Two young Dutchmen set out to make a point about quality by using only Chinese products on a journey from Shanghai to Rotterdam

For a long time, the Chinese middle class and young professionals have been dressing in European clothes, wearing European leather shoes, strapping on European watches and driving European cars as essentials of a trendy lifestyle.

Turning that logic on its head, two young Dutch men challenged the perception that Chinese brands are not worthy of top-tier consideration by taking a 20,000 km, three-month journey, during which they used only Chinese products.

On their 11-country Silk Road pilgrimage linking Shanghai to their hometown of Rotterdam, urban planner Maren Striker, 29, and marketer Rogier Bikker, 27, drove a Chinese car, named the Chinesemobile, dressed in Chinese clothes down to their underwear and, of course, wore Chinese sunglasses. They dubbed their journey Brand New China.

On the day they wrapped up their 98-day journey on Oct 31, they were welcomed by the Chinese auto company BYD, the Rotterdam government and their families.

"We are extremely happy finishing this long-planned adventure with the support of Chinese brands," Striker tells China Daily in Rotterdam. "We have proven that China is not just a global factory."

They say that after their BYD car was hit by another vehicle on Iran's bumpy roads, it proved the car's toughness. "We finally drove it home today safely," Striker said when they arrived.

The car was adorned with the names of all the sponsors whose products they used and a map of the journey from Shanghai to Rotterdam. It attracted quite a bit of attention from passers-by when it arrived in front of the city hall of Rotterdam. Bags of clothes and daily necessities were heaped in the backseat.

In addition to BYD providing a car, Huawei provided mobile phones and Lenovo equipped them with laptops. They shot pictures with a Chinese camera.

"We even bought packs of underwear in China to use along the way, though the brand is not on our sponsorship list," says Striker.

They divided their three-month journey into three parts: one month in China, one month in the rest of Asia and one month in Europe. They say they met remarkable Chinese people in each of the 11 countries they traveled in.

They say their journey along the old Silk Road took them through beautiful landscapes, vibrant cultures, bustling towns and a whole lot of nothingness.

Before the trip, Striker says he spent seven years in China working for an urban planning company and also visited 31 Chinese provinces.

Bikker worked in marketing strategy at a Shanghai company. He previously garnered notice by traveling in 10 Chinese provinces in 10 days in 2010.

They say they have witnessed China changing from the factory of the world to a place where people design innovative products at new types of companies.

In 2010, Bikker did a road trip through China with a friend, passing factories, crossing mountains and sleeping in the car for two weeks.

"This epic trip could only be surpassed by leaving the borders of China. And so the idea to one day drive back to Holland originated while driving on the dusty roads of rural Shaanxi province," says Bikker. "But upon our return, friends and family regarded the idea too crazy to happen, so the dream remained just that: a dream."

Striker also was contemplating adventures. He had thought of walking the Great Wall of China, cycling back to the Netherlands or following the Yangtze River from its source to the sea.

Two years later, they met in a Shanghai bar and shared their dreams.

They made sacrifices such as quitting their jobs, leaving their girlfriends for three months, and spending the small savings they had on their idea.

By autumn of 2013, the plan was taking shape. They signed sponsors, contacted media, arranged car documentation, obtained visas and found Chinese people living abroad to visit.

"The more time we spent on the project, the more we realized the huge potential of it. So we hired great Chinese team members to help out," Striker says.

Striker recalls that they called or e-mailed nearly all Chinese auto brands authorized to operate on European roads. But the car companies hesitated until just before Christmas 2013, when one of their e-mails got forwarded to the marketing director of BYD, which, appropriately, stands for Build Your Dreams.

"We met them at the BYD European headquarters at an industrial park on the outskirts of Rotterdam on a cold day between Christmas and New Year's," Striker says.

"During our meeting, the managing director dropped in one of the most senior figures in the company and told us with a lot of enthusiasm, 'Let's build this dream'."

Isbrand Ho, BYD Auto Europe's managing director, celebrated with them on the day they reached Rotterdam. "I am personally delighted to see you both here, safe and well," Ho said. "Your success has demonstrated the quality and durability of BYD's products."

Ho said when he heard they were in a traffic accident in Iran, he was very anxious and even thought of halting the trip, but they decided it would continue. "I thank them for so passionately loving and promoting Chinese brands."

The journey coincides with the celebration of the 35th year of the sister city relationship between Shanghai and Rotterdam, and Rotterdam's Vice mayor Maarten Struijvenberg also welcomed them home. "We are delighted to welcome these two Dutch guys home. They built their dream thanks to BYD and the other sponsors," he said.

Bikker says when he got home, he realized there was one thing he'd forgotten to do during the trip. At journey's end, he says, he opened the car door and his grandmother came up and hugged and kissed him.

"I should have called her during my trip," he says. "I realized she had missed me so much when I was on the road."

fujing@chinadaily.com.cn

Isbrand Ho, second right, BYD Auto Europe's managing director, celebrates at the welcome home party in Rotterdam for the two young men who returned from the trip. Fu Jing / China Daily

(China Daily European Weekly 11/14/2014 page21)