Gordon Styles started in engineering at an early age. “As young as eight, I was secretly helping my dad in his workshop during the 1972/73 UK three-day week,” he remembers. “At eighteen, I went to work running the family business, and over a period of seventeen years running STYLES PRD, I grew the company to be the UK’s largest rapid prototyping company.”
Why China, and why Zhongshan? “I sold our company in 2000, and after a couple of disappointing business ventures in the UK, I decided to vote with my feet and leave the UK for good.” Gordon made the decision to move to China in 2005 and, he says, “the moment I arrived, doors opened and opportunities presented themselves. I have genuinely never looked back.” He first went to Dongguan, but eventually settled in Zhongshan, “because it is such a pleasant small city to live in.”
From the beginning, Gordon knew he would have to distinguish himself here through quality, not low prices. “When I came to China,” he says, “I did not want to just create a low-cost factory.” He recalls sitting on the airplane leaving the UK for China and thinking “I will assume from the beginning that I have very high costs, tons of competition, and must survive purely on our quality, delivery, and service.”
His current company, Star Prototype China, is a full-service “rapid product development” company. They assist product designers in quickly getting their products to market. The company makes prototypes in plastics and metals, and they also do plastic molding and pressure die casting, precision machinery, and more. They now have HKD 40 million in sales, and the focus on quality over price-cutting was the right move. “I am delighted,” says Gordon, “when I hear some customers tell me that we are more expensive that their existing suppliers, but they still choose us.”
What advice does Gordon have for those seeking to do business here in Zhongshan? “I can offer several pieces of advice.”
First, he says, “Be in China. Too many people think they can manage their affairs in China from another country…you cannot. Even with me living here fulltime, I still run into problems in my own factory…imagine if I wasn’t here?”
Second, “Everything must be done twice, three times, or more.” He stresses the importance of tightly controlled routines in your factory.
Third, he says, “avoid smiling and joking when on supplier visits…they will think you are not serious, and therefore you will not be taken seriously.”
On a related note, he stresses honesty when dealing with suppliers and others. “Too many foreigners that come here for the first time believe they cannot complain about product problems in case they cause the other guy to lose face. I think that honesty is the best policy. Always complain if needed; but it can be done in a polite and professional manner.”
-Delta Bridges
