I wouldn't have a problem with B&O moving their manufacturing to China. Of course I would prefer if my B&O was Made In Denmark, but nowadays this is only a 'feel good' factor as the Chinese are perfectly capable of manufacturing B&O products at the same quality as they are currently being made in Europe. Times have moved on and I think B&O will continue to struggle if they retain all manufacturing in Europe, unless prices stay level or increase.

I find the whole idea of moving manufacturing bases to China more than a little disconcerting. Lets not forget that this is a country where humanitarian policies leave a lot to be desired both historically and to a slightly lesser degree currently. Frankly it is money men chasing even more money and to hell with the rest of the world which has created this cheap manufacturing base. Sugar coat it as much as you like but this is the fundamental truth of it. I personally abhor the way China has been allowed to become the dominant global manufactuing base as they don't give a damn about the plight of their workers or the impact their policies have on the environment. In a nation where the cheapest and most easily replacable commodity is human life it's no wonder they can undercut the rest of the world. My gripe is really with the financial leeches that allowed this to happen the first place.

BTW - there is no doubting the quality of the goods they produce but you have to ask yourself who is providing the technology to attain these standards?

Chris.

I have to agree, I want my B&O to come from Denmark just like I want my Mercedes to come from Germany. Why? Because they are products of that country. I think it's important to me. Also if we keep outsourcing everything to China/Taiwan then what are our countryfolk supposed to earn their money with? After all not all of us want to work in an office or somesuch and others only know how to use their hands, you get my drift?

I know it will cost me more to buy the product if it is made in Europe etc. but then again it will be worth it, of course it would help if people were not always hell bent making 1000% Profit on everything. Greed ain't pretty.

Answer to original post: NO. 

I think that moving production to China is only prolonging the inevitable. At some point China is sure to join the modern world in terms of wealth & hopefully human rights. We will eventually run out of cheap manufacturing bases.

I think Bang & Olufsen should look ahead of the curve for once and hire creatures like minotaurs and other work beasts of the fantasy realm to construct their products. These creatures would be able to use both their skills and magic to match and even exceed the quality of the current Danish manufacturing.

It is actually quite risky and tricky to set up a manufacturing facility in china. This is why mid sized companies often go into eastern europe plus they probably got some EU incentives.

Lastly, production cost seem to be only a small part of the puzzle for B&O. And lets face it, they would never bend over and pass savings on. 

As one of the lucky members I was up in Struer for the factory tour. Some process steps of manufacturing (asembling)a TV set (BV7) looked very strange to me, but on the other hand the productin of the alu parts was very advanced and could only be done with extensive know how. I understood that alu is one of the B&O's key cempetences. I doubt that you would like to moce this to china and sooner or later all your know how is with some one else.

So one question could be, how much sense it makes to produce or build low volume goods in china? Having in  mind some road blocks like long shipping time or tax for video products to the EU.

Karsten