Four weeks ago, the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services opened its first trade office in China — a move that is expected to pay big dividends for N.C. agriculture and local farmers. The NCDA&CS office space is small but functional, with shared conference and break rooms for all businesses housed within the suite of offices.
Beijing is a bustling city of 22 million people, give or take a few, and it seems to be experiencing strong growth. Riding around the city, you see construction projects in nearly every direction. You also see a great deal of commerce, including stores offering such international brands as Nike, Reebok, Cartier, Tag Heur, Hermes and more. Traditional Chinese pharmacies, grocery stores, food stands and mom-and-pop shops also dot the cityscape.
And while Beijing is the capital city, other large Chinese cities are said to be experiencing similar growth.
While in China, I was able to sit down with Paul Chang, who will be heading up the Beijing office, to talk about goals for the trade office and how doing business in China differs from the United States.
Chang is the department’s first official trade representative in China, and he’s eager to bring his experience marketing U.S. tobacco to other N.C. commodities as well.
Here is video from the interview with Chang.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfmrsIbG35A