Within
short walking distance of Digbeth High Street there is a taste of China
all under one roof at the China Products and Wholesale Centre.
This
50,000 square foot warehouse opened in 2006 with a cafe, lifts and
parking. It should be a hub of activity and an important liaison centre
for UK / China trade. The concept and the idea behind this project is
excellent. Sadly it fails in a number of areas.
Visitors
to the centre will be surprised to see various products and companies
showcased in what would appear to be some kind of unmanned exhibition
for products from China.
Cheap
jewellery, paintings, furniture, clothing, toys and crafts are to be
found in individual display areas. When the venture first opened these
were manned with eager representatives from Hong Kong or mainland
Chinese firms eager to sell their wares in the UK. So what went wrong?
The
centre does not seem to have had the marketing budget or the business
acumen to encourage traders to view its wares in any signifcant
numbers. At any one time there are never more than a handful of
visitors wandering around - and thats on a good day.
The
unmanned stalls are untidy, disgorganised and with no clear pricing on
many of the goods. Unopened boxes lie around and the whole presentation
gives the impression of a failed experiment.
Hopefully
the current owners will manage to iron out the problems and find a
workable solution to what should be an excellent opportunity for West
Midlands firms to engage with representatives from Hong Kong and China.
We wish them all the very best.
35-40 Rea Street, Digbeth, Birmingham. B5 6HT. Tel: 0121 666 6678
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