MELCHERS CHINA CEO IN DIALOGUE WITH MADE IN CHINA PODCAST – PART V
Topic: 5-year plans are very popular in China and during the 20th Party Congress last year, China outlined its vision for the next five years. What are Melchers’ plans with and in China for the next 5 years?
(Our CEO Anton Melchers has been interviewed for the Made in China Podcast to talk about his personal journey to China, the history of Melchers and business in and with China. This is part V of the series.)
Anton Melchers: From a business point of view, these 5-year plans are quite interesting, you can always read a lot from them, see where the focus is set or, in case of doubt, also see where a bubble is formed. Perhaps the topic of robots or batteries or e-cars. That helps you to structure yourself, but nevertheless, the interpretation of the last 1-2 years and what has happened and what might happen in the future is very different.
After the congress, I heard many different opinions about what might happen now, what the outcome will be, and what course will be set afterwards. I don’t trust myself to know more or to know better than many experts. In this respect, we remain open to what the market will bring. We continue to believe in the long-term and sustainable development of the Chinese market, the market is there, the people are there, they will always need something in one way or another and we are still committed to facing the changes, no matter what they are.
After more than 200 years of company history and more than 150 of them in China, we naturally continue to have long-term plans for China. Basically, we are growing organically and inorganically in the areas where we are, machinery and equipment, luxury goods and healthcare. We are confident that this will be an investment in the long term. This means that we are not taking a break in terms of investment activities, we are continuing to improve competences left and right in the area of digital capability, of course digital business and social media and marketing are becoming increasingly important, but also processes within the company, including digital processes, for which we have also set ourselves the goal of digitalising.
So, in short, we are here, want to stay here, will stay here, adapt, react agile to what might be decided, but are still bullish about what happens here in the market in the medium and long term.
For further reading of this podcast – Part IV: How do you support companies to be successful in China, as a distributor, service partner, joint venture partner or the like, and what kind of cooperation is suitable when?
