AEP Online
Featured Columns
Blaschke on Fed. Funding
A+ Advice for Parents
    Archives
Archives
    Education 
    Legislation
    Technology
    Market Trends
    Misc. Topics
About

Doing Business in China: 2007

In 2005, AEP embarked on a business development trip to China to assess the impact of the country's new free market economy on the educational publishing industry. At the time, it was difficult to distinguish any immediate effects. The marketplace was still young and unsettled, and it seemed Chinese companies were more interested in getting to know their American counterparts and how they did business rather than taking action and making deals. However, over the past two years, the business climate has been heating up, and this couldn't have been more apparent than at this year's Beijing International Book Fair.

"On our first trip to China [in 2005], everyone seemed to be testing the waters," said AEP's CEO, Charlene Gaynor, who helped plan a number of business-to-business initiatives at and around the 2007 BIBF. "This year, it was quite obvious that these guys came to play."

Getting deals done
While there are no concrete numbers yet available in terms of deals made or contracts signed, Tom Seavey, international licensing and business development manager at Highlights for Children, said he had closed three translation contracts and one adaptation of Highlights' educational magazines since last year's fair. Seavey had a booth in the fair this year and also displayed several titles in the International Children's Publishing Exhibit (ICPE), a collective exhibit in the BIBF organized by AEP, the American Collective Stand (ACS), and the Combined Book Exhibit.

Publishers Weekly also reported earlier this month that rights agency Andrew Nurnberg Associates, which represents Dan Brown and Stephen King in China, sold 40 percent more titles in the first six months of 2007 than compared to the same period in 2005. "China is the place to be for everyone in the book industry," Nurnberg told PW.

In addition to actual deals inked at the fair, every company that participated either in AEP's 10-day Business Development Tour or the ICPE said they had established several promising leads and had plans to pursue them. Jack Wayne, President of Canadian Scholars' Press Inc. (CSPI), said his company had about twenty live contacts, and Rachelle Cracchiolo of Teacher Created Materials (TCM) said her company was able to initiate several new relationships as well as build upon a number of existing ones.

Impetus for change
There are a number of reasons for this upsurge in the amount of actual business being done. On a macro level, it seems that the Chinese are simply more comfortable with Western business practices and policies, said Janet Fritsch of the American Collective Stand. Fritsch also feels that the Chinese government has increased its support for international, legitimate copyright trade.

From an education standpoint, there are a number of other issues at work. Over the past few years, the Chinese educational publishing market has grown at a harrowing pace. Increased market competition and comprehensive education reform laws have spurred a demand for content that Chinese publishers are scrambling to meet.

"In order to remain competitive, Chinese educational publishers must produce anywhere from 1,000 to 4,000 titles a year," said Gaynor. "They are looking for content anywhere they can find it."

What China wants
Much of China's education reform focuses on active learning and critical thinking, making materials from America and other Western countries highly desirable content. Supplementary products and reference materials are in high demand, not only in the country's schools, but in its homes as well. Education is an important part of Chinese culture, so parents with newfound disposable incomes and only one child to support often make educational materials a top priority.

The Chinese are also very interested in Western teaching methodology, said Gaynor. "They're asking about teacher education and professional development materials, especially in science and math."

"The Chinese are always looking for the STM titles for their universities and libraries," said Fritsch, "but we have found that their scope of interest is broadening almost daily."

Joining the action
As with any international business outreach, there are challenges to consider when doing business in China. TCM's Cracchiolo said their opportunities in China lie with finding reliable and reputable partners in a sea of eager suitors. Wayne said CSPI's biggest roadblock is finding the right titles to sell and persevering with potential buyers. David Beacom of the National Science Teachers Association agreed that finding the time to follow-up can be difficult, and that language barriers are also problematic.

According to Fritsch, the best solution to most of these obstacles is face-to-face interaction.

"Other than doing an immense amount of research, meeting with [Chinese publishers] in person is the best course of action," she said. "Most Chinese publishing company personnel do not get out to all the book fairs because of VISA situations or economic reasons, but they are at the Beijing Book Fair. The only other fair they attend in sizable amounts is Frankfurt. The bottom line is you can send all the emails you want, but nothing will get signed until they meet you in person."

Questions, ideas, or in need of more information? Please contact Stacey Pusey at 856-241-7772.

For more information on AEP's China Business Development Tour or the International Children's Publishing Exhibit, please visit the Go Global section of AEP's website.

© 2008 The Association of Educational Publishers
510 Heron Drive, Suite 201 • Logan Township, NJ 08085 • P:856-241-7772 • F:856-241-0709 • Email: mail@AEPweb.org
 
Satellite Offices:
Two Bala Plaza, Suite 300 • Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004
C/O Knowledge Alliance • 815 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 220 • Washington, DC 20006