Poorly Made in China

An insider reveals what can—and does—go wrong when companies shift production to China In this entertaining behind-the-scenes account, Paul Midler tells us all that is wrong with our effort to shift manufacturing to China. Now updated and expanded, Poorly Made in China reveals industry secrets, including the dangerous practice of quality fade—the deliberate and secret habit of Chinese manufacturers to widen profit margins through the reduction of quality inputs. U.S. importers don’t stand a chance, Midler explains, against savvy Chinese suppliers who feel they have little to lose by placing consumer safety at risk for the sake of greater profit. This is a lively and impassioned personal account, a collection of true stories, told by an American who has worked in the country for close to two decades. Poorly Made in China touches on a number of issues that affect us all.

Foreword Arthur Waldron ix Introduction xvii Chapter 1 Vanishing Act 1 Chapter 2 Trouble is My Business 8 Chapter 3 “All We Need is Your Sample” 16 Chapter 4 Vice President of Disadvantaged Neighborhoods 26 Chapter 5 “I Do Now” 38 Chapter 6 Lurid Carnival of Global Commerce 50 Chapter 7 And That’s a Good Thing 68 Chapter 8 Grains of Toil 77 Chapter 9 The China Game 86 Chapter 10 The Seven Steps of Problem Solving 99 Chapter 11 Counterfeit Culture 107 Chapter 12 No Animal Testing 123 Chapter 13 Joint Venture Panacea 129 Chapter 14 Take the Long Way Home 137 Chapter 15 Lucky Diamonds 146 Chapter 16 Trophy Trash 158 Chapter 17 “You Heard Me Wrong” 171 Chapter 18 “Price Go Up!” 179 Chapter 19 You Wouldn’t Want to Be There 195 Chapter 20 Of Course, You Would Think So 207 Chapter 21 The New Factory 215 Chapter 22 Profit Zero 227 Afterword 241 Acknowledgments 245