How Do Wenzhou Businessmen Sell Buttons to Mars?

At 6 a.m. in Wenzhou International Trade City, Mr. Zhang has already inspected the third batch of glasses containers bound for Dubai. This city, known as the "Kingdom of Small Commodities", sees more than 2,000 containers depart every day, delivering Chinese - made products to over 120 countries around the world. As a senior business manager of Wenzhou Import and Export Trading Co., Ltd., Mr. Zhang has witnessed how this private - economy powerhouse uses lighters, buttons, and leather shoes to leverage the world market.

In the sample room of Wenzhou Import and Export Trading Co., Ltd., there is a dazzling array of products on display: from $0.3 Christmas lights to customized luxury leather goods. Ms. Li showed us some astonishing data: "Among the 350,000 transactions handled last year, 78% were small commodities with a unit price of less than $5, but they generated nearly $200 million in export value."

• Industrial cluster advantages: 90% of raw material procurement can be completed within a 50 - kilometer radius
• Flexible supply chain: Supports flexible orders ranging from 1 piece to 100,000 pieces
• Logistics network: Owns 6 international special lines, with the average customs clearance time shortened by 40%

Walking into the company's intelligent dispatching center, the big screen is showing global order data in real - time. Mr. Zhang explained: "The trade brain system we developed can handle orders from Amazon, AliExpress, and independent websites simultaneously, automatically matching the optimal logistics solution." This digital transformation has enabled the company to achieve a 23% growth against the trend during the pandemic.

It is worth noting that the RCEP market, which the company has focused on in recent years, has achieved initial results. Through the "next - day delivery" service at the overseas warehouse in Thailand, the company has successfully reduced the order fulfillment cost in Southeast Asia to one - third of that of the European line.

With the change in the global trade pattern, Ms. Li frankly admitted that the company faces three major challenges:

• The international logistics cost has increased by 170% compared to 2019
• The commission ratio of cross - border e - commerce platforms continues to rise
• The trend of small - orderization has led to a decline in per - ticket profits

When asked about the future development, Mr. Zhang pointed to the new positioning of "Global Trade Service Provider" on the wall and said: "We are helping African customers develop product portfolios suitable for the local market, which is more valuable than simple exports." This transformation may reveal the next growth pole of Wenzhou Import and Export Trade.

Standing at the dock full of containers, looking at the containers with different language labels, one can't help but think: When traditional trade meets the digital revolution, can the Wenzhou model amaze the world again? Welcome to share your insights on the transformation of small and medium - sized foreign - trade enterprises in the comment section.