Expatriates are a big part of the business life in China. They have brought a good amount of technology, management and practical knowledge to bear on the challenges that face China’s industrial base. In many ways you could say that they brought a new manufacturing platform to China and the economy has been at least partly built around it.
Picture Beijing in the early 1990’s: a strong visual presence of communism in the typical courtyard-style housing (12 families housed in a block built around a central yard), grey Mao suits everywhere, almost no neon advertising signs and only occasional cars and mini-vans on the streets. In those days there were two currencies: Yuan and FEC(Foreign Exchange Currency) available only to foreigners, with a lower exchange rate than
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Chinese people arrive on time for meetings and other occasions (and sometimes 5 or 10 minutes in advance). It is considered rude to arrive late for engagements of any kind. Traveling from one point to another in many cities in China can be extremely time-consuming due to traffic delays. Make sure you leave early enough to make it to your destination on time.
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To Jim van Drunen Littel the Netherlands were always going to be too small. Bilingually raised and working for one of the best known consumer goods companies in the world, he goes international in 1986. Successfully managing a territory stretching from India to Japan for a large tobacco company, it is then time to realise other personal ambitions. Starting his own enterprise and learning Chinese, those are his goals. Van Drunen Littel goes back to
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Starbucks seems to be everywhere in China’s big cities (it has around 200 branches) and locals and expats alike can be found reading, meeting and drinking the high-priced hot stuff. The success of Starbucks in China has been hailed as a victory for a foreign consumer brand, and proof that urban Chinese consumers will spend money for the right product / service / experience.
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