Today we bring you the story of Roberto Ferraro, an experienced entrepreneur with 20+ years in executive leadership, specializing in the luxury living and construction sectors across Retail and Project segments. Mister Ferraro has a proven track record in founding and managing companies and representative offices in Asia-Pacific, including China, Japan, and Australia. He is an expert in internationalization, business development, and strategic partnerships, with a strong focus on operational excellence and intercultural team management.

Enjoy his story

Tell us about your experience in Asia and China. How did it begin? And from where?

My experience in Asia started in 2003, 22 years ago. First place I was in was KL, but after 2 years I moved to Beijing. I’ve been in this area focused on Business activities as my experience was always to create , develop and manage companies in Asia, with multicultural background Teams into the Building industry. Home automation, HVAC, luxury furniture and finishing solution, always with a Made in Italy portfolio.

When I arrived in Beijing, it was very different from the cosmopolitan city it is now.  Looks like to be in a huge construction site below a grey sky…..

What did you learn while being in China? 

We, all of us living in that period in China, should never forget the tremendous pollution conditions, we learnt how to use face masks far more before than covid times …

At that time, it was evident that there was the potential and intent to become one of the most significant economies globally. If we compare the railway structure, we can see that in 2005 nothing was available or nearly, nowadays it is the most advanced developed country with the most important rail connections in the world .

Business is growing and, if you are able to understand some simple rules and create a correct brand awareness, giving the best possible services , the goal is done . Not only in terms of revenue, China can give you back also a very important margin feedback, in fact, if you lower the price over a certain limit, the market will not accept you any more, considering your brand as a poor once. 

The importance of the “face”, this is something you must learn immediately …

Business in China with China is the most important milestone you should understand since the beginning. China, but Asia in reality, asks foreign companies to work in partnership with local structures. It is impossible to develop any business without a local win-win relationship. 

The manufacturer must be able to create the correct conditions for the local partner to penetrate the market and recognize brand awareness , but the last sales activities must be done in a local way.

For an entrepreneur that would like to invest in China today, what would be your suggestions to him/her?

I personally believe that now, in this specific period, the strategic position of developing the market in Asia and especially in China has become a key role. In the last years , after Covid period, I have seen a migration back of the EU SME investment, versus west , USA as first choice, well, also if it is well recognized the simplest approaching method of doing business in these Area, we can not forget, avoid a strong and specific strategy to approach Asia ( focusing on market priority, China may be as the first) .  

Improving the offer in a country where the demand is quite stable or also, little bit growing, will have a negative impact on the prices and related Company margin. 

Diversifying the strategy covering different Areas, can give an important role to balance related specific situations and even more create a positive feedback in terms of image and market mix positions.

Interview by Marco Bonaglia