Global buyers flock to South China's Dongguan for creative manufacturing
GUANGZHOU - Under the scorching sun of summer, a group of international buyers from over 20 countries, including Denmark, Germany, the United States, Japan and Australia, recently gathered in Dongguan, South China's Guangdong province.
These representatives, selected by the China Foreign Trade Center from among the leading buyers at the Canton Fair, came for a special tour of Dongguan's upgraded export bases, which feature trendy toys, designer furniture and next-generation electronics.
Michael Jensen, buyer from Denmark's F&H Group, was on a mission to find a toy factory with ample production capacity to manufacture products under his company's IP.
China is one of the world's largest markets and production bases for trendy toys, so it hopes to find potential suppliers to expand its production capacity and tap into more markets.
Dongguan stands out for its large-scale production and high-quality products. Moreover, a single company here can cover most product categories in the industry, which is truly impressive, according to Jensen.
In Dongguan's "trendy-toy town" of Shipai that they toured, the entire value chain - from sketching and prototyping to mass production, logistics and sales - is all accessible within a 15-minute car ride.
Clustered here are some 4,000 toy makers and 1,500 supporting firms, a concentration that gives Dongguan one quarter of the world's anime-derivative output and 85 percent of China's designer-toy market share.
Phone raised and back bent, Colombian buyer Gamboa Alejandro leaned in to film the production details, exchanging halting Mandarin phrases while jotting down specifications. A thick stack of product brochures already filled his arms, and with links to several factories now in place, he plans to firm up purchase orders within the next few weeks in Shipai township and lock in deals as soon as possible.
"My clients want a complete set of Sonic the Hedgehog figurines, as well as a factory that can produce large-scale robot sculptures. I've traveled to many cities and finally found promising companies here in Dongguan," Alejandro said.
Dongguan has evolved from simple contract manufacturing to a hub of end-to-end creativity. AI-powered pattern centers sketch new characters, smart factories 3D-print prototypes, and logistics corridors swiftly ship finished products to global shelves.
As a traditional manufacturing powerhouse in south China, Dongguan is now firmly shifting towards creative manufacturing.
The 15th China International Animation Copyright Fair held in the city from Aug 8 to 11 drew close to 100,000 visitors and generated intended contracts worth 1.56 billion yuan ($220 million), including multiple large-amount export deals.
Among the headline signings, Russian firm Fenix Limited Liability Company placed a 108-million-yuan order for AI-enabled toys that can "walk, talk and accompany" children. At the same time, a Japanese distributor sealed a near-100-million-yuan agreement with Guangdong Weisi Trendy Toy Intelligent Manufacturing Co Ltd after touring the local industry chains.
"This is our eighth fair, but the most rewarding yet," said Li Wenbo, general manager of Guangdong Weisi Trendy Toy Intelligent Manufacturing Co Ltd. "The client arrived skeptical. One look at the integrated chain and product quality, and the client signed on the spot. Chinese trendy toys have become international top-tier products."
The recent Dongguan tour is only the opening act of the city's foreign trade promotion season. Between August and October, the city will host no fewer than 30 match-making events to connect global buyers with local suppliers.
Zhang Sihong, deputy director of the China Foreign Trade Center, said that despite the current complex and changing foreign trade environment, this event aims to bring real purchasing needs directly to the doorstep of enterprises, creating a "fast lane" for precise supply and demand matching.
"All the suppliers are also package users of the Canton Fair online platform, enjoying services such as precise matching, information display and data reports, making it easier to seize global orders," Zhang added.
