Ting Zhang on Phoenix TV, offering her observations of and thoughts about Chinese companies going global, the trends in 2023-24, opportunities and challenges, especially given the current geopolitical tensions and market uncertainties.
Summary of the online interview below:
From where Crayfish.io sits, Chinese companies interested in the UK are mainly from such sectors as EV, energy storage, consumer electronics, medical equipment, and environment friendly materials.
What are Chinese going-global companies most interested in? The latest trends suggest that the new generation of Chinese companies or investors tend to focus more on creativity, efficiency, sustainability, and ESG.
So, what are the top challenges in the UK market that Chinese companies would most likely encounter? Lack of knowledge and unfamiliarity with the market condition, entry thresholds, rules and regulations, governance, legal system, and differences in management approaches, Ting suggests, are the most often observed.
One of the frequently encountered problems is the gap between East and West in terms of corporate culture and business practices, such as labour relations, privacy, social and personal values.
Asked for her suggestions to Chinese companies interested in entering the UK, Ting commented:
- Do your homework before embarking on the journey abroad, getting familiar with the local market, business environment, laws and regulations, barriers, channels available to foreign businesses.
- Identify your target sector or niche. One of the ‘short-cuts’ is to work with a local partner.
- Alternatively, one can use outsourced services for marketing, PR, branding, sales and distribution.
Last but not least ,talent recruitment and retention is one the key elements of setting up shop in the UK, the same as anywhere in the world. A balanced mix of local and HQ staff would be ideal to help overcome the differences in culture and business practices.
In concluding her interview, Ting points out that, despite the ups and downs in the UK-China relationship in recent years resulting in many UK companies adopting a wait-and-see approach on China, there are some who are doing very well in the Chinese market, including some clients of Crayfish.io. Their success recipes are valuable to the wider business community in the UK, maybe also inspiring to the Chinese companies that are looking to make it big in the UK.