Shanghai gives wings to dreams

As an e-commerce platform with a selection of about 250 wine products from 20 brands, Heritage Wine Club is keen to enable Chinese wine buyers to purchase smart and carefully selected wines from all over the world.

"Online shopping will be the choice for people to buy everything sooner or later, so I decided to open an online shop instead of a real store," said Fabry.

"I chose to target Chinese wine lovers as I have seen the obvious growth in wine consumption in China," said Fabry.

The online shop started operations in Shanghai with two to five orders per day for the first month.

Now it has expanded its network to Beijing, Guangdong province and other regions. On average it is executing 60 to 80 orders every day. It also has a showroom in Shanghai.

"It is a bit difficult for a foreigner to operate a business here, so we have to try all means to get the attention from the locals, by opening showrooms displayed with our wines and organizing wine tasting activities," said Fabry.

The Shanghai government, on its part, is planning to roll out the red carpet further by planning steps to liberalize visa requirements for foreign experts and graduates.

Ken Jarrett, president of AmCham Shanghai, said: "The plan to allow foreign students who have studied in China to stay on and set up businesses is a positive step which will attract more young talents to contribute their innovative ideas to the industries here.

"Anyone can start a company, but to be successful in China, it requires very deep commitment to the place, and you have to add value, to create products that people want to buy, you have to create something different that Chinese people like," said Martin from Cambio, who wants to create a lasting brand for Chinese consumers.

Though the local government has unveiled several steps to encourage foreign investment, Fabry and Martin still feel that more needs to be done.

"In my opinion, the most important step would be to simplify the procedures for setting up a wholly foreign-owned enterprise as entrepreneurs need flexibility at the beginning," said Fabry.

Martin said: "China is a unique place to operate, of course. You have to understand how the government policies are going to affect you, especially if there are benefits, or sometimes restrictions and you need to be on top of it."

In the long term, both Martin and Fabry are planning to explore interesting options in cities outside of Shanghai - the nearby second-and third-tier cities.

"These places are slower to accept foreign lifestyles and not as open or multicultural as Shanghai. That to me represents the big challenge of how foreign entrepreneurs are going to scale out in China," said Martin.

yuran@chinadaily.com.cn