Find US, EU, UK, CA, & AU requirements
Role
- Product development
- Content editor
Areas of expertise
- Supply chain risk management
- Product development
- Quality assurance
Education
- Chalmers University of Technology
- Fudan University
- Open University UK
Media / Contributions
- BBC
- Bloomberg
- South China Morning Post
- Alibaba Insights
- Global sources
- Quartz Magazine
China Manufacturing Decoded, 28 July 2023
EU Product Compliance Overview & Tips for Buyers
Online Seller UK, 10 September 2022
Product Safety Requirements For Amazon Sellers
BBC, 19 October 2021
Why Christmas could be stuck in a shipping container
South China Morning Post, 26 Sep 2019
US global postal rate deal will have limited impact on Chinese exporters, observers say
South China Morning Post, 10 Sep 2019
Globalsources, 2015
Restricted substances: 5 challenges when buying from China
Background
Previously based in Shanghai, my work was centred on manufacturing and product development across a wide range of industries, including electronics, textiles, medical devices, and food contact materials. This work also required an understanding of general product safety, lab testing procedures, labelling, and compliance documentation.
It was during these years working with factories in Mainland China (and to a lesser extent in Vietnam) that it became apparent to me that both buyers and manufacturers struggled to implement product compliance in practice. Buyers often assumed that their suppliers in Asia had them covered, while manufacturers expected their customers to keep track of requirements in their own countries and markets.
This misalignment resulted in failed lab tests, incorrectly labelled and insufficient documentation. Indeed, we could go to consultants, but that would quickly get expensive.
Hence, it gradually became clear that someone had to come up with a better way to manage many of the practical aspects of product compliance.
Initially, I tried to convince other businesses to develop a solution along the lines of what the Compliance Gate Platform is today. But, as they say, if you want to get something done, you have to do it yourself.
In 2019, I took the initiative together with Ivan Malloci to launch Compliancegate.com as an open knowledge base for manufacturers, importers and Amazon sellers. This was followed by the launch of an early version of the Compliance Gate Platform in 2020, which we have worked on ever since (and will continue to do for many years).
