Welcome to the era of friend shoring and nearshoring. The breakdown of the supply chain during the pandemic highlighted the risk of concentrating your manufacturing base half way around the world. For many years now there have been growing headwinds for China-based exporters. Rising US-China tensions, increased labor costs, and less favorable local policies meant that factory owners needed to consider alternatives. While before that often meant another Asian country like Vietnam or Bangladesh, the passing of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) in 2019 cemented Mexico's role as a key supplier to the US market.

We were fortunate to speak with an expert in this emerging trend, Andrew Hupert. Andrew has a unique background, combining academic understanding of trade, investment and negotiation, with many years living in China and other parts of Asia along with his current focus on how to navigate Mexico's industrial opportunities.

He explains how the focus from Just in Time to Just in Case is shaping the the global logistics industry as well as China's involvement in Mexico.

Andrew Hupert is an accomplished entrepreneur, lecturer, and writer who has over 25 years of international experience. He has lectured and taught courses on cross-cultural negotiation at some of the world’s top business schools such as NYU’s Stern School, Strathclyde University, and Hult International Business School. Now he spends his time in Mexico working with international businesses to improve their North American supply chains, and writing on the future of globalism, cross-culture negotiation, and trends in international supply chains.

Andrew lived in Asia for over 20 years, with over 10 years of direct China experience. His first overseas experience was in the historical Japanese city of Kyoto, but he has also lived and worked in Taipei, Hong Kong, Chiang Mai, Hanoi, and Ho Chi Minh City. He returned to North America in 2021, when he moved to Mexico to assist international firms transition supply chains to Mexico and the US. He is a recognized leader in international negotiation and cross-cultural conflict management.

Andrew has published books, including The Fragile Bridge – Conflict Management in Chinese Business, and regularly writes for well-known sites like China Law Blog, in addition to maintaining his site about North American Strategy Planning.

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