IG Global Crosses Many Territories
In his business, Robert Chandler finds himself managing cultural expectations overseas and at home.
Chandler is president of IG Global Sourcing, a company that represents distributors and manufacturers, often connecting them with each other. He started the company in 2001 with other partners he had met while working at Kemet. Later, the group sold the business to a Japanese company, but Chandler stayed on. He bought the company back in 2010, when global economic woes had changed the playing field.
“Once the market started to drop, all of a sudden I saw an opportunity. They needed cash and I wanted to purchase the division back,” Chandler said.
Today IG’s core business is as a supplier for metals fabrication and plastic injection molding. Those products – usually parts of products – go to agricultural and packaging industries, as well as some automotive, energy and other industries. The company fills a gap for those who have significant manufacturing needs but would be unable to get the loans for capital investments.
IG’s recycling services for Fujifilm had been the impetus for the Japanese buyout, and the company still provides those services. About six months ago the company added printing services. “That has gotten us in the door with a lot of people that we weren’t able to get to before,” Chandler said.
Flexibility to Compete
Like many other companies, the recession underscored for IG the importance of staying flexible. As a result, IG diversified significantly.
“There’s no inhibitors that keep me from jumping into one market or jumping out of one,” Chandler said. Where others are looking at a product or an industry, he is thinking of all the little parts like hinges or gears or spring-loaded mechanisms that IG could supply. When looking for business with the auto industry, IG is usually more interested in small safety lights at the bottom of a car door than the door panel itself.
Warehouse facilities on the west coast and in the Midwest help IG respond quickly to clients, and the inland port opening in Greer this fall should also be a boon.
Being able to call on manufacturers at different price points and with different levels of expertise is also important, which is why IG has investments in manufacturing operations in China and has had long-term relationships in Mexico. Chandler said about half of IG’s business is domestic, the rest overseas. The goal is to increase domestic work as much as possible, and he is sure to look for minority suppliers to help accomplish that goal.
Crossing Cultures
Chandler has spent his entire career doing business across cultures. The Chinese, he said, tend to be much more interested in forging a personal connection before talking business. Hours might be spent discussing family and hobbies before there’s ever a mention of the negotiations that brought parties together. He said his Chinese colleagues send high-quality green tea to his parents every year
“We’re microwave whereas they are slow cooker,” Chandler said to illustrate the difference in business cultures.
Outside of work, Chandler is something of an anomaly as an African-American businessman in China. He said people usually assume he is a celebrated athlete or Hollywood star and he gets the kind of attention that comes with it. He laughs when describing how other grocery store customers will look through his cart to see what famous people like to eat.
Interestingly, Chandler said he is often an unexpected sight in his home country. He can tell when somebody he has contacted first by phone is surprised when an African-American shows up to the meeting they’ve arranged.
“The moment you start talking business, though, start talking solutions, all of a sudden it doesn’t matter and you qualify,” Chandler said. “They don’t expect you to be culturally literate in Mexico or have operations in China.”
The Next Generation
It is important for Chandler to bring his business and cultural experiences back home for a number of reasons. He said the many Mexican children who attend summer Bible school at the Mauldin church where his parents minister are excited when they realize that he shares some of their favorite foods.
Perhaps even more important is the example he feels he can set for youth and business owners who don’t think they, too, could work globally.
“I think it’s because they don’t know that they can do it. They think, ‘Where can I get those kinds of relationships?’ They see cultural barriers and don’t know about resources such as translators who could help them get along,” Chandler said.
Regardless of the business size, he would like to see more African-Americans considering working for themselves. His own brother, Ethan, is vice president of operations at IG. Career achievement has left many with comfortable salaries in other people’s companies, Chandler said, yet the unwillingness to take entrepreneurial risks means they are not handing down companies that future generations could build upon.
Chandler has watched over the years as other cultures have adopted the American model of getting higher education rather than stepping directly in a role in a family business. However, many are bringing their advanced degrees back home to better the company business. Chandler would love to see more in his own community doing the same.
