An interview with Mr Riccardo Falchetto, Breton China Manager
How many people are in the Breton China team?
Currently, the Breton China team consists of 8 people, both Italians and from other countries, all of whom are selected to be part of a highly efficient and competent team.
What sort of services do you offer?
Breton China offers above all a commercial service for promotional and sales purposes. But in our branch our customers can also benefit from a speedy assistance and machine installation service, with personnel trained directly by Breton SpA. We will soon also have a spare parts warehouse to offer the fastest repair services. This is further commitment to our customers in the Far East to guarantee fast response times to meet any requirements with our equipment and technicians.
What are the characteristics of the Chinese market?
The Chinese market is now the most important market in the world for machine tool users. The leading sectors are the Aeronautical and molding/modelling sectors. The aeronautical sector is essentially dominated by big, state-owned companies, but in the last two years many private companies and private/public companies have also been established with a promising outlook in subcontracting and commission manufacturing. Breton China operates in the molding sector, where the companies are private and look above all for products of quality, so it's been fairly easy to establish profitable business relations, while in the aeronautical sector dominated by state-owned companies we have been developing a network of relations that starts to bear fruit; public relations are essential in an institutional context such as this in Asia.
What sort of development do you envisage in the sector you are operating in?
We expect it to be very promising. Breton China was established 2 years ago. In July we'll deliver 4 machines, and will have installed 10 machines by the end of the year. We expect to triple sales over the next 2 years.
Do you operate also in other Asian countries? Do you have any contacts in neighbouring countries for example-
We've sold machines in Pakistan and Singapore, but our focus is on China also due to the size of the country. In the molding sector alone there are around 35,000 companies. It's a strategic market for those looking to the future.
What are Chinese customers like to work with?
The big state-owned companies tender contracts to purchase machinery. The lowest bid does not always win the orders. They usually buy products they've used in the past and don't really put their trust in something new. These difficulties can only be solved with a methodical and convincing action directly "in situ" for satisfactory, long-term results. Customer relations are essential, and Breton has just what it takes to be the very best partner.
Thank Mr. Falchetto
By-by
By-by
Sergio Prior
