DiligenceChina

DiligenceChina suggests that you profit from someone else’s misery
Stop whatever you are doing and read this article from Prospect Magazine about Mark Kitto and ‘That’s Shanghai’ magazine. The story is legend in Shanghai, and is required reading for anyone even thinking of setting up an operation here. The Kitto story played a […]

Is the Culture Barrier still an impediment for doing business in China?
Yes, most definitely. For someone…but not necessarily for you!
The China market is not new. We westerners have been fascinated by the potential of trade with China since the days of Marco Polo. For most of us, though, the real action has […]

Last week I mentioned that Shanghai people have a habit of lining up to get into Pizza Hut, which has branded itself as a fashionable full-service restaurant.  Some people thought I was exaggerating or being sarcastic.  I shot these photos at the Metro City Mall in the Xu Jia Hui section of Shanghai at around 12:00 on a sunny Sunday afternoon.  The […]

A trend for western companies coming to China has been to “rebrand” their business – usually making it significantly more upscale.  In Shanghai, not only is Pizza Hut a nice sit-down restaurant, but locals line up around the block for it on weekends.  Howard Johnson’s has 3 luxury hotels in Shanghai, and they all seem […]

Wal-Mart makes headlines in China again with major expansion plans – and a warning to newcomers.
 DiligenceChina
 
Wal-Mart is a typical “China story” for multinationals.  They came to China for low-cost sourcing, and then turned their attention to the market.  At first, they had to struggle with all those cultural and regulatory issues that we are […]