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Chinese market provides enormous growth for Eastern Cape companies

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Backed by development financier, the Eastern Cape Development Corporation (ECDC), Mend-A-Bath International, the world’s leading bathroom fixture resurfacing products exporter is pursuing export opportunities in China in a bid for a share of the lucrative and large Asian consumer market.

Founded in Port Elizabeth in the mid 1970’s by the late Ivor Benn when he bought a struggling bath resurfacing business, Mend-A-Bath International is one of seven Eastern Cape companies placed by ECDC on a 30-month permanent trade fair in Ningbo, China.

Since the official opening of the trade fair in April, the companies have received numerous trade enquiries about their products. Mend-A-Bath International has 12 franchises in South Africa and exports its products to more than 20 countries around the world. Every year Mend-a-bath International franchisees resurface thousands of bathroom fixture items (baths, basins, tiles) in hotels, resorts, and private dwellings.

“Our product is popular because we can save money for a customer and this should make our product attractive to China. Furthermore, Ningbo is the largest seaport in China and the second largest in the world. It therefore forms a major part of China’s import and export market. The port city of Ningbo also presents vast opportunities for the Eastern Cape as it could serve as a channel for Eastern Cape products to larger markets within China and the rest of the world.

“A number of hotels make use of our products and services. Resurfacing is a fraction of the cost of replacing old worn-out bathroom fixtures. The cost of replacing a bath is not only of that of the bath, there are other hidden costs,” Mend-A-Bath International director Ian Moore explains.

Moore says as a result of ongoing research and development, the company is able to offer coating products which have fast temperature change flexibility without cracking, have environmentally friendly components, are chip and discolouration resistant and have exceptional gloss and a smooth feel.

“ECDC is the first public entity in South Africa to place companies on this international trade fair. The corporation is hoping for long term contracts from not only Ningbo, but other cities in China too. ECDC intends to help companies such as Mend-A-Bath International to receive substantial export orders from new markets. When Eastern Cape companies expand their share of the export market they are in a position to employ more people.

“ECDC did an export readiness assessment and Mend-A-Bath International passed the assessment. ECDC had to raise the bar to match the Chinese standards,” ECDC market access business adviser Zodwa Kepeyi says.

The franchise product has expanded to include Perma-Trim, an alternative to ugly grouting and dirty silicone. It permanently seals the gap between the bath arm and wall tiles. Part of the expansion also includes Slip-Resist, which can also be applied during the resurfacing process to provide a “slip-resistant” pattern on the base of a bath.

Kepeyi adds that the twinning agreements between Ningbo, the Nelson Mandela Metro and between the Eastern Cape and Zhejiang Province have been embraced and they are now being translated to economic benefits for both provinces.

“ECDC’s responsibility to increase the value of trade means it has to explore new opportunities made possible by various trade policies. Subsequently, the corporation identified the City of Ningbo as a suitable location after several trade missions it executed in partnership with the Department of Trade and Industry (dti) to Chinese cities such as Beijing, Hong Kong and Xaimen,” says Kepeyi.

Author: Lunga Mtshizana

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Port Elizabethan

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