EPISODE SUMMARY

!! Special Episode with a chance of winning a prize !!

Welcome to China Business Cast Episode 115! It is me – Lina Bartuseviciute – the Lithuanian co-host with you today and I will be talking to a business professor Dr. Peter J. Peverelli on this episode.

What is unique about this particular business professor is that he also runs his own business and has been actively involved for over 40 years in cross-cultural high-level negotiations for M&A and business development outside of their native markets. So we will be trying to see how his research and academic perspective can aid foreigners trying to find their way in China.

Chinese corporate culture and identity are rather popular subjects in business schools globally. It is often researched as a tool for PR activities or marketing, and I was looking for existing theoretical works in this field a few years ago, when my company was developing a service of building ‘China Company Profile’.

Then I stumbled upon two of Peter’s books “Chinese Entrepreneurship” and “Chinese Corporate Identity” and found a true gem. Peter looks at ‘corporate identity’ through a psychological perspective and asks how do the people in a company shape a company’s identity, and how does a company shape the people’s identity. What does it mean for decision-makers when having to make a decision? What are the psychological needs of a business entity in China?

We will be discussing Dr. Peverelli’s books during the episode, and sharing stories of how his theories were created and how they played out in our business practices, hoping to show you how you can apply the theoretical knowledge in your day-to-day cross-cultural business activities.

!! And most importantly – this week our episode is quite special as we are offering you to win a precious prize!!

We are inviting all the listeners to submit a question to Peter before May 1, 2021. Please add Lina on WeChat or on LinkedIn and send in your question. One lucky listener will be chosen, their question will be answered by Peter and they will be awarded a special prize – one of Peter’s books, with a personal hand-written note and an autograph, delivered by post.

– We hope you’ll enjoy – Let’s tune in!

EPISODE NOTES

The first book we will discuss is about Chinese Corporate Identity. Peter looks at Chinese corporate identity as an extension of social identity, i.e. as it is bestowed onto the individual by the social group. We will analyze a case described in a book “Lukang: the construction of a state-owned enterprise”, pg. 42-78, where CEO leader of a State-Owned Enterprise is at the same time responsible for shaping the company’s identity in a context of a city: providing jobs to people, who are enjoying a certain level of prestige, and ensuring business results; but also he is responsible to deliver results on a national scale: because his company generates a substantial amount of foreign currency for China.

It is just one person, but because he assumes the two identities (national-level vs. city-level), he experiences pressure to meet demands of different social groups, which sometimes have conflicting interests. We will discuss why it’s important to think about it when engaging your business partners and how a foreign company should apply this knowledge in business life.

The second book we will discuss is about Chinese Entrepreneurship. His book analyzes 7 cases of entrepreneurs, researching how their social capital shaped their entrepreneurial journey and their stories. We will analyze one case in particular “Real Estate Entrepreneur Wang”, pg. 61-71, where Peter deconstructs the story of success of Ms. Wang’s real estate development in Beijing. Ms. Wang gets the rights to develop a residential estate in Beijing by promising to manage the estate and provide for the needs of the residents. She identifies transportation as one of the key needs, and therefore gives up some land and develops a public bus route; she identifies education as another key need of the residents and therefore opens a set of schools (a kindergarten, a primary and a middle school).

Because she positions herself as a responsible entrepreneur committed to redefine the way the citizens of China’s capital live, she gains support from local governments and gains required approvals. We will discuss the importance of seeing the bigger picture and serving the needs of different stakeholders for the long-term success of your business and how you can apply this to your business operations in China.

• Peter’s unique story of a cross-cultural life and a cross-disciplinary career

• Identity construction processes based on social inclusions

• The concept of “guanxi” and how to build business processes based on visualized social inclusions

• Collaborating with semi-governmental organizations to achieve your goals in China

• How to educate a client as a business consultant?

• An opportunity to win Dr. Peter J. Peverelli’s book

Episode Mentions:

• Reach out to Dr. Peverelli via p.j.peverelli@vu.nl or LinkedIn

• Website: https://research.vu.nl/en/persons/pj-peverelli

• Cross-cultural Human Rights Centre: https://crossculturalhumanrightscentre.com

• Peter’s blog on Chinese Food and Culture https://chinafoodingredients.com

• Peter Peverelli, Song, Jiwen. “Chinese Entrepreneurship: A Social Capital Approach”, 2012. https://www.springer.com/gp/book/9783642282058

• Peter Peverelli “Chinese Corporate Identity”, 2006. https://www.routledge.com/Chinese-Corporate-Identity/Peverelli/p/book/9780415546768

• Find your host Lina on LinkedIN or on WeChat: Lina-LITAO

• Find your host Simon on LinkedIN or on WeChat: sraadt

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• Join China Business Cast WeChat group

• Download this episode right click and choose “save as”

• Subscribe to China Business Cast on iTunes

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EPISODE SUMMARY

We love promoting China Business, but also love promoting success stories on how others made it in China. Our new co-host Lina Bartuseviciute was invited to NAPA BALTIC Packaging Design Awards where she shared how they reached 500 shelves in Chinese supermarkets with a new Lithuanian mayonnaise brand in 2020, during the harshest months of pandemic. We welcome you to listen to this story on the podcast or access its original version on NAPA BALTIC youtube channel.

– We hope you’ll enjoy – Let’s tune in!”

EPISODE NOTES

The Conference Speech.

How to sell your brand in China? Real Success Story of ‘Daumantai’

In 2020, a Lithuanian sauces & condiments producer ‘Daumantai’ hit 500 shelves in Chinese supermarkets with their new brand ‘Wow Mama’! It is no small achievement for any brand at any time, but this particular story emerged during the months of pandemic and with products representing one the most competitive categories, most sensitive to consumer tastes and preferences.

So how did this happen?

During this session, Lina will be interviewing Domas and sharing the story of what it really takes to make it happen in China. Domas managed China market entry for Daumantai and developed 10 new products specifically for Chinese consumers. Lina managed a team of cross-cultural consultants at LITAO and designed the B2B sales strategy & execution. For the first time, you will learn all the tips & tricks first-hand, from people who have ‘walked the talk’.

Domas Grinkevičius.

Product Develpment Manager of Daumantai LT. He has spent more than 3 years in the UK finishing a Masters Degree in Strategic Management and collecting experience in such companies as Unilever and Nestle. Since then he dedicated his work for Daumantai LT expansion to international markets. Started with local markets such as Poland, Latvia, Estonia and some Nordic countries. Now he managed to get their products to China, Saudi Arabia, South Korea and Japan.

Daumantai LT is a condiment producer in Lithuania with almost 30 years expierience and the highest level of quality. They are the only condiment producer in Lithuania which can produce organic products and at the moment they have almost 200 products in their portfolio.

Lina Bartusevičiūtė.

Originally Lithuanian, she has lived in Shanghai since 2009. She speaks fluent Mandarin Chinese, and started out as an interpreter for business and negotiations. Lina soon found that language is just the first barrier in cross-cultural projects, so she did a Master’s degree (in Chinese) and upon graduation opened a boutique cross-cultural business consulting firm LITAO in 2015.

LITAO works on bringing the world’s best products and ideas to China by building sustainable market entry solutions, managing B2B sales and helping the foreigners understand how the Chinese think.

NAPA BALTIC Packaging Design Awards.

NAPA Baltic Packaging Design Awards are organized annually by the Lithuanian Design Association. The NAPA BALTIC Packaging Design Awards aim to assess high quality and innovative product packaging design created in the Baltic Region and publicise the best examples to various professionals and to the wider public as well.

The project is financed by the Lithuanian Council for Culture.

Episode content:

We will be discussing the recent story of a new sauces and condiments brand from Lithuania entering China market. We will share the step-by-step process, the required investment (of financials, of time and of personal commitment) and the results that come out of following the process.

• What is the China Market Entry process for a new, unknown foreign brand?

• Differences in product design and consumers’ expectations

• Creating 10 SKUs specifically for China market

• How working with China can benefit your native market

• What is the ‘flexible channel’ in China distribution?

• Performing Customs Compliance Assessment before exporting your product

• Choosing the right partner

• How to talk with your Chinese partner?

• The importance of being humble and patient

Episode Mentions:

• Find Domas Grinkevičius on LinkedIn

• Website: https://www.daumantai.lt

• NAPA BALTIC Packaging Design Awards https://www.napa.lt

• Youtube video https://youtu.be/no-9-M0EV2A

• Find your hosts Lina on LinkedIN, Jons on LinkedIN and Simon on LinkedIN

• Join China Business Cast WeChat group

Download and Subscribe

• Download this episode right click and choose “save as”

• Subscribe to China Business Cast on iTunes

• Or check out the full list on subscription options

• Add Jons (‘jslemmer’), Lina (‘Lina-Litao‘) or Simon (‘sraadt‘) on WeChat to join China Business Cast WeChat group

EPISODE SUMMARY

For this episode, we decided to talk about a very trendy topic in China. Well actually everywhere around the world for the past few years. We will discuss SUSTAINABILITY – something that everyone should be concerned about in our opinion.

And to talk about it, we invited a passionate entrepreneur, Emmanuel DEAN, CEO of BOOMI who will try to explain “How to become more sustainable in China”

– We hope you’ll enjoy – Let’s tune in!”

EPISODE NOTES

Bio Emmanuel Dean:

Emmanuel Dean is from Indonesia and graduated from Colgate University, NY, in 2018, majoring in Economics and Chinese. Emmanuel has a deep passion for entrepreneurship as well as making a positive difference. He wanted to make a start-up that was not only profitable but also beneficial for the Earth. That was when he decided to found Boomi in the summer of 2018. He himself is still a novice eco-warrior, but as the company grows, so does his passion for living more sustainably.

BOOMI is a multi-brand e-commerce platform home to 50+ local purpose-driven businesses. Their mission is to empower and enable our partners and individuals to make a positive lasting impact. Boomi comes from the Indonesian word “bumi” meaning Earth.

Episode content:

We cover all kinds of things around sustainability, but in short, it comes down to the following:

Why he transformed Boomi from bamboo toothbrushes into a sustainable platform.

How to vet suppliers and brands on sustainability?

Recent developments on sustainability in China and what is needed to grow the attention for it

How you can join this movement?

Planting trees as part of the reward program.

Managing an international team from different cultures

What the world would look like in 2050

Planting trees is a core element in Boomi, 8.8% of the revenue is donated to Boomi Forest Initiative to plant trees in Inner Mongolia. You can take a real-time look here: https://720yun.com/t/a5vksq7w719?scene_id=48057252#scene_id=48057252

Episode Mentions:

• Find Emmanuel Dean on Linkedin, WeChat: dean16991 or Email: emmanuel@myboomi.io

• Their website is https://www.boomiplatform.com and follow Boomi Linkedin page or WeChat @BoomiOfficial

• Find your host Jons on LinkedIN, Simon on LinkedIN and Lina on LinkedIN

• Join China Business Cast WeChat group

Download and Subscribe

• Download this episode right click and choose “save as”

• Subscribe to China Business Cast on iTunes

• Or check out the full list on subscription options

• Add Jons (‘jslemmer’) or Simon (‘sraadt‘) on WeChat to join China Business Cast WeChat group

EPISODE SUMMARY

Every country has its diplomatic presence in China, but how can it serve foreign businesses and what do the commercial diplomats actually work on while in China?

Welcome to the China Business Cast, I am your host Simon de Raadt and today I’m happy to introduce a new co-host at CBC – Lina Bartusevičiūtė – who actually was my first guest, featured on Episode 97 in 2019. Lina is a founder of LITAO – a company operating since 2015 in Shanghai, that builds and executes China Market Entry and facilitates B2B sales.

Lina has lived in China since 2009 and started her career as a business negotiator and interpreter. Since then, she has helped foreigners lead more than 1000 negotiations and business meetings, and she joined us to help our listeners get more acquainted with China behind the scenes.

For this episode, we spoke with Agnese Stūrmane – a commercial representative of Latvia – about how foreign companies can benefit from commercial diplomats in China and what functions they perform in their day-to-day job. Let’s hear more about why she chose this career and what you could gain by contacting your own country representative when preparing to work in China.

– We hope you’ll enjoy – Let’s tune in!

EPISODE NOTES

About Agnese Stūrmane

Agnese is a young ambitious professional with a Bachelor’s Degree in Asian Studies (Sinology) and an MBA from Xiamen University, who has started her professional career in China as an intern in an educational company, in 2011.

In 2015, after completing her Master’s Thesis on business opportunities for Latvian cosmetics manufacturers in China, Agnese started putting her academic training to practice and got hired as Business Development and Export Manager for a Latvian natural cosmetics brand.

In 2016, she started working for a Latvian translation agency in Beijing and in a year was promoted from a Project Manager to Country Manager, a position she held for a year.

In 2018, she has been appointed as Counsellor of Economic and Commercial Affairs and the Head of the Representative Office in China for Latvia’s Investment and Development Agency.

Episode Content:

We sometimes hear SME’s complain about the support that can be provided by local representatives of their home country. Our experience has been positive when it comes to network, introductions, and support. From a business side, you of course have to make it happen, but a little push in the back often opens new doors. Especially as more and more diplomats have gained actual work experience in China, hence our interview with Agnese.

• Working in a traditional Chinese company for a Chinese boss

• Giving constructive feedback

• Chinese method of teaching MBA: selling real estate for your grade

• Asian negotiations

• Chinese perception on cosmetics: Korean vs. French brands

• The significance of language and translators

• Pitching a small country in China

• Most important things to consider before you start engaging a Chinese party

• When and why would you reach out to your commercial representative in China?

• Being quarantined in Latvia vs in China

Episode Mentions:

• Reach out to Agnese via agnese.sturmane@liaa.gov.lv or LinkedIn

• Website: http://www.investinlatvia.org

• 16+1 (CEEC+1): Central Eastern European Countries + China

• LIAA: Investment and Development Agency of Latvia

• Groglass – https://www.groglass.com/

• Find your host Lina on LinkedIN

• Find your host Simon on LinkedIN

• Join China Business Cast WeChat group

Download and Subscribe

• Download this episode right click and choose “save as”

• Subscribe to China Business Cast on iTunes

• Or check out the full list on subscription options

Add Jons (‘jslemmer’) or Simon (‘sraadt’) on WeChat to join China Business Cast WeChat group

EPISODE SUMMARY

In this episode, your regular host Simon de Raadt switches places in the interview as he was a guest at a podcast run by Choy Yiu Chan. After hearing the interview back it just makes sense to share the full interview at the China Business Cast podcast as well.

We mainly discuss the recent trends in E-commerce and International trade. Not just the impact of covid and trade war, but also the expected changes to come for Chinese companies going global and Western companies who want to tap into the Asian market. So without further ado…… here is the interview between Simon and Choy at Choy’s Podcast.

– We hope you’ll enjoy – Let’s tune in!

EPISODE NOTES

About Choy Yiu Chan

Choy Yiu Chan is a Dutch and International lawyer with more than 15 years of experience working in the Netherlands, Hong Kong and China. She is partner at Bonnard Lawson ILF Shanghai since 2010 and co-owner and director of Equasia Ltd – a corporate advisory firm with offices in Hong Kong and Shanghai.

Choy’s specialties: focus on corporate and business law in an international context, particularly Asia. This includes the following expertise: market entry, corporate governance and business strategy in greater China and Asia, tax structuring for investment inbound and outbound China, international employment and HR matters, commercial contracts, intellectual property protection strategies, introduction of Chinese companies for investment purposes in Europe and company secretarial support in Hong Kong.

Choy also started her own podcast (Choy’s podcast) which can be found on Spotify and Apple podcast where she talks with her guests about entrepreneurship, life and business in Asia to share knowledge, learn from each other and give platform to great people with relevant business and life experience.

Episode Content:

Simon de Raadt has been in China for over a decade and he became an expert in cross-border trade and logistics from and to China. This expertise also includes deep knowledge of e-commerce, the most relevant sales channel in China.

In this episode, we talk about so many relevant topics: the impact of the pandemic on e-commerce, the Chinese ecosystem, the new VAT rules that will apply in the EU soon, the attitude of Chinese companies going to Europe, and the other way around and so much more!

Simon speaks often at events, is a podcast host of the China Business Cast, managing partner of MAiNS International, and the VP of Business Development Europe at HyperSKU.

Episode Mentions:

• Find Choy Yiu Chan on Linkedin

• Reach out to Choy by email cc@ilf-asia.com

• Find your host Jons on LinkedIN

• Find your host Simon on LinkedIN

• Join China Business Cast WeChat group

Download and Subscribe

• Download this episode right click and choose “save as”

• Subscribe to China Business Cast on iTunes

• Or check out the full list on subscription options

Add Jons (‘jslemmer’) or Simon (‘sraadt’) on WeChat to join China Business Cast WeChat grou

EPISODE SUMMARY

In this episode, we discuss the journey of David Atnip of doing business in China since arriving in 2003. Why is this useful? 17 years in China actually shows that many things have changed, but most core principles have remained the same. Business culture does not change, but business environment does.

He shares how he pivoted over the years to remain relevant and how the Next Normal gives him a mindset of continuous learning and optimism towards future opportunities. Actually, we covered a lot from running a business to China’s growth and struggles.

– We hope you’ll enjoy – Let’s tune in!”

EPISODE NOTES

About David Atnip

After spending 20 years practicing law in the US in civil and commercial litigation he decided to move and become more familiar with the upcoming superpower called China in 2003. Over the years he did some freelance work as an advisor and partnered with two Chinese business partners in two different business adventures for an extensive period of time.

His knowledge on China and China Business is extraordinary and I always walk away with new nuggets to expand and deepen my China knowledge. In this episode, he did exactly that again.

Episode Content:

Topics that will be discussed:

• Why he didn’t want to join a foreign company or joint venture company to kick off his China career.

• Takeaways from working with two different Chinese business partners during his China career.

• Registered his own company due to change in regulation to encourage entrepreneurs with lower capital registration.

• What 3 criteria he uses to start a partnership?

• Is Chinese language skills needed to do business in China?

• The most recent article he found is worth sharing.

• How crisis has helped China to thrive innovation.

• What tips he has for foreigners and foreign companies to become successful in China.

• The most common question David get asked? And his answer to this.

• What is the Next Normal?

• Main reason people are leaving

• Is it more difficult to run a business compared to ten years ago?

• The impact of China’s urbanisation

• His war story in China

Episode Mentions:

• Find David Atnip on Linkedin

• Reach out to David on WeChat: atnip-d or Email david.atnip@outlook.com

• Find your host Jons on LinkedIN

• Find your host Simon on LinkedIN

• Join China Business Cast WeChat group

Download and Subscribe

• Download this episode right click and choose “save as”

• Subscribe to China Business Cast on iTunes

• Or check out the full list on subscription options

Add Jons (‘jslemmer’) or Simon (‘sraadt’) on WeChat to join China Business Cast WeChat grou

EPISODE SUMMARY

We love promoting China Business, but also love promoting other podcasts related to China. We came across one podcast that is worth sharing with you.

Francis Kremer started a new podcast early 2020 together with his fellow German partner Patrick Frick and Ukrainian Polina Ozhylevska called Flexpat. Yes, Flexpat. Not an expat, but a flexpat. ​A flexible expat who wants to live and have more than one job in China and is interested in China’s business world, culture, people, and language. It is more than a podcast actually. It has become a movement. On Flexpat China you will hear real stories of individuals living a flexpat life.

Most people come to China to built a career or start a business. In reality this is not as easy as it sounds so in this episode you can learn from the best on how to kickstart your flexpat career.

– We hope you’ll enjoy – Let’s tune in!

EPISODE NOTES

Some of the language can be considered as inappropriate. 

About Francis Kremer:

After an early career in China he returned back with unfinished business. Sometimes it is hard to shake off China. To find his way back to a career in China turned out to be harder than expected. These lessons triggered him to help others to share his and other people’s experience on his China Flexpat podcast.

Besides running a podcast he is employed at JULI Automation. A Chinese company shaping the global electric car market. Francis helps foreign companies save money by building their top quality motor lines in China. No need to import. He was asked to make this company international and coach the sales and project managers in providing English speaking customer interaction, including documentation. A true China Flexpat.

Episode content

Of course we will go into what Flexpat exactly is, but you will also hear about the journey of Francis and also your host Simon as a flexpat. Nowadays you see less expats coming to China, but foreigners are still trying to tap into the Chinese labor market. How to land a job? What opportunities are there? Are amongst the questions answered in this episode.

• How to land a job in China and prepare yourself?

• What is a reasonable salary range to expect to land a job in China?

• Why people who don’t speak Chinese tend to earn more money?

• Where to start to kickstart you career in China?

• Francis’ advise for other Flexpats

• The impact of Covid on the job market

• Future job market for foreigners looking for a China career

• Francis experience working for a Chinese family owned business

• His war story in China

Episode Mentions:

• Find Francis Kremer on Linkedin

• Francis also has his own podcast called Flexpat China and WeChat group with like minded people.

• Their website is https://www.chinaflexpat.com and follow the China Flexpat Linkedin page

• Find your host Jons on LinkedIN

• Find Simon on LinkedIN

• Join China Business Cast WeChat group

Download and Subscribe

• Download this episode right click and choose “save as”

• Subscribe to China Business Cast on iTunes

• Or check out the full list on subscription options

• Add Jons (‘jslemmer’) or Simon (‘sraadt‘) on WeChat to join China Business Cast WeChat group

EPISODE SUMMARY

In China, it is hard to have a work-life balance. It is much more work-life integration. It is quite a blurry line. Many people identify themselves with their job and seem to be living an unfulfilled life. This is a heavy topic I know, but it is a message that needs to be heard. Like Peter Drucker says: it is not about living a successful life, but living a valuable life.

To discuss this topic, we brought in an Entrepreneur Lifestyle coach with years of experience working with both Western and Chinese professionals.

Today’s episode is all about creating awareness on cultural differences and understandings on living a fulfilled life.

For this episode, we spoke with Ben Ivey, founder of Entrepreneur Lifestyle, Speaker at many stages including TedX Shanghai in Mandarin. Like many others his passion came from pain. And that pain created an unstoppable passion to help others grow. – We hope you’ll enjoy – Let’s tune in!

About Ben Ivey

Ben is CEO of the Entrepreneur Lifestyle, an international bilingual speaker and mentor. He helps entrepreneurs globally to accelerate business success whilst living an extraordinary lifestyle.

As a Keynote Speaker and Entrepreneur Lifestyle Accelerator, he is helping fellow entrepreneurs, leaders, and individuals with bootcamps and even has a certification program to train new mentors following his principles.

Episode content

Having a work-life balance is very tough. Especially in 2020. We hope this episode gives you some tools and suggestions to overcome this years’ obstacles and transfers it into a learning experience. You are never going to be completely in balance, but you can have a fulfilled life.

• What made Ben dedicate his life to helping others living a fulfilled life.

• How to go from a stressed and overwhelmed mindset to a great lifestyle.

• What are differences in stress levels between Chinese and Western culture.

• What entrepreneur lifestyle hacks can result into a fulfilled life.

• Self development market in China.

• How to cope with feeling behind, while everything around you is changing.

• When everyone is on their mobile how to handle other ones expectations.

• Why he did a TEDx Talk in Mandarin Chinese

Episode Mentions:

• Find Ben Ivey on LinkedIN, reach out on Wechat: benivey or follow him on Instagram: ben_ivey_ or Youtube: beniveyinternational

• Ben also has his own podcast called Entrepreneur Lifestyle and WeChat group with like minded people.

• His TEDx Talk in Mandarin Chinese

• Chinese communities focused on personal growth http://www.motivateshanghai.com and http://behivego.com

• Find Jons on LinkedIN

• Find Simon on LinkedIN

• Join China Business Cast WeChat group

Download and Subscribe

• Download this episode right click and choose “save as” – Download here

• Subscribe to China Business Cast on iTunes

• Or check out the full list on subscription options

• Add Jons (‘jslemmer’) or Simon (‘sraadt’) on WeChat to join China Business Cast WeChat group

EPISODE SUMMARY

Times have changed and everyone is buying online now. Most of these purchases are triggered by Social Media so let us get more insights on how this works in China.

Welcome to the China Business Cast, I am your host Simon de Raadt and today’s episode is all about educating you on social channels to sell your products to Chinese consumers. We may all know Alibaba and JD.com, but you might be less familiar with channels like Bilibili and Xiaohongshu.

For this episode, we spoke with Miro Li founder of Double V Consulting and CHINable Academy. Her main passion is to educate foreigners on how to maximize their visibility on niche social platforms like Bilibili and Xiaohongshu. Let’s hear her thoughts on some lesser-known channels to sell your products or services.

About Miro Li

Miro is a native Chinese and has been living in Hong Kong for a decade. Graduated from one of the TOP 3 Universities in Hong Kong (CUHK), she joined a Chinese eCommerce startup and was in charge of overseas business development.

In 2017, Miro founded Double V., a consulting company helping overseas brands enter China market from 0 to 1. Double V. is specialized in Chinese niche social platforms, including but not limited to the most popular Chinese social commerce APP RED/XiaoHongShu, and the Gen Z video-sharing platform Bilibili.

In 2019, Miro founded CHINAble Academy, a training and resources sharing platform for industry leaders to offer courses and workshops about China business, Internet, e-commerce, and marketing.

Episode Content:

• Consumer behavior on social platforms

• More about platforms like Xiaohongshu (Red APP) and Bilibili

• Other social-driven platforms

• How to use these niche platforms for cross-border e-commerce platforms

• Why the Gen-Z (post ’95) population is so important for platforms

• Gen-Z behavior characteristics

• What are bullet screens, such as AWSL

• Biggest trends on social platforms in 2020

• Insights and expectations on Singles Day (11-11)

• CHINable platform offering free knowledge on Cross-Border E-commerce

Episode Mentions:

• Reach out to Miro via info@doublevconsulting.com or on LinkedIN

• Website: www.doublevconsulting.com and www.chinableacademy.com

• WeChat ID: miro509

• Social shipping platforms: Pinduoduo, Toutiao, Douyin, Kuaishou, Xiaohongshu

• Platforms: JD.com, Tmall.com, Yangmatou, Jumei, Kaola, Xiaohongshu, VIP

• KOL = Key Opinion Leaders & KOC – Key Opinion Consumers

• UGC – User Generated Content

• ACG – Animation Comics & Games

• AWSL – a wo si le, literally “I am dying”, but used by Gen-Z to express excitement.

• O2O – Online to Offline and Offline to Online

Download and Subscribe

• Download this episode right click and choose “save as” – Download here

• Subscribe to China Business Cast on iTunes

• Or check out the full list on subscription options

• Add Jons (‘jslemmer’) or Simon (‘sraadt’) on WeChat to join China Business Cast WeChat group

EPISODE SUMMARY

China is leading globally in E-commerce with players like Alibaba and JD.com paving the way. Most growth is coming from the domestic market tailored to the Chinese consumer. But as a foreigner living in China you want the same benefits as any of your peers in China. Today we are going to talk about how to make shopping on Taobao, Tmall and JD.com available for non-Chinese speaker. For this episode we spoke with Jay Thornhill co-founder of Baopals chasing is China dream. Baopals is helping foreigners located in China with their online shopping in Taobao, the largest B2C platform in China. Tune in to hear more about his story going from a start-up into a mature business and how to scale servicing foreigners in China.

About Jay Thornhill

Starting as an English teacher Jay is an Australian-American, born in Australia, and grew up in the US. To cease his entrepreneurial spirit he left his home and traveled to China. With the intention of staying for 1 year, he ended up staying for over 12 years now.

In 2015 he ventured Baopals together with two of his friends Charlie and Tyler Baopals.com as the first platform to give foreigners in China an easy and enjoyable way to shop on Taobao, Tmall, and JD.com. All 1 billion-plus products on these platforms are available, with up-to-date pricing and product info, in English, and reorganized to make shopping on baopals as easy as pie. In the past years, they have sold over millions of products to become a solid market leader in the industry.

They are a digital interface between the factory of the world and foreigners in China eager to buy online. With a multi-cultural team of 40, they are bound to make a bigger footprint for foreigners in China and exploring ways to service a much more global audience. And even paying it forward to other start-up entrepreneurs with different business services.

EPISODE CONTENT:

• How to benefit from grants as a foreign start-up in China

• Jay’s and his China dream

• What problem they are trying to solve with their business

• How getting started and perseverance paid off

• Entrepreneurship in China

• How to reach scale targeting foreigners in China

• How to keep a friendly vibe and company culture after maturing the business

• Navigating platform based selling and social selling and incorporating this into Baopals

• What peak season festivals such as Single’s Day (11-11), 12-12 and 618 looks like

• How focus helped progress the business

• Giving back to China’s start-up communities

• His China war story

Episode Mentions:

Episode Mentions:

• Find Jay on LinkedIN or reach out via email: jay@baopals.com

• Website: www.baopals.com

• Platforms: Taobao.com, Tmall.com, JD.com, Xiaohongshu.com, Fancy.com

• Social shipping platforms: Pinduoduo, Toutiao, Douyin.

• Find Jons on LinkedIN

• Find Simon on LinkedIN

• Join China Business Cast WeChat group

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• Download this episode right click and choose “save as” – Download here

• Subscribe to China Business Cast on iTunes

• Or check out the full list on subscription options

• Add Jons (‘jslemmer’) or Simon (‘sraadt’) on WeChat to join China Business Cast WeChat group

EPISODE SUMMARY

In this episode, we are going to talk about how to brand your local overseas business to Chinese millennial travelers. A group that represents around 400 million individuals. We spoke with Emily Cheung about how she went from a travel blogger to a serial entrepreneur and her passion for promoting global art & culture to Chinese millennials.

About Emily Cheung

Passionate about innovation and technology, she is a firm believer that the right technology has the power to enhance consumer experiences and bring positive changes to businesses, society, and our daily life. With over 13+ years of experience in Brand strategy, digital transformation, social media, eCRM & digital communication strategy, she is equipped with the relevant technical know and leadership skills to inspire a team within a 40-people size creative digital agency (CREATEC). And she founded a technology company mainly focused on cultural tourism (ShaketoWin) too.

Her vision & mission involves working side by side with cultural foundations, Charities, & NGOs to make the world a better place. She believes that we evolve as humans to become better versions of ourselves, and we all can rise as a society by lifting each other by preserving nature and culture and by building mutual understanding and trust between different cultures across the globe. More than commercial benefits, she values humanity benefits, which can bring a sustainable impact in the world.

EPISODE CONTENT:

• Her secret to keep high energy as an entrepreneur

• Her journey till now

• Promoting cultural preservation at low entry barrier and be a bridge towards Chinese millennials

• Preparing Chinese millennials before their travel starts and create cultural awareness

• Behavior differences between ’85, ’90, ’95, ’00’s borns.

• Innovation and Technology in Cultural Tourism incl. Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality

• How to mix non-profit with profit-focused businesses

• Chinese tourism behavior

• Creating local experiences besides just visiting a spot

Episode Mentions:

• https://www.shaketowin.net and http://www.createcdigital.com

• Travel from Home campaign https://www.shaketowin.net/travelfromhome

• Contact Emily via Email: emily.cheung@shaketowin.nl

• WeChat ID: emily-backpacker

• Find Emily on LinkedIN

• Wechat, Bilibili, TikTok, Weibo

• Van Gogh Heritage Foundation: https://www.vangoghsites.com/en/programmas and https://www.vangoghbrabant.com

• Find Jons on LinkedIN

• Find Simon on LinkedIN

• Join China Business Cast WeChat group

Download and Subscribe

• Download this episode right click and choose “save as” – Download here

• Subscribe to China Business Cast on iTunes

• Or check out the full list on subscription options

• Add Jons (‘jslemmer’) or Simon (‘sraadt’) on WeChat to join China Business Cast WeChat group

EPISODE SUMMARY

When traveling abroad we all have noticed that big F&B chains offer different dishes and services then at home. How comes and what are the challenges for F&B franchisees to localize in new markets and especially in China. In today’s episode, we spoke with Tony Leong from Marché Movenpick about the processes and challenges he faced when he opened the first flagship store in Shenzhen, how he found the right team and marketing partners and why sometimes it is better to skip companies SOP’s when entering the Chinese market. Tune in to learn more about starting and growing an F&B franchise in China.

About Tony Leong

Tony Leong is a Restaurant Opener Expert, Franchise Advisor, and Concept Developer with over 20+ years of experience in the Food & Beverage industry. Tony has helped companies, investors and entrepreneurs and established brands from around the world to bring their concepts to life globally. In June 2018 Tony opened the first Marché Movenpick flagship store in Shenzhen, China, and elevated the client’s experience bringing the unique franchise concept and approach to the Chinese market.

EPISODE CONTENT:

• Introducing the Marché Movenpick concept.

• The process and operational steps to open a franchise chain in China. How is the process different in China in comparison to the rest of the world?

• How to scale the global F&B restaurant franchise in the Chinese market?

• Tony’s surprising challenges when picking his flagship location in Shenzhen.

• Best practices and tips to find the right team for your F&B and what are the best training concepts.

• Build up your own marketing team or hire an agency? Tony’s Marketing strategies for the Chinese market.

• F&B Franchises usually follow strict rules and guidelines. Why does that not work in China and what kind of internal tricks did Tony use to adapt faster to China’s Market?

• How have the Chinese consumer behaviours changed over the last few years in the F&B industry?

Episode Mentions:

• Find Tony on LinkedIN

• Website: https://www.marche-int.com

• Find Jons on LinkedIN

• Find Simon on LinkedIN

• Join China Business Cast WeChat group

Download and Subscribe

• Download this episode right click and choose “save as” – Download here

• Subscribe to China Business Cast on iTunes

• Or check out the full list on subscription options

• Add Jons (‘jslemmer’) or Simon (‘sraadt’) on WeChat to join China Business Cast WeChat group

EPISODE SUMMARY

As China Business Cast we have been experiencing the struggle to transfer money from outside China to Chinese suppliers in an easy and cost-efficient way. While finding the right products and business partners is challenging already, paying your suppliers on time and the right amount is an even bigger hurdle for businesses to overcome. In today’s episode, we talked with Simon Lim about why he started his cross border payment platform in Hong Kong, the current trends and challenges in the Hong Kong and China Fintech scene, and why he thinks that Hong Kong is struggling to establish a competitive Fintech industry. Tune in to learn more about the competitive fintech landscape in Hong Kong and China.

About Simon Lin

Simon Lim is a long-time entrepreneur, digital marketing and IT consultant who discovered a market niche and high demand for better cross border payments to China. Since then Simon moved into the Fintech and payment industry and is today located in Hong Kong and Shenzhen. He is the founder and CEO of GoRemit.HK – a leading cross border payment service provider to transfer money from Hong Kong to China and southeast asia based in Hong Kong. Founded in 2016, GoRemit.HK is a registered and licensed Money Service Operator (MSO) – 17-01-02074 in Hong Kong Special Administrative Region serving Hong Kong SME and individuals targeting China and SouthEast Asia. He started his business with helping friends and customers to pay suppliers in China and with growing volume and demand he transformed the operations into a full cross border payment platform.

EPISODE CONTENT:

• What is GoRemit.HK and how does GoRemit.hk help SME and Startups to remit money to China and southeast Asia today?

• What are the current trends in the HK and China FinTech sector?

• How are HK consumers embracing new payment solutions like WeChat Pay or Alipay?

• How does the new virtual bank licence in Hong Kong help FinTechs?

• What are the challenges for FinTechs to grow in Hong Kong compared to China?

• Why is it easier to open a bank account in China than in Hong Kong?

Episode Mentions:

• Reach out to Simon via email: Simon@goremit.hk or Wechat: goremithk

• Website: GoRemit.hk, Neat Mobile Banking, Virtual Bank Licence in HK, WeChat Pay Hong Kong, AliPay Hong Kong, AliPay Global

• Find Jons on LinkedIN

• Find Simon on LinkedIN

• Join China Business Cast WeChat group

Download and Subscribe

• Download this episode right click and choose “save as”

• Subscribe to China Business Cast on iTunes

• Or check out the full list on subscription options

• Add Jons (‘jslemmer’) or Simon (‘sraadt’) on WeChat to join China Business Cast WeChat group

EPISODE SUMMARY

As China Business Cast we decided to spent more time on exploring areas in China that are less known. Less known does not mean there are no business opportunities. If you ever wonder why companies like Starbucks, Coca Cola and many other global corporations have offices in this beautiful province definitely listen to this episode. Besides business opportunities it also famous as a travel destination. Many people who visited this region got inspired and ended up staying there for a long time. An example of this is our today’s guest. He is not only living in Yunnan in South-West China, but also very active in promoting the province in and outside China.

About Yereth Jansen

Yereth Jansen is a long-time entrepreneur, marketing, digital and creative expert located in Yunnan province. He is the founder and CEO of CloudBridge – Media by Design, located in Yunnan. CloudBridge is the company behind www.destiationlijiang.com and expat website GoKunming, offering travel information, event listings, and all the latest news on what is happening in Kunming City and Yunnan province. Jansen’s Beijing company, China Bridge Solutions, offers consulting, marketing, and branding services to companies entering the Chinese market. And if that is not enough to keep him busy he works on World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) projects as a Product Development and Marketing Expert and was recently awarded with the 2019 China National Tourism Travel New Talent.

EPISODE CONTENT:

• What is Yunnan province famous for?

• How does this region contribute to the Belt Road Initiative (BRI)?

• What is the business environment like?

• Recent developments that will make you consider investing in this region.

• Why you should visit this region?

• Is there any difference between promoting a region versus promoting a brand?

Episode Mentions:

• Find Yereth  on LinkedIN or reach out via email: yereth@gmail.com or Wechat: yereth

• Website: GoKunming, China Bridge Solutions, Cloudbridge, UNWTO, Invest in Yunnan.

• Find Jons on LinkedIN

• Find Simon on LinkedIN

• Join China Business Cast WeChat group

Download and Subscribe

• Download this episode right click and choose “save as”

• Subscribe to China Business Cast on iTunes

• Or check out the full list on subscription options

• Add Jons (‘jslemmer’) or Simon (‘sraadt’) on WeChat to join China Business Cast WeChat group

EPISODE SUMMARY

Our guest today, Barbara Ex has been in China since 2005. After multiple roles she created a company in one of the industries that are growing rapidly everywhere in the world. We are talking about the sharing economy industry. Her company WhiteSpace offers flexible, affordable short-term meeting and training room space. WhiteSpace is now scaling to become the complete O2O platform for meeting and training support across Asia.

About Barbara Ex

Barbara Ex is the founder and CEO of Whitespace. Barbara’s long international career has brought her through many countries, but the last 15 years have been in China, working in both international and domestic companies. Prior to founding WhiteSpace, Barbara was an Executive Director of Business Transformation at Lenovo in Beijing. With an MBA from London Business School and engineering degrees from MIT, Barbara approaches business with a professional, international, and technical mindset. Over the years she chaired the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai, was founder and past president of MIT Alumni Club Shanghai, IPWS Entrepreneur of the year 2019 and chair in the mentorship program at EO.

EPISODE CONTENT:

• What keeps her in China for over 15 years?

• What is the difference between co-working space and co-meeting space

• How are meetings and events run differently in China

• How to integrate O2O into the physical meeting experience

• Some good examples of the sharing economy in China

• Barbara’s personal war story, which turned out to be a very recent one

• How mentorship has helped her grow her China Business

Episode Mentions:

• Find Barbara on LinkedIN or reach out to her via email: barbara@liubaikongjian.com or Wechat: shanghaibex

• Website: https://www.whitespace.co or http://www.liubaikongjian.com

• Video: Mobike one day in Shanghai

• Find Jons on LinkedIN

• Find Simon on LinkedIN

• Join China Business Cast WeChat group

Download and Subscribe

• Download this episode right click and choose “save as”

• Subscribe to China Business Cast on iTunes

• Or check out the full list on subscription options

• Add Jons (‘jslemmer’) or Simon (‘sraadt’) on WeChat to join China Business Cast WeChat group