Mauie Flores

Part of our country's history are the Chinese tradesmen that came over with their wares even before the Spaniards discovered our seven thousand and one hundred islands. The Chinese are known to be very skilled business wise. Even some of the richest families in our country at present are Filipino-Chinese. Some early inventions are born of Chinese ingenuity and this just shows how the Chinese has helped shaped our civilization.

But not everyone is happy with Chinese products. With the event of globalization, China has become active in exporting their products worldwide. They compete well with other imported products by bringing down prices. But being less expensive has made most their products suffer in terms of quality. The "Made in China" tag has eventually earned a not so good the reputation among consumers.

But then, in a country such as ours, cost is still prioritized over quality. During the start of the school year, price conscious moms and dads trooped to Divisoria to buy school supplies. They wouldn't mind if these are made in China. What's important is the price. This is one of the reasons why there are so many Chinese immigrant businessmen in the country today. In my location alone, two stores selling ceramic wares and porcelain tiles sprouted in the past month. I haven't checked out their products yet but I saw pretty porcelain wares by their window displays.

I am the type of consumer who considers quality over price. If I see that the quality is good, I would buy it even if it's Chinese. Heck, my laptop's made in China as well as my year-old TV phone! How about you?