An American helped set up a business in China. Customers want him gone.

It took two decades for Jacob Rothman to start a Chinese manufacturing business with his friends and family. Today, the 49-year-old American executive says customers want him to make some of his cooking tools and kitchen products elsewhere. He knows it won’t be easy.

« There’s not a single customer we have that doesn’t pressure us, suggesting, hoping that we’ll build factories outside of China, » says the co-general manager of Velong Enterprises Co., which has six factories. in Mainland China and serves major retailers and consumer brands such as walmart Inc. and grill manufacturer Weber Inc. Still, « there’s nothing like China, » he added. “We’ve built this supply chain for 30 years to run like a Swiss clock. There is no such thing.