This week, we are flying from Fukuoka, Japan to our third stop in China, Shanghai, to meet Ashwin Pillay.

Ash is the Commercial Director at Redfern Digital, a Shanghai-based digital marketing agency founded by Ryan Molloy, another fellow China veteran.

Ash’s journey started in New Zealand driven by a pet food business idea 10 years ago.

A decade later, he is firmly on the ground in Shanghai working with some of the most successful foreign brands in China.

It shows that Asia is open to everyone, and you can start the journey at any stage of your life. But what it takes is patience, perseverance, and resilience.

In this interview, I will look at how Ash ended up in China, what he’s seeing on the ground and what he looks for in his clients.

At YPA, we believe in learning from the real stories of entrepreneurial battles on the ground in the heart of Asia. Hope you enjoy this edition.

I studied in my hometown, Auckland throughout my university ‘career’ and on a whim applied for a scholarship to study in Shanghai through an AUT Business School exchange in 2015.

I initially wanted to start a premium New Zealand pet food brand, after writing a business case on the market opportunity in 2014.

Creating premium natural dog treats to export to China was the goal and I had developed connections with major pet food processing facilities and abattoirs around New Zealand. Throughout this time, I continued my part-time phone sales insurance job in Auckland!

I ended up taking a different path but it is still amazing to see a few NZ pet brands now doing USD 100m+ in sales in China.

Long story short, I’ve been with RedFern Digital since the beginning and now lead our Commercial Team across Asia, supporting both in-market and new-to-market brands while building their presence across the region via e-commerce and retail.

The China market is non-stop and the atmosphere of Shanghai is addictive. The city is a cultural melting pot and a global hub for innovation and entrepreneurship. The consumer market in Tier 1 cities is the most sophisticated globally, by far. There is always something new to learn.

Having been here pre and post-COVID, it is amazing to see the country bounce back in terms of consumption, domestic tourism, and new infrastructure developments.

It is always great to see the response from people when they visit for the first time, whether it be clients, friends or family, in admiration of what China has to offer.

1) China is not an easy-win market. It takes patience, commitment and a tolerance of ‘growing pains’. Redfern Digital helps brands to navigate and succeed in this highly competitive landscape, across Media, e-commerce and Retail through tailored localized execution strategies, there is no such thing as a universal approach that brands can take.

2) You need to be proactive in China. There will always be hurdles, bureaucracy, changing policy requirements etc., we stay at the forefront of these and endeavour to provide our clients with realistic and practical solutions.

3) We figure out a product-market fit for brands. We come across great brands on a daily basis, the question is do their offerings fit for the China market, and if so, where? We help them to understand the size of the prize, how to tackle it and what it’s going to take. In some cases, brands do need to go back to the drawing board, do their homework and look at various elements to optimize before taking the next step into the market, whether that be at their portfolio, supply chain, and pricing.

“Once Chinese customers love your products, you are set for success in China.”

This is a positive signal but not quite so according to Ash. Brands should proactively approach the market and gather data and intelligence to support their strategies because China evolves so quickly. Spending time getting boots on the ground in the market, meeting partners, visiting retailers, and checking out what your competitors are doing and what’s resonating with consumers is key.