Supply Chain Colonialism In The Global Optical Industry: A Case Study Of Danyang, China

Abstract

This study examines how global value chains perpetuate colonial-style economic relationships in contemporary manufacturing through a case study of Danyang, China—the world's largest optical manufacturing hub. Danyang's added value is very low despite its capacity to produce half of the world's optical lenses and accommodate more than 1,600 manufacturers, since the European and American brand owners can dictate various terms, such as distribution, technology, and pricing. The quantitative findings on production, trade, and corporate financial reports will be drawn upon through the lens of world systems theory, Bourdieu's frame of symbolic power, and recent supply chain colonialism literature to illustrate how the monopoly control of EssilorLuxottica permits markups of 1000-2500 percent with the ability to keep Chinese-based producers in their place. We report on three processes of modern colonial extraction through technological dependency, even when they dominate manufacturing, systems of value capture around brands, and the governing policies that systematically exclude producers based in Global South countries from high-profit activities. This research is relevant to how capitalism replicates hierarchical relationships in terms of supply chains instead of direct political control over development policy and economic equality on a global scale.