International business via Asia?
People / Companies / Resources Mentioned in this Episode
- What is CIF and other incoterms? Incoterms definitions for Import / Export deals.
- How Chinese Learn to Drink Wine
- Chinese wine
- Recommended books to read by Sebastian: Poorly Made in China
- Recommended books to read by Mike: Art of War
- Bas’s wine company European Finest
- Bas’s digital ad exchange Lemonova
- Find Bas on Dynamite Circle
- Find Bas on Linkedin
Photo of the Chinese locksmith at the office door before he kicked it down
Photos of Sebastian’s Wine Business As It Progressed
The First Samples in China
Episode Length: 21:26
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4 Comments on “Importing Insight into China via Hong Kong with Bas Van Der Wals”
Great interview Michael, Bas seems like an interesting guy. I’m wondering what kind of reception do the Chinese give to European brands and how this compare reception given to America brands, (Canada and US) in China, is this reception different in second and third interior markets?
Sebastian here! Chinese with budget care a lot about authenticity of the brand, the quality of the product and the story behind it. These are the main reasons the EU luxury brand are currently flourishing in China. I don’t have many test studies from North America, but for instance Kentucky bourbon, produced in small QTY’s is really starting to pick up. The buying citizens of first tier cities are slightly satisfied and know their brands. Relatively unknown brands can do great in second & third tier cities were the mid-class citizens just starting to buy and have a more competitive budget. Got idea’s? Let’s talk! (info@europeanfinest.com) Cheers! S
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