Corporate Express has established a permanent presence in Hong Kong and China to facilitate direct sourcing of office products from Asian manufacturers. Going forward, a substantial proportion of Corporate Express privately branded products will be handled through this newly established, local sourcing organisation. This marks an important step in implementing our sourcing strategy supporting the business globally.
Frans Koffrie, President and CEO of Corporate Express commented: “Our presence in South East Asia and our ability to source products directly from manufacturers will allow us to run our global operations more efficiently and bring tangible benefits to our customers in North America, Europe and Australia.”
This new infrastructure and capabilities will help Corporate Express to better control the supply chain and reduce procurement costs. Currently, Corporate Express has 25 percent of its global sales under its private brand. A direct relationship with manufacturers will ensure better and more consistent product quality for customers as the product offering can be adapted much more rapidly to meet specific customer requirements. Corporate Express will also be able to directly influence manufacturers to become more environmentally conscious with regard to issues such as production, packaging and waste.
The Hong Kong office and the representative office in Shenzhen, China, have started operations on 1 July and will be fully staffed by August 2007. The local management team will be responsible for product development, merchandising, supply chain management and quality assurance and control including social responsibility measurements at local production facilities.