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Top-shelf goods

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Lionel Derimais is a man with a mission. In the face of high-profile scandals involving low-quality Chinese products, many people think 'Made in China' is rubbish and things are getting worse each year, he says.

But 'this is not the reality we are feeling on the ground', the French-born photographer, who moved to Beijing five years ago, says. Good-quality things made in China can be found, although 'they're not easy to find', Derimais says. The aim of his website, www.nicelymadeinchina.com, which has posts in English, Chinese and French, is to show that 'there is quality in China ... and it's getting better and better'.

The trend can be linked to rising affluence on the mainland. 'People have more money, they travel, they see what's done abroad, and they think, 'Why not make this very nicely, so I can charge more'?' Derimais says.

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Since launching the site in April, he has introduced a new product or service each Saturday. They include products as diverse as yachts, surfboards, handbags, equestrian goods and yak shawls.

Some of the most interesting goods are ones that people may not normally associate with China.

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Beijing-based cheese maker Liu Yang was featured in June. Yang discovered cheese when he was studying management in France in 2001. His university organised a cheese buffet to welcome new students to the school. 'That's how my love story with cheese began,' Yang told Derimais. Yang later did a cheese-making course in Corsica, France, and started to make cheese in China in 2008. He buys milk from an American company and is planning to buy goats to make goat's cheese.

Last month, Derimais launched a new category called Initiatives, which covers non-profit, environmental and socially beneficial projects.

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