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I'm In China; Tell Me What You Need To Know.

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intellikat:
That was the best subject line I could think of to get people's attention :)

I mentioned this yesterday in the "Introduce Yourself" thread, but will repost here as well:

Two and a half years ago I moved to Guangzhou, China. In my first year, I started to ride the local trails as well as connect with local riders. I also started to learn a bit about the manufacturers and companies here in Guangdong. I began to read forums online where non-Chinese riders overseas were sharing information on frames and components (mostly carbon).

I had the idea then of launching a simple website where myself and a partner reviewed and provided technical info and ride impressions on frames and components. I'm a passionate trail/enduro rider and builder who has toured and raced in the US, Australia, and SE Asia. My partner is a sponsored xc/road rider for a Chinese brand (Camp) who also works for WTB.

Unfortunately, my partner couldn't commit at the time due to race and travel schedules, and I was bogged down in launching the Art and Drama programs at an international school here (my day job). So, we put the site on hold.

Recently, I've re-evaluated the model and am looking at coming back into it. I'd love to provide firsthand resources and information to riders in communities like Chinertown or MTBR who don't have the benefit of being in physical contact with the manufacturers and products they are sifting through online, and who also don't speak Chinese when it might help. Being something of middle-men here, we might be able to create a valuable interface between the two worlds on a number of levels.

So here comes the question.

There are frames and components popping up all the time on old and new manufacturer's sites, as well as on seller's sites like AliExpress or DHGate. Some provide decent info on geometry, materials, etc., but some don't. And sometimes we aren't sure if we trust the info they provide. And sometimes, even when we do trust them, we would like to hear stories of others who have ridden the stuff first. More pics and even video would be great, too...

What Chinese frames and components (very specifically) are most intriguing to you right now that you might like more info on?

Post your links and details on what you want to know below. If we some patterns in gear people are interested in, and it looks worth the investigation, we'll go have a look. The goal is for us to find some of the best products within a subset (i.e. best carbon hardtail 29er, best 27.5 trailbike, best fatbike, best carbon 29er wheelset, etc.)

As we are in mainland China (Guangdong) we will want to stick to this area for now... within the proximity of Guangzhou, Dongguan, and Shenzhen. Most manufacturers will have an address on their site.

intellikat:
There is a very real possibility of our dealing with the better manufacturers directly and trying to provide the same products to buyers with some better compensation (quicker shipping times, our own quality assurance and customer service, custom paint schemes, etc.). It really a matter of finding out which frames and wheelsets are of the most interest, and what problems and/or added options would make for a better experience. We have access to warehousing, shipping, and the web to do this... we just don't know if we can offer something better than the current distributors like Carbon Speed or others can. It really depends on what everyone wants, and if they aren't currently fully satisfied (or could be even more satisfied).

intellikat:
Though Xiamen is further east, we should be able to deal with manufacturers there as well.

SportingGoods:
Welcome.

First... I'm afraid we get a problem here (well, I do - I'm just a member of this forum, not an admin). As you perfectly understand, confidence is the key when we talk about sending hundreds of dollars to someone we don't know on the opposite side of the globe. The 2 messages above don't help you. Your first message talks about building a website, a source of information. Nice of you, really. I'd love to get an insight in local fabs, see video, product reviews, interviews, better understand the ecosystem, etc...

Then a day later you turn into a vendor, asking blunt questions. In a nutshell this:
- How can we be better then our competitors?
- Which products do you want?
Honestly, I'd expect you to tell me how you are better and I'd expect you to use your incredible access to local fabs to identify the products that are better then the current offering.

And again, don't play this game. Who are you? Be clear, specific or trust will definitely be lost. If you don't know yet who you are (could well be!), take 6-12 month to think about it and come back when you have this defined.

intellikat:
Thanks Sporting Goods.

In a previous message on the Welcome Thread yesterday I wrote that I was doing old school market research. My two partners and I aren't a business as of yet. I'm a former artist, writer, actor, and director who now teaches those things. One of my partners is a rep for WTB in China and a sponsored rider. The third partner does manufacturing and sales (of his own products). The first two of us are bikers ourselves, and there's no need to explain further the passion that comes with that. The third really just likes a good idea.

The "old school market research" is simply asking you what works and doesn't work. What you want and don't want. If we can access the same products from the same (or better) manufacturers and add value to them through any number of things (quick shipments, more details specs, ride reviews, customer service in English, etc.) we want to look at doing that. I know the market is saturated with Chinese sites like www.xmcarbonspeed.com/, and if they are working fine for most people, we wouldn't put any time or effort into trying to things better.

I think everyone here would love to be riding and reviewing bike gear to some degree. In fact, most here are doing that in their spare time for free. Usually we do such things out of a natural love for things like cycling. Yet in this case, we are looking at attempting more than buying one frame we particularly like and documenting the assembly of it. We'd like to approach various manufacturers and potentially buy and demo a number of frames and components. That's not necessarily easy or free. Yeah, we'd enjoy it. But it's not sustainable to do over time as a hobby. We would need to incorporate a workable business model for any kind of substantial web presence (ad-supported, distribution of products ourselves, etc.). No game being played here; just trying to find if there is a way we can provide something that is beneficial from our position in the middle. It would be substantial content we would want to provide.

And yes, that would take time. I'm not looking at this happening overnight. Right now, I'm just asking questions about how the current structure for finding information on products and purchasing them from Chinese distributors is working for you. Their sites do look alot more organized now than they did even 18 months ago (I noticed one site... www.oem-carbon.com had been taken down by an legal response by Specialized, though).

So, it's just the simple questions I asked... no requests for credit card or MTCN numbers :) Are you satisfied with the relationship to current vendors, or is there a way this could be improved? If the products are fine, and it's just access to more information... cool. We'll consider the possibilities of a review site only. If the option to get the same products quicker, cheaper, or with other options sounds like a good thing... cool. We'd look into that.

The purpose of this thread is to speak generally about things, so we know if it's worth pursuing. It does take time, effort, and monetary investment, but we'd love take a shot at it if it could work.

All I'm asking is your opinion on these things. Frames and components (or even manufacturers) to look into, and whether or not it would be worth setting up an alternate way of obtaining them.

All input is welcome!

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