3 ways Chinese holidays can affect your business
If you do any manufacturing, design, exporting, supply chain, shipping, or other type of business in China, understanding Chinese holidays is a must. Knowing the Chinese calendar is just the first step – if you don’t plan ahead, there are several cultural nuances that could be devastating for your business. Here are 3 ways to keep your business growing through Chinese holidays.
Always keep a current copy of the Chinese calendar.
Chinese holidays follow the lunation of the moon, which means their exact dates change every year. We’ve created a current 2016/2017 calendar for you to download here.
Always expect EXTRA days of closures.
In North America, most holidays are a single day. When our businesses shut down, we announce it and the dates are set in stone. We close on the designated date and reopen once the holidays are over. This is not always the case with Chinese companies. It’s not uncommon for companies in China to close early, come back late, or even both—with no warning. And even if a factory sticks to the dates they give for their closure, their suppliers, distributors, or shipping couriers may not!
During the year, Chinese workers live near their place of work and most of the time, the factory is VERY far from their hometown (several days’ worth of travel on a bus/train). When Chinese New Year or Golden Week rolls around, they return to their family homes and once the holidays are over some Chinese factory workers don’t even return to their jobs after a long holiday. Factory managers re-open with seriously depleted staff AND a huge backlog of work left at a standstill during the holiday. To importers, online sellers, and distributors waiting for their products, this means one thing: DELAYS.
The massive human migration that occurs around Chinese holidays has taught us to add extra time for ordering and importing before and after Chinese holidays. For example:
- January: New Year’s Day, 3 day calendar holiday > plan for 4-5 days of delays
- Jan/Feb: Chinese New Year, 1 week calendar holiday > plan for 3-4 weeks of delays
- April: Qing Ming Festival, 3 day holiday > plan for 4-5 days
- May: Labor Day, 1 day holiday > plan for 3 days
- May/June: Dragon Boat Festival, 3 day holiday > plan for 4-5 days
- Sept/Oct: Mid- Autumn Festival, 3 day holiday > plan for 5-6 days
- October: Golden Week, 1 week holiday > up to 2 weeks off (sometimes overlaps with mid-Autumn Festival)
You can expect halted production and reduced output during the days (or weeks!) before, during, and after Chinese holidays.
Always forecast your needs and buy early.
In order to minimize the disruption to your business, always plan ahead. While it may be difficult to book your orders in advance due to cash flow, warehouse space, etc., the alternative is to find yourself out of stock for the products your customers need. Through careful forecasting and early buying, you will be able to bypass the problems caused by the backlog of orders Chinese factories receive during the holidays, as well as the slow start faced by the factories when large numbers of employees do not return after the break.
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