Supportive family: Ms Seet poses for a picture with her proud husband Michael Ng and daughters Vivien and Charlyn at the Singapore Business Awards press conference. She is only the second woman to clinch a trophy in the 23-year history of the awards

She said a triple whammy - the yuan appreciation against the US dollar, the lower tax export rebate and higher labour cost - has made it very hard to operate in China, particularly for textile exporters.

'When the US dollar depreciates against the yuan, it is very hard to survive as margins are very slim,' said Ms Seet, chief executive of Beijing Smart Garments.

The US dollar has depreciated about 8 per cent against the yuan from a year ago.

In addition, Beijing has reduced the 13 per cent rebate tax for exporters to 9 per cent and is looking to further slash it as part of measures to shrink the US trade deficit with China, she said.

Then there is the Labour Law Reform which imposes a minimum wage for workers plus other regulations which has increased wage costs at least 12-15 per cent, said Ms Seet.

The tough measures are hard especially on contract manufacturers, she said. 'We have to value add, like offer designs,' said Ms Seet who is also the chairman of the Singapore Chamber of Commerce and Industry in China.

For Beijing Smart Garments, it has also switched to selling in euros to its customers in Europe and in Australian dollars to its clients Down Under. On the impact on Singaporean-owned factories operating in China, Ms Seet said they may not be affected as badly as the local exporters. 'Singapore companies are more law abiding, they'll be better cushioned because they have already been complying with regulations,' said Ms Seet, the 2007 winner of the Outstanding Chief Executive (Overseas) award.

Ms Seet is only the second woman to clinch a trophy in the 23-year history of the Singapore Business Awards. Olivia Lum of Hyflux won the Businessperson of the Year award in 2005.

Working in Beijing since 1995, Ms Seet said it was a very difficult decision then as her two daughters were young - aged five and 14.

In addition, she knew no one and was not familiar with the culture. 'China was not what it is now and it was very foreign to me, especially when Chinese was not a language I was fluent in. I had no friends, nor colleagues whom I knew well. The main consideration was for the family business to survive,' said Ms Seet.

Her proud husband Michael Ng and daughters Vivien and Charlyn were at yesterday's Singapore Business Awards press conference.

'Honestly I never realised she was that capable,' said Mr Ng. He said the decision to send his wife to Beijing in 1994 was because of her experience in running the family's retail outlets in Singapore, China Silk House, which subsequently closed down.

Ms Seet is now looking forward to list Beijing Smart Garments in Singapore in two to three years' time.

The company is a joint venture between Ms Seet's family and the Shunyi Municipal Government.

It has more than 2,800 staff producing some 1.5 million suits a year and exporting to more than 15 countries. It also operates about 100 retail outlets in China. Last year, Beijing Smart Garments posted sales of 400 million yuan (S$78.7 million) and profits of 17 million yuan.  - 2008 April 1    BUSINESS TIMES

Sewing up the family business

Dorothy Seet, the Outstanding Chief/Senior Executive (Overseas) for 2007, is only the second woman to clinch a trophy in the 23-year history of the Singapore Business Awards.

Ms Seet: With a staff strength of 3,000, BSG currently produces about 1.2 million suits a year for brands such as Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein and Burberry

Ms Seet, general manager of Beijing Smart Garments (BSG), is used to blazing trails. When she left home 14 years ago for Beijing to help in the family business, it was her husband and their two young daughters who stayed in Singapore. Although Singaporean mothers do work overseas, they are a small minority.

Initially, Ms Seet was in Beijing to start a women's line for BSG, a joint venture with the Shunyi county government which had been set up in 1985 by her in-laws.

So well did the smaller unit perform that when the parent company ran into problems a few years later, she was promoted to its general manager.

'When I took over in 1999, the company was facing one of its worst years,' says Ms Seet.

BSG had a net loss of 10 million yuan (S$1.97 million), an unstable staff situation, and debtors were chasing for payment, recounts Ms Seet.

'At that point in time, BSG also had non-core business investments in food outlets, advertising, etc. These businesses were also facing financial losses. There was a tremendous effort undertaken to streamline the operations, do away with all non-core businesses and gradually bring the company back to financial health,' she says.

BSG began its climb back into the black and in 2004 reported a profit of 10 million yuan on a turnover of 280 million yuan. By 2007, profits had risen to 17 million yuan and turnover was 400 million yuan.

While the going had been tough, it hadn't been without rewards.

In 2006, BSG was honoured with the 'China Well-Known Trademark' as well as the 'Beijing Famous Brand' awards.

'This is recognition of the company's achievement in the garment industry. There are no more than 200 clothing companies nationwide that are given this recognition as there are stringent conditions required to qualify,' notes Ms Seet. It came with a prize of 3.5 million yuan, tax free.

With a staff strength of 3,000, BSG currently produces about 1.2 million suits a year for brands such as Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein and Burberry. Its biggest export market is Japan followed by Europe and the US. In 2005, it churned out 800,000 suits.

BSG has also gone into retailing. Domestic sales used to make up about 30 per cent of the total; this has since grown to 40 per cent. BSG is targeting 50 per cent in domestic sales, tapping China's growing middle class.

It now has 88 shops across China and expects to add another 17 this year selling under two brands - Roma and Smart. Of these, about 10 per cent are franchised outlets.

Ms Seet says the company is working on developing its franchise programme and aims to have 50 franchised outlets in the next 18 months. Sales for the domestic market are about 150 million yuan.

As the business grows BSG had explored setting up production in Vietnam but decided that conditions would not suit its stringent quality control.

Instead, it turned to outsourcing with 'cooperative factories'. Under this model BSG is responsible for technical support as well as the management system of the production plant but does not fund the capital investment for the factories.

Ms Seet is poised to take BSG to the next stage, seeking a public listing in Singapore within the next two years.

'The company is growing at a steady pace and the domestic market has great potential for further growth,' she says.

What has been the hardest part of the last 14 years?

Being away from her daughters, she says. 'I must admit I did miss their growing up years and sometimes still have regrets. I am fortunate that the two girls grew up well and that helped my decision to continue to work in China,' Ms Seet says.

'In the beginning, it was extremely difficult for me emotionally as both girls were young. We would hold each other and cry our hearts out every time we had to part,' she adds.

Her daughters are now grown - Vivien is 28 and Charlyn, 20. Vivien got married last year and Charlyn is now in Melbourne University doing her final year in media.

Everyone has to strike a balance and make sacrifices at some point in life, Ms Seet says. She has had to balance her life travelling between home in Singapore and work in China as well as other business trips.

'If I had not taken the decision to continue with the business and protect the 'family' investment, BSG may not be around anymore,' she says.   - 2008 April 1   BUSINESS TIMES

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