As one of the first batch of foreign companies that invested in China, Bosch sees the company's great potential for growth in China's emerging sectors, especially that of electric vehicles and hybrid energy. [Photo by Gu Yingjie/chinadaily.com.cn]
China boasts a huge potential for foreign enterprises and entrepreneurs to innovate and thrive, whether they are established business or emerging industries, said foreign business leaders in Shanghai.
As one of the first batch of foreign companies to invest in China, Bosch has seen an average 10-year compound growth rate of 10.4 percent, said Bosch China President Xu Daquan. He said the Chinese market is evolving rapidly, of which the vehicle industry is of great potential.
"Bosch's attitudes are firm toward the Chinese market," said Xu. "Our sales revenue accounts for 20 percent of the global sales revenue. China is Bosch's indispensable market."
The Bosch Group from Germany is a world leading technology and services supplier with businesses focus on four sectors: mobility, industrial technology, consumer goods, and energy and building technology.
China is the company's single largest overseas market with an average annual investment of 5 billion yuan ($689.1 million) every year, which is still on the rise, said Xu.
Xu said Bosch used to bring the technologies from Germany and apply in the development of products in China. But it has changed in the past decade.
"When we are capable to do research and development and manufacturing locally in the past years, we have been developing products and technologies in emerging fields," said Xu.
He said when considering market demand, China has been at the forefront, especially for the electric vehicles and hybrid energy. And that's why many of the company's product launch meetings are in China.
It is possible that going forward, the innovative technologies invented in the Chinese market could be applied in other foreign markets, he said.
"I personally am very positive about this trend," said Xu. "In the future, we hope Bosch China's technologies and services can support other regions."
Luneurs, a Shanghai-based French ice cream and pastry brand established in 2018, has seen its business thrive over the four years thanks to many business-friendly support and policies Shanghai has put forward to boost investment and development. [Photo by Gu Yingjie/chinadaily.com.cn]
Yan Qianxin, CEO of Luneurs, a Shanghai-based French ice cream and pastry brand established by Yan and three of his foreign friends, mostly of French origin, in 2018. Yan said when they set out to develop the brand, they received support from government bodies in Shanghai, which has contributed to the company's development.
For example, he said the policy to register a company has been so optimized that it allowed them more time to develop their business. There are emergency supporting funds available to ensure the company's cash flow, Yan said.
Currently, with 15 stores in Shanghai, Luneurs has expanded to other parts of China with around 20 more shops, including pop-ups, according to Yan.
Any expansion into a new city always brings inspiration to develop new varieties based on localized products, such as peach flavored ice cream in the city of Wuxi in Jiangsu province, which Yan said, has been very rewarding.
Local partners are also very active in cooperating with them for potential opportunities, said Luneurs Business Development Director Soufiane Khellaf.
"They always find a way to talk to us," he said.
