INTERVIEW
With an annual turnover last year of around $62 million for its core business (its online business turns over an additional $15 million), Foremost has come a long way from its humble origins in Nantong, a city north of Shanghai, 26 years ago. It now comprises four main factories (one in Cambodia) which produce upwards of 17 million straw, felt, fabric and knitted hats per year and a design team of 20 who create some 5,000 new styles annually. Turn the clock back if you will to
January 1967, which in Chinese astrology falls under the sign of the Fire Horse. Those like Jeff Sun who were born under this sign are said to be smart, lively and active, approaching their jobs with confident enthusiasm. They are resilient under pressure and achieve excellent results. Interestingly, they may also be trendsetters, particularly when it comes to the world of fashion. In fact, you would be hard-pressed to find a more fitting description for a man whose company helps create the headwear and accessories portfolio for some of the biggest brands in global fashion.
Jeff Sun was born in the rural outskirts of Nantong into a farming family. Although comparatively poor, Jeff’s parents believed in providing their son with a good education. Whilst at school, Jeff found studying a challenge, but he persevered and was all set to take the national exam which would have seen him go on to do an academic course at university. But Jeff had other ideas. He already had a clear idea about where his future path lay. “Unlike many of my school friends, it
was never my dream to go to university just for the sake of it,” says Jeff. “I was different. I already knew what I wanted to do: I had a desire to meet new people and to see the world. So I applied for the
international business studies course at Nantong Vocational College. Before graduation, I was offered a position as a trainee in a local company that already conducted a lot of business overseas. After two months, I got a permanent job there and was given the role of translator for a particular project involving the installation of some new carpet manufacturing machines. It was quite a prestigious event – even the local TV station reported on it! In 1989, at the age of 22, I took a national exam for export sales professionals and came first in my province. It really gave my confidence a boost. My first trip abroad came in 1994 when I accompanied my general manager to the US, once more acting as his translator. At that time, it wasn’t easy to get permission from the Chinese government to go overseas but as we were on a business mission, it was allowed. It was a pretty overwhelming experience – the sheer scale of everything, especially the vastness of the skyscrapers!”
After another few years of working for others, Jeff began to realise that he wanted to have more opportunity to put his own business ideas into practice. “I came across numerous challenges in the course of my day-to-day work. I was enthusiastic about finding potential solutions to problems, and whilst my suggestions were often adopted, I discovered I wanted more freedom. I was eager for the chance to carve out my own path, pivot more quickly and realise my own vision. I decided to set up my own export company and I started Foremost in 1996 at the age of nearly 30. It was a
Jeffrey Sun (standing, 3rd left) at Shanghai Hat Festival
“I was always one step ahead in my efforts to create new opportunities and to keep the element of surprise”
very small operation to begin with – just an office, two desks and a fax machine. I didn’t have to worry too much about the funds even at the beginning because I’d already built up a good reputation. I was paid straight after shipment and then had 45 or even 60 days lead time to settle up with the factories. My first customer was SDL Imports Ltd based in Southampton in the UK, whom I’d already got to know in my previous job. In fact, I still have a close relationship with the same company today, something that’s especially important to me.” But why hats? “I initially started learning about hats during my traineeship when I was apprenticed to one of the managers, Mr Shih, who’d worked in the hat industry for more than ten years. I didn’t start out loving hats, but as I discovered more, my interest began to grow. When I set up on my own, I bought the Chinese equivalent of Yellow Pages and went on a mission to really understand how the hat industry worked. I believe
firstly that being an expert in your chosen field is central to developing your business. Secondly, you must make every transaction as convenient as possible for your customers. So I sourced hat manufacturers, called most of them, visited some and ordered samples. I made a catalogue (at that time very few companies had catalogues, just a product list) and sent it out to potential clients. Later, when catalogues were commonplace, I started including samples. I was always one step ahead in my efforts to create new opportunities and to keep the element of surprise. You
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