Bill Tung | Localizing For Consumers In Japan - Part 1

The Negotiation

Topics Discussed and Key Points:

● Helping Rockport and The Body Shop grow across the APAC region in the 1990s and early 2000s

● Marketing to a demographic that you are not a part of

● Marketing outdoor apparel and equipment in APAC

● Localizing well-known Western brands in different APAC countries

● Common mistakes brands make when expanding in APAC

● Optimizing your organizational structure to thrive in foreign markets

● Preparing for complaints and returns in overseas markets

Episode Summary:

Today on The Negotiation, we speak with Bill Tung, Managing Director at Peaks Consulting. Bill reflects on his time establishing Rockport and The Body Shop’s sales operations across the APAC region.

It was from those experiences that Bill learned the value of knowing thy customer, becoming aware of your home country's biases, and ignoring consumer differences at your peril—especially important considerations for Western brands looking to successfully expand into Asian markets.

Bill also discusses the unique challenges of growing Columbia—a sports and outdoor apparel brand—in China while he served as VP of International Sales from 2003 to 2016.

Finally, Bill talks about the common mistakes that brands make when attempting to expand into foreign markets, and why it is so important to optimize a company’s organizational structure, which includes everything from operations, customer service, and marketing, to merchandising, HR, and finance.

“These really need to be part and parcel of a global mindset,” says Bill. “Otherwise you’re just exporting.”

Key Quotes:

“When you fail to understand the consumers that you’re trying to sell to, that gets a lot of companies into trouble.”

“Retail is detail.”