Shanghai - November 11 - Stopping by Suntech's booth was a change of pace from the usual story of Korean companies at the Asian Electronics Expo Shanghai 2009 (AEES 2009). Whereas most of the Korean companies in the Korea Pavilion were hoping to enter the Chinese market as their first international foray, Suntech International Ltd. was looking to China almost as an afterthought. "We have no business yet in China," said Simon Choi, General Manager for the Hong Kong branch. "Our main market is in India, South America, and the Philippines." The company makes GPS trackers, and most of their customers are logistics and transportation companies. These companies enjoy knowing where their fleet is at all times, and the ST-100 GSM and GPRS device from Suntech can do that. "It can also sound an alarm when a vehicle deviates from its planned route," Mr. Choi added. It is especially good for preventing robberies and keeping track of armored cars that move a lot of money around.
But there is a reason why the company has gone to other markets first. It is because of the difficulty of doing business in China, according to Mr. Choi. "European business is credit-based work. But in China, that is too risky. We need a guy in China who can by our eyes in China," he explained. They were looking for a trustworthy company with which to do business. With all the visitors to their booth, the chances of finding one were pretty high.
