MGB225 ASSESSMENT 1: weight - 40% SEE BLACKBOARD FOR INSTRUCTIONS EAST MEETS WEST IN SHOE MANUFACTURING NEGOTIATIONS Brown Casual Shoes, Inc., located in Houston, Texas, is a second-generation company that specialises in casual footwear for men, women, and children. The comp operation for 30 years and has manufacturing facilities in Houston, Texas, and Cincinn the years, the company has expanded its operations throughout the United States and directly to retail shoe stores such as Payless, to discount stores such as Wal-Mart and wholesale outlets such as Costco. The company prides itself on manufacturing its sho United States. Over the past five years, the company has felt the impact of cheap manufacturing of today's shoes. Local and international competition is making company's niche markets. Sales have been down for the past two years. The president Robert Brown, Jr., is concerned that if the downward trend in sales continues, the co forced to close its doors. Labour costs in the United States have been a major concer aware that the U.S. athletics footwear industry does most of its manufacturing in Asian as China, South Korea, and Indonesia, where labour costs are appreciably lower. The company must now find cheaper ways to manufacture its shoes, and it nee sales by entering the international marketplace. Mr Brown called a board meeting to rev After much discussion, the board decided China was a good place to begin for a number The country has a cheap labour market, (2) the country already has footwear manufac with U.S. companies, (3) China represents a potential new market with a population of people, and (4) China has been moving toward a free-market economy since the late 1 decided he would visit China and bring with him Harry Livingstone, his senior vie operations, and Roberta Jackson, manager of the company's marketing department. Mr Livingstone was given the job of setting up the visit. He contacted business had done business internationally to get some ideas of how to go about planning the visit. also contacted several athletic footwear trade associations and was able to identify companies interested in talking to his company abut a business arrangement. One c Manufacturing, was located outside Beijing; the other company, Chung Sun Manufacturi in Shanghai. After some discussion with Mr Brown, the two of them decided to vis company because Shanghai was one of China's Special Economic Zones and would be Western ideas and business practices. The Beijing company was attractive, but Mr Brown concerned about the political and social risks of being so close to the country's capital government