Our arrival in Beijing came just after a devastating earthquake there and a political earthquake in which, after Mao’s death, Mao’s wife and three other leaders called the Gang of Four were arrested. This act signaled the end of the rigid thought control which characterized Mao’s Cultural Revolution. Mao’s wife had sought to extend the Cultural Revolution. Her arrest meant a new day was beginning in China. We drove past the building where the Gang of Four was held, but our hosts refused discussion. Expression of political ideas was frowned upon.
Billboards of political slogans lined the streets. Mao’s picture was on every building and seemingly in every meeting room. Huge photos of four white men
– Marx, Engels, Lenin and Stalin- dominated Tainanmen Square. Dress was drab and uniform. The infrequent department stores had few consumer goods to offer. There were taxis and official cars. Otherwise the population used
bicycles, which at that time were in short supply. “Not Possible” Buying rugs on that first trip was difficult. Qualities, styles and colors were limited, and we sensed a take-it-or-leave-it attitude among the sellers. We dealt with a state owned corporation, most of whose bureaucrats knew little about rugs. Travel was restricted. Negotiations were slow, ponderous and often irritating. The largest carpet branches were in Tianjin, Qingdao, Shanghai, Beijing, Hobei and Dalian. A visit to one of these branches would involve at least one and perhaps several banquets in which much mystifying food along with large quantities of beer and the fierce tasting Motai would be served along with numerous toasts to friendship, good business and health. Usually in an eight hour day you would consider yourself fortunate to get in four hours of work. The morning would begin with tea, followed by a heated discussion among the workers as to which group would work with us. Just as we would get rolling it would be time for a two hour lunch, then tea after lunch, and then an early closing as workers would drift off as the afternoon lengthened. The most common phrase we heard in those days was “not possible” the standard answer to anything that deviated from the program they had planned. Branch personnel in those days had little training in marketing. I remember one visit to our office from a major branch. They were all excited about a new product which was an 80 line carved rug that had the appearance of a 90 line rug but at considerably less cost. They wanted me to give them large orders which I told them I would do as long as I could cancel my 90 line orders. They were shocked; it had not crossed their minds that this new product would effect their sale of 90 line rugs. I doubt if that sample was shown again! Despite all the difficulties and frustrations of doing business in China, though, it was both an exhilarating and memorable experience which for most of us resulted in the inauguration of what became increasingly a significant part of our importing business. I should add that some relationships with our suppliers led to friendships, and as the years passed we would discuss political ideology, religion and other controversial subjects. We also came to appreciate the strengths in their way of doing business. For many of our Chinese counterparts, this was their first experience with business representatives from the West and our ways must have seemed as strange to them as theirs did to us. China and Rugs Today In the twenty-four years since this first visit, China both as a society and a producer of rugs has gone through monumental changes. Political change and Chinese business savvy have evolved in tandem. In 1977 those running the businesses of China were first and foremost good Communists. Business skills were a nice plus but hardly necessary. From 1977, business skills grew in importance at the expense of political orientation. In the last decade business skills have become all important. One may or may not be a good Communist but he or she better be a good manager!
In the last fifteen years, in terms of rug production, there have been two major developments: one is the decentralization of rug sales; the other is the emergence of China as a major producer of classical design Persian and Turkish style oriental rugs. China is making an effort to offer buyers what they want. The new economic policy encourages individual factories to make contact with customers, bypassing the bureaucratically top-heavy branches. At the same time many of the creative and energetic employees of the branches have left to begin their own businesses. Some have become agents to overseas clientele, linking factory and overseas customer.
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