To succeed, Olam has had to work “up-country” ­– a euphemism for difficult conditions far from comfortable port cities – requiring it to rely on Indians’ familiarity with, and willingness to work in, Africa’s interior. Indeed, so competent is Olam that when Wilmar, a Southeast Asian firm run by overseas Chinese and a force in its own right in China and across Asia, sought to expand in Africa, it sought out Olam in a joint venture.
Olam公司的起源是在尼日利亚的印度人，如今在棉花，咖啡，腰果等领域还保持有着世界级的贸易水平。为了成功，Olam国际不能不和一些“内陆国家”——其实就是“远离港口的内陆城市”的代称——由愿意在这里工作的印度人开展工作。实际上，和Olam公司一样的模式就是�丰益国际公司，由一名来自南亚的海外华人创办，进军非洲后和Olam组成了合资公司。