10 steps to starting a business in China

0 Comment(s)Print E-mail Agencies, August 31, 2012
Adjust font size:

China's fast-growing consumer class is giving business owners new reasons to set up shop abroad. Here's how to start and grow your business.

 

Lou Hoffman, CEO of the public relations firm The Hoffman Agency, wanted to place a recruitment ad in a Chinese paper for his new office in Beijing.

Beijing [file photo]



Back home in San Jose, California, he would have simply faxed it to the local paper.

In Beijing, he had to get the ad approved by four different government agencies - in person.

"It's a huge city, and there are traffic jams 9-5," he recalls. "We drove to the first agency, and they approved it. We drove to the next agency and they approved it. We drove to the third agency and they said, 'You'll need to tweak this.' So we needed to go back to the first agency because what they approved wasn't right anymore."

Getting one classified ad approved took Hoffman about 18 hours total.

"In the big scheme of things, it's not the end of the world," he says, "but it was a symbol that I was in a different world and how they get things done is completely different."

It's a realization all foreign business owners entering the Chinese market have to face, and while it may be frustrating to forgo all your Western sensibilities, experts say it's worth it to stake your claim in this growing consumer market.

"Today's story is all about the new Chinese consumer. There's been a huge growth in disposable income, and the Chinese are ready to spend," says Robert Collins, co-author of Doing Business in China for Dummies.

"Europe's mired in mud. The U.S. economy's flat. So where's the action? It's in China," Collins says. "If you want to play, you've got to be here."

We've mapped out the 10 steps you'll need to take to get there, and it involves a lot more than getting a visa.

1   2   3   4   5   Next  


Print E-mail Bookmark and Share

Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)

No comments.

Add your comments...

  • User Name Required
  • Your Comment
  • Enter the words you see:   
    Racist, abusive and off-topic comments may be removed by the moderator.
Send your storiesGet more from China.org.cnMobileRSSNewsletter