Hong Kong 2009: Day 2
The sign over the passage said “Beware of Your Head.” Obviously, whoever wrote the sign meant to warn people not to hit their heads as they passed under the archway but after I finished laughing to myself I thought, “what a great message to all of us here in Hong Kong.”
The news can really get into your head. Take the headline that greeted everyone yesterday morning as they opened the business section of the South China Morning Post: “2m lose jobs as 4800 toy firms collapse.” That’s a lot of Chinese jobs and factories gone this year. Try reading that before you drink your first sip of coffee.
It with this in mind that I continue to be impressed with the incredible caliber of the people in this industry who go about their jobs in a deliberate and steady fashion. They are fully aware of all the challenges that swirl around them yet push through and get the job done.
I continue to follow the credit issue. A prominent vendor told me yesterday that they are only working with letters of credit and will not give terms. On the other hand, a buyer for a good sized retailer told me last night that his company is only buying products from companies that extend credit. Interesting stand off that could end up with some store’s product mixes in 2009 being, at least in part, based upon credit rather than product.
Stay tuned!
