Let’s not forget, this is the same guy who pitched Box at the Ira Sohn investment conference (Hear him explain his “best idea”, 2018: https://youtu.be/PBjDyFKgDzg).
He is a great talker, great hype man, possibly a great growth marketer, but he is certainly not a great investor.
Thanks for taking the time to read my article. In this situation there aren’t any obvious winners except those with cash that will be able to buy properties and other assets at discounted prices given the cascade of selling we’re likely to see in the coming weeks and months. Banks will suffer with non performing loans across many industries and loan types. Banks also have compression of net interest margins with rates close to zero. But banks are in good shape going into this mess and will likely be backstopped by the federal government and will probably come out in a lot better shape than other stakeholders.
We've been fans of Bitcoin since going through Y Combinator with Coinbase in Summer 2012. Back then the value of BTC was just over $5. We're excited to announce that we are now one of the largest product catalogs now accepting Bitcoin.
What is Zentail.com? Launched in July 2014, we're a fast-growing online shopping site that is relentlessly focused on providing the lowest possible prices on over 100,000 products primarily in the electronics category.
Or blazing fast sql databases? Those are two technologies solving rather different problems, I'm not sure how the underlying storage is going to affect things very much.
I just spoke with the CEO/co-founder of G-wearables, maker of Goccia. This product will be shipping in May to Kickastarter backers. Can anyone comment on the pros and cons of visible light (LED) communication? Interested in feedback from the HN community.
gbraad, thanks very much for your insights! Your assessment of Alibaba.com's international marketplace is spot on.
Here's what we mean by 'safer'; our competing B2B International Marketplace (soon to be branded) is an integrated ecosystem of logistics service providers (neutral 3rd party logistics warehouses), suppliers and buyers. Our inspection, inventory management, and distribution management suite allows for real-time visibility (http://www.hdtradeservices.com/distributor.php#inspection), and facilitates a hyper-proactive approach to purchasing. The result is an unprecedented level of transparency and security when sourcing, as you can verify quality before your goods are paid for and shipped. Further, all suppliers on our platform will be rigorously vetted, and monitored via our inspection service.
colinsidoti, thanks for bringing up Panjiva. We're very familiar with the company, in fact I had an opportunity to meet Josh Green, founder & CEO, at World Trade Week in NYC this past May. We really like what the company is doing. Think of them like the google of international trade related search. Just last week, they announced Global Search, which will seriously bolster their service. Here's an excellent resource for learning more about Panjiva: http://panjiva.com/blog
Thanks for your feedback, rickdale! Congrats on launching your business under such uncertainty. We love hearing about experiences through B2B sites, especially Alibaba.com. Although you haven't had any horror stories, which we hear all too frequently, sounds like you've experienced a few curveballs. No more curveballs! Help us build a truly transparent purchasing environment.
The greatest challenge I have faced through this was transferring the money internationally. My first order I did an international wire transfer from my credit union and it took 7 days, went pretty smooth. My second order the credit union had switched companies for processing wire transfers. Took them over 30 days to finally return my money. They thought it was fraud; I tried to explain to the wire transfer company that I had made the same wire transfer 3 months prior, but they weren't convinced.
My next solution was to try Western Union online. Their system is awesome. Took a couple of days to get my business approved (faxing docs and such) but then I was able to make the transfer no problem. Coincidentally, I messed up the account number and so after a week of the money not showing up in my distributors account Western Union corrected my error within 15 minutes of me realizing it. My third order the money went through in 10 hours and all of the account information was saved from the previous order, making it really simple.
Right now I email back and forth with my 'contact' in China. She is very good and really all I need to order goods. I noticed your site is a lot about tracking the products. I get a DHL tracking number before the products leave the facility and can watch them from HK to US. I don't have photos, but I am sure I could get them. I sorta like the gamble...
How are you guys going to stop companies from intercepting potential customers and getting them to pay directly?
Awesome feedback re: payment methods, thanks again for sharing!
We encourage buyers to route their goods through our growing network of inspection locations. These locations are neutral 3rd party logistics service providers (think DHL, except specialized in value added services like quality verification). They use our high definition inspection technology (http://www.hdtradeservices.com/distributor.php#inspection) to provide buyers with the ability to verify quality remotely, in real time. If the quality of the shipment does not meet your agreement with your vendor, you should not complete payment. It's a very proactive way to manage trade risk.
Would like to send you an email about possibly using your company for my next order (which would be next year). I have some basic q's and some more input on my past experience I would like to share and really I would like to learn more. Let me know if you are open to a line of communication.
Hey Rick, you've been nice to share your experience. As someone in China, some free advice --
I'd be aware when paying upfront, that it's almost certainly a when not an if that a shipment won't go through and your broker will disappear. Standard operating procedure here is to always screw with the money in the last batch before closing out of work... it's not always even the provider's fault, it can happen anywhere in the supply chain that you don't know about, but you'll feel it. So just budget in cash/inventory, and probably mentally/emotionally too, for your contact to disappear with your cash someday and you getting no product. If it doesn't happen, so much the better. But it could ruin your day if you're not prepared for it.
(I love China anyways... it's just the standards/controls aren't there yet. Ten to twenty years from now it'll be a non-issue. But take a couple minutes to protect yourself in the now.)
He is a great talker, great hype man, possibly a great growth marketer, but he is certainly not a great investor.