Stechcol Enterprise Ltd.

Stechcol's bone china: designed for success

Keeping abreast of the latest tastes and trends in lifestyle fashion and anticipating the needs of its many customers have established the award-winning Stechcol Enterprises as one of Asia's leading suppliers of tabletop products. Indeed, over the years, the company has earned an enviable reputation for manufacturing innovative collections that capture the imagination of consumers in many market sectors ranging from specialty shops to department stores.

Today, Stechcol's wide selection of tabletop products includes dinnerware, teaware and accessories, giftware and a huge variety of mugs. "There are, literally, thousands of decorative patterns from which our customers can make their choice," says Miss Kim-Chong Chim, Stechcol's sales manageress. "To us, every single customer is an individual. To satisfy their demands, we work closely with them. They want new designs ranging from the very traditional English bone china tea sets to the ultra modern. We make sure they are spoiled for choices in all categories."

Stechcol's invaluable contribution to Asia's tabletop industry has not gone unrecognised. In September 2006 the company received the China Top Brand plaque and certificate awarded by the Quality Supervision and Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ). This highly prestigious award further signifies Stechcol's status as an important national enterprise. The company also received The Shenzhen Top Brand from the Shenzhen Federation of Industrial Economics and was also awarded the Reliable Quality Product Certificate by the Chinese Quality Assurance Center of Medium & Light Products. The company was the first ceramic decal factory in China to receive the ISO9001:2000 Quality Management System. In addition, for the past successive four years, the company has received the Screen Printing Gold Award (ceramic decal printing category) from the Screenprinting Graphic Imaging Association, a highly respectable association for specialty imaging.

As Chim points out, the company takes no chances in assuring the highest quality for all its products. "Over the past 20 years we have used only the finest decal paper with pigment imported from Germany, Japan and the UK. This not only ensures the best quality for our decals but, more importantly, guarantees our products are lead-free and perfectly safe for daily use," Chim says.

It is the professional production of English style bone chinaware and more notably, the abundant range of decorative decals that make Stechcol a leader in its field. The quality of its decal work is second to none and distinguishes its products in the market place.

Creating more than 200 new designs a year, the decal work is produced at Stechcol's factory in Shenzhen, mainland China. "The factory is close to our headquarters in Hong Kong, so we can closely monitor the whole manufacturing process," Chim explains. "The factory has the very latest automatic presses – plus a decal application workshop staffed by the finest craftsmen who can create the most intricate and delicate patterned tableware."

The company's in-house design team comprises six decal experts, plus a designer from the UK. "Our designers are gifted in different areas such as creating new patterns, colouring and fine-tuning," says Chim. "We also work with the long- established UK ceramic decal manufacturer K H Bailey to produce the more classic English-style designs."

"Consumers these days are far more sophisticated and discerning in their choice of tableware," Chim continues. "This is reflected in our customers' needs. They keep asking ‘What's new?' and they are always satisfied with our newly developed fresh and innovative patterns. We are geared to meet the challenge by upgrading and streamlining our production capabilities and expanding our manufacturing capacity."

‘There are certain patterns whose popularity never fades," she adds. "Our English-style bone chinaware – particularly those with a rose design - is always in demand. Bone china has long been recognised as the most prestigious material in the field of quality tableware. However, with consumers' lifestyles constantly changing, our ranges are designed to cater for every occasion – from the formal tea or dinner parties to casual entertaining gatherings or supper around the kitchen tables."

Looking to the future, Stechcol, apart from being a top branded ceramic manufacturer in its home market, China, is fast building its reputation in Europe, including the important UK and German markets, Russia and Australia, as well as Asian countries such as Japan and Korea. The company is now exploring avenues to the US market and looking for a business partner/distributor in the region.

"We are very proud of what our workforce has achieved," says Chim. "But we know there are still plenty of opportunities for development and growth. We aim to make our bone china a top-class brand in the global market."