As the year draws to an end, Crayfish takes a look at how businesses can succeed in China beyond 2023. 

We shared our findings and thoughts with dozens of UK-based businesses and institutions on a webinar Crayfish hosted: “Succeeding in China beyond 2023: Opportunities, Challenges, and best practices” . This was part of this year’s International Trade Week (ITW) .

Crayfish’s Founder & CEO, Ting Zhang gave a brief macroeconomic overview of China’s performance in 2023. Ting explained how China continues to face multiple ongoing challenges, broadly defined as security, economic slowdown and geopolitical tensions. 

These challenges have contributed to China’s slightly ‘disappointing’ growth in 2023 and although China’s economy has stabilised, expectations for significant growth in 2024 have been reduced on a global scale. 

Although the Chinese government is hoping to improve growth opportunities through a landslide of policy changes, without foreign input and investment they will struggle to achieve their desired levels of growth, offering a huge opportunity for foreign businesses. 

Ting gave examples of the potential sectors for opportunity through a performance snapshot of the manufacturing, TMT, healthcare and education sectors. 

On the practical side, Crayfish’s Director of Operations Jane Ru took over to discuss some of the challenges and concerns that often arise when conducting business in China. Jane shared insights on client’s frequently asked questions such as “what can we do for a new stage of growth in China?” and “how do we find suitable partners and maintain relationships effectively?”. 

Jane also shared solutions through her client case studies, provoking further discussion from dozens of participants from various industries or sectors, such as consumer goods, engineering, professional services and universities. 

Crayfish® is a trusted advisor and partner helping businesses to succeed in China. Our clients select from a portfolio of fixed-price digital services and bespoke strategic consulting to take them from market entry to profitable growth. Whilst tech innovators and businesses, and education and research institutions, benefit from  unique solutions to protect, manage, and commercialise Intellectual Property in China.