Xiaolan

Agriculture is the main industry in the primary sector found in Xiaolan Town. The bloom and specified horticulture of Chrysanthemum makes the town a famous name “the City of chrysanthemum”. A grand fair on the blossom of the chrysanthemum was held on November 23, 2003 and over 40,000 pots of chrysanthemum in different species were exhibited. The grand fair was held in every 60 years as a local tradition.

Xiaolan Town is dubbed “Lock City of the South” as well as “Electronic Acoustic Industrial Base” in China. The two industries are the pillar industries of Xiaolan.

Xiaolan controls 23% of the national market share. Indeed, there are production lines of such famous brands as Vantage gas stoves, Guli locks and St. Allen nail clippers in Xiaolan. Over 30% of manufacturing enterprises in Xiaolan are engaged in locks and hardware production. Such production accounted for nearly 50% of the total industrial outputs of Xiaolan and employed more than 30,000 people in 2002. The success of Xiaolan in this sector brought it an unprecedented honour of being certified as the critical hardware industrial base by China National Hardware Association in 2002.

Meanwhile, a dynamic growth in the sector of electronic acoustics, which has taken place in recent years, has made Xiaolan the first "Electronic Acoustics Industrial Base" in China. Between 2000 and 2002, over a hundred enterprises started business in Xiaolan. Both local and foreign enterprises which specialize in production of domestic stereos, DVDs, laser heads, high-tech digital audio equipment, loudspeakers, circuit boards and aluminium panels are clustered in this small town. Production bases of such foreign brands as ADS and Boston operate in Xiaolan while Philips, Toshiba, JBL, Onkyo and Jamo also run their OEM production there. In 2002, the industrial outputs of this sector reached RMB 4.6 billion, accounting for almost one third of the town's industrial output.

In order to upgrade their products and production techniques, both sectors are restlessly engaged in R&D. For example, a technology development centre specializing in the production of locks and hardware was set up in February 2003. Post-doctoral work stations and partnerships with universities also contribute to technological upgrades of Xiaolan's hardware industry. On the other hand, an enterprise-based technology development centre with investment from a US-based acoustics stereo enterprise, AVlight was also established in Xiaolan Industrial Zone in 2002, aiming to upgrade the technology in the electronic acoustics industry of the town. To expand its sales of hardware products and electronic acoustic appliance at home and abroad, Xiaolan also needs to put greater effort into product promotion and marketing with possible participation of Hong Kong companies.