Chinese company hires Italian as customer service rep

Mario from Italy is an online customer service representative for an e-commerce company in Changsha.Photo provided to China Daily

Mario, a 36-year-old from Italy, works as an online customer service representative for a Chinese e-commerce company, Xiaoxiang Morning News reported.

In 2008, Mario went to Beijing University of Technology as an exchange student in communication. After graduation, he taught foreign language in universities in several Chinese cities, including Shijiazhuang, Jinan and Nanjing.

"At first, I enjoyed working and exploring different cities," he told Xiaoxiang Morning News. Mario later wanted to work in a company but couldn't find a job due to lack of experience. He then returned to Italy and worked as a ticket-taker in several scenic spots.

In 2014, when Ocean Wing, an e-commerce company in Changsha, Central China's Hunan province, was recruiting online customer service representatives, Mario decided to go for the interview in Changsha.

"My brother was using the portable charger sold by the company, so I thought it might be a big company," said Mario, who went to Changsha several days after he saw the job posting and ultimately passed the interview.

Ocean Wing has 900 employees and exports its products to over 100 countries. In 2016, the company sold about 6 million portable chargers.

"In my department, there are about 70 people. Every day we have to deal with 1 million email or phone contacts from around the world," said Mario, who is very proud of his work.

Mario believes that China's e-commerce sector is very developed, and he is a frequent user of the online shopping platforms Taobao and Jingdong. He said 90 percent of the everyday products he uses are bought online and sometimes he would bargain with online customer service representatives in Chinese.

zhangyi1@chinadaily.com.cn