How much do you think it costs to make a pair of Nike shoes in Asia?

Re:How much do you think it costs to make a pair of Nike sho... by lossolo on Wednesday April 09, 2025 @12:45PM (#43634230)

This. Anyone who doesn’t believe it — please go spend some time in Shenzhen, Shanghai, or similar cities, like I did. I just got back from China. I’ve been (also lived and worked) to the U.S. many times, and I can confidently say that China’s tier-1 cities are on another level when it comes to development and QoL (and not only T1 cities, I was in smaller regions in the north too). It’s also incredibly clean, super safe, and the infrastructure is breathtaking.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:How much do you think it costs to make a pair of Nike sho... by tayo42 on Wednesday April 09, 2025 @01:17PM (#43634673)

That's been my current dream trip for a little. I think it woukd be so cool to ride the trains around the country and see what it's really like there. Learning the language is hard though

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:How much do you think it costs to make a pair of Nike sho... by Symbiote on Wednesday April 09, 2025 @01:49PM (#43635058)

Remember to carry your passport at all times, as you'll need it to buy a train ticket.

Even a simple metro ticket.

You can also smile at the CCTV cameras, which are in groups every 100m or so within cities.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:How much do you think it costs to make a pair of Nike sho... by blitzar on Wednesday April 09, 2025 @04:09PM (#43637241)

> You can also smile at the CCTV cameras, which are in groups every 100m or so within cities.

1/100th the amount of smiling at the CCTV cameras compared to the UK then.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:How much do you think it costs to make a pair of Nike sho... by magnuznilzzon on Wednesday April 09, 2025 @02:20PM (#43635477)

Train tickets sure, for the high speed rail, but metro? Not in Shanghai at least

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:How much do you think it costs to make a pair of Nike sho... by Symbiote on Wednesday April 09, 2025 @03:18PM (#43636475)

Metro ticket machines in Beijing won't sell a ticket until you've scanned an identity card.

Tourists must wait at the ticket window. Foreigners aren't usually asked to show the passport unless they look Chinese.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:How much do you think it costs to make a pair of Nike sho... by dom3k on Wednesday April 09, 2025 @03:57PM (#43637045)

No need to wait at no window. After you activate Alipay, just click on "Transport" and create a metro card for Beijing. Scan code on enter, scan on exit, pay the sweet low fare automatically. One app, 30+ cities.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:How much do you think it costs to make a pair of Nike sho... by Symbiote on Wednesday April 09, 2025 @04:07PM (#43637220)

"Activating Alipay" requires using an identity card or passport.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:How much do you think it costs to make a pair of Nike sho... by dom3k on Thursday April 10, 2025 @01:09AM (#43640817)

You don't have to wait at the ticket window though. Privacy? Maybe not. But convenience? At every corner.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:How much do you think it costs to make a pair of Nike sho... by blacksmith_tb on Wednesday April 09, 2025 @01:56PM (#43635150)

I took a year of Mandarin as an undergrad, speaking is doable, reading and writing is hard, but Google Translate & Co. would make that less daunting now.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:How much do you think it costs to make a pair of Nike sho... by tayo42 on Wednesday April 09, 2025 @03:26PM (#43636599)

I thought speaking would be hardest with the tone changes. I took one online class, was overwhelming

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:How much do you think it costs to make a pair of Nike sho... by blacksmith_tb on Wednesday April 09, 2025 @06:48PM (#43638844)

I felt like it started making sense after a month or so, but even though I got up to ~1500 characters at the end of the year, reading was never easy.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:How much do you think it costs to make a pair of Nike sho... by markus_zhang on Wednesday April 09, 2025 @01:23PM (#43634749)

English is the second language of most young and middle-aged Chinese, so you should be fine at least in tier-s cities.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:How much do you think it costs to make a pair of Nike sho... by decimalenough on Wednesday April 09, 2025 @04:28PM (#43637531)

I recently visited China and even the people you'd expect to speak English (front desk at Western branded hotel, airline check-in, etc) either spoke zero English or really struggled. My shitty Mandarin got a workout.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:How much do you think it costs to make a pair of Nike sho... by toephu2 on Wednesday April 09, 2025 @06:46PM (#43638831)

Yup, Chinese Tier 1 cities (Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen) are probably 20 years ahead of their Western counterparts (in terms of crime, or lack thereof, public transportation, convenience, cleanliness, etc).

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:How much do you think it costs to make a pair of Nike sho... by spaceman_2020 on Thursday April 10, 2025 @01:08AM (#43640812)

Cousin was in China last month. Left Shanghai for a meeting in Beijing in the morning. Was back in Shanghai by night

All via train. In cities that are 1300km apart.

[ Parent | on HN ]