On March 10th, NextStep Shanghai was at Latitude Longitude on Yueyang Rd near Dongping Rd. Over 100 ppl came to enjoy the French venue, but also to listen to the Shanghai Young Bakers (SYB).

Celine Le Cotonnec, SYB Project Coordinator, gave a terrific presentation explaining all the legal issues that they faced and are still facing while bringing this project together.

After the event we received a very good feedback of their presentation, but what was most important to us was to know that we brought something to the Shanghai Young Bakers who had a dozen of interesting leads.

Here is what they said about the event :

“NEXTSTEP – Tuesday March 10, 2009

One month after the start of their training program in traditional French bakery for under-privileged Chinese young adults; Shanghai Young Bakers charity project was offered the opportunity to showcase at NEXTSTEP’s last event the hard work the team of 12 French volunteers has accomplished in the past 18 months to make this dream come true.

Shanghai Young Bakers is one of the 6 projects of the French Junior Economic Chamber in Shanghai (JCEF) and has been ongoing for nearly 2 years.

The number of difficulties you will have to go through and the time and energy you will have to spend when considering setting up a charity program in China as a foreign organization, especially when it comes to education matters are totally unforeseeable and countless. You can get a rough idea yes, but still whatever you enterprise you always have this feeling to progress in a grey area.

Read the rest of this entry »

A French Consulting firm, FaberNovel, just released an impressive report titled “Everything you always wanted to know about Google…”. They made different versions of the report in english, but also made a short slide version in english and in french.

It is a very good overview of how Google become what it is today.

Several good questions have been pointed out, such as :

- Why won’t Google be affected by crisis ?

- Why does Microsoft fear Google ?

- How Google wants to compete with Facebook ?

- Why doesn’t Google monetize all its services ?

- How does Google turn advertising into information and performance ?

And for me the best slide being :

- How does Google buy traffic ?

Where we can understand that because Google is financing 85% of Firefox, we can find Google search engine embedded in Firefox browser or other type of deal with Dell, Apple, ….

You can also read the review made by TechCrunch.

Technorati Profile

We are very proud that M1NT Shanghai decided to write a quick notes about our NextStep Event on Nov 18th.

Here is what they said :

“NextStep provides a forum for like-minded entrepreneurs to collaborate in building new businesses and also helping one another navigate the many pitfalls of conducting business in China. NextStep every second Tuesday holds net working event at various venues around Shanghai. The event is designed to keep conversation casual, and the bonus is that a majority of the people attending are like-minded entrepreneurs.

On November 18th, NextStep held the regular net working event in M1NT Shanghai; give their members an exclusive look at this members only club to dream big with like-minded entrepreneurs. The founder of M1NT Alistair Paton has brought a unique concept to partying for the fabulously wealthy; party-goers are making money as they party as shareholders in the club.

More information about the event, please check
http://www.nextstepshanghai.com/”

More on http://www.m1ntnews.com

Thanks to M1NT Shanghai for the great event, and thanks to the 260+ people who joined us that night.

Here is a quick article from ShanghaiDaily about Networking in Shanghai:

Strong support network vital to success in new business environs
Created: 2008-10-13 0:11:12
Author: Ananth Krishnan

ONE of the most important ingredients to an entrepreneur’s success in a new environment is a strong support network - local partners to teach you the ins and outs of an alien culture; old industry hands to help you navigate an unfamiliar marketplace; or friends whose shoulders you will need to cry on if your plans go awry.
However, for an expatriate entrepreneur who has just landed in a foreign country, assembling your support structure can also be one of the hardest challenges you will face.
The difficulties expat entrepreneurs face in Shanghai are reflected in the growing patronage of networking clubs in the city - organizations solely devoted to helping lost expats find potential business partners.
Just a few years ago, entrepreneurs new to the city had few places to turn to besides their country’s chambers of commerce.

Andy Xue was one of them. He arrived in Shanghai from the United States in 2002 to find a social scene that was hard to penetrate. Xue’s own difficulties prompted him to start one of Shanghai’s first ever clubs devoted to business networking - the Fortune Connection Club, or FC Club.

Creative organizing
Linda Xu, one of FC Club’s co-founders, says the club was “started by young people who were just looking for a good social life.”

But Xu soon found that more and more young Shanghai entrepreneurs gravitated to the club as they did not have many other opportunities to meet like-minded individuals.

“As more and more people started coming to our events, we were very encouraged and began to be more creative with the kinds of events we organized,” Xu says.

FC Club now holds events with a business angle several times every month, focusing on entrepreneur finance and career development, among other things.

For instance, on October 28 the club will host a talk and discussion with venture capitalists on entrepreneur business finance.

“As we have a lot of people with great ideas looking for partners at our events, we thought it would be a great opportunity for them to talk to the venture capitalists,” Xu says.
The business of networking has becoming so specialized in Shanghai that the city is also home to one of Asia’s only networking clubs entirely dedicated to the needs of entrepreneurs - NextStep.

The club was founded by four young entrepreneurs - Ed Kim, Greg Prudhommeaux, Wen Ying, and Joseph Constanty - who had moved to Shanghai and faced difficulties in trying to establish strong local support networks.

“Entrepreneurs, especially at the outset of the ventures, are typically lacking the complete toolkit to succeed and grow their business,” Constanty says.

“We saw an opportunity to bring together entrepreneurs and the supporting cast, like accountants, lawyers, etc, to create a strong network to allow business owners to grow their companies and foster new ideas. This is what spurred us on to create NextStep, a personal need to meet other entrepreneurs, and sure enough there were many other people looking for the same resources.”

In spite of the recent proliferation of networking groups, Constanty says there is still “a real need to meet people to help grow your existing business or put in motion the steps to open a new business.”

Besides organizing regular networking events, NextStep also maintains a directory listing of Shanghai businesses to make it easier for entrepreneurs in the city to connect with each other.

Constanty says the directory has been quickly growing since it was launched in July, recording a 20-percent growth in the number of registered companies and users every month.

Alex Cureton-Griffiths, the founder of Shanghai Networking News, a Website that chronicles the city’s networking events, says that while consulates and chambers of commerce can be a valuable resource, clubs offer something different.

“I would advise against sticking to your country’s chamber of commerce,” he says. “Networking groups and clubs give different specializations, and often provide a more informal environment.”

While many of Shanghai’s networking clubs have been founded by expats, it isn’t just the expats who can be found at their events as a number of Chinese businessmen and entrepreneurs are increasingly realizing that schmoozing can go a long way.

“In six years, Shanghai has changed a lot,” Xu says. “Now, you see more and more Chinese people interested in networking and wanting to expand their activities and horizons.”

Published on ShanghaiDaily.com (http://www.shanghaidaily.com/)
http://www.shanghaidaily.com/sp/article/2008/200810/20081013/article_376606.htm
Copyright (c) 2001-2008 Shanghai Daily Publishing House

I just saw a very good news on Shanghaiist.com and I had no other choice than share it with you all.

It seems that you will not need to go back to your home country to get your Resident Permit (Z Visa) anymore. I also heard that the one year multi-entry Business visa (F) will also be available again.

According to this article, everything should go back to normal on Oct 16th.

Visit Shanghaiist.com to read the full article.

As an entrepreneur, finding an adapted solution concerning your office issue is vital. All the people that have been in China for a certain time know it: the simplest thing can become a nightmare here, it’s all the more true for Real Estate! The commercial Real Estate market is much more organized and professional than the residential market but only top Grade A and Premium buildings have an international professional management. Most of the buildings in Shanghai are managed by local landlords.

As an entrepreneur, you have to face a lot of questions concerning your office: where? How much? Under which conditions, what can I get from my landlord? For how long? Do I really need a Grade A building to register my Rep. Office? … NextStep Answers can help you.

Market presentation:

In Shanghai, you have 3 major central business districts (CBDs):

-The first on in Jing’An, around Jing’An temple and Nanjing West Road with major developments like Plaza 66 Tower I and II, CITIC Square or Parkplace.

-The second in Huai Hai Middle Road and Xin Tian Di.

-The third one in Lujiazui, the financial district with famous buildings like Jin Mao Tower, the Shanghai Stock Exchange, the World Trade Financial Center…

You also have two sub-CBDs:

-The first one in Hongqiao. It was the first CBD in Shanghai to develop but it was soon caught up by the 3 areas below.

-The second one in Xujiahui. The retail activity is very important here and the office leasing has also well developed.

Shanghai counts more than 5,000 buildings; you can find every range of prices.

Market Figures:

The average rent in Shanghai for Grade A is currently estimated at RMB8.4/sqm/day, the two most expensive districts being Jing’An (average asking rental of RMB9.15/sqm/day) and Pudong (RMB8.2/sqm/day).

The average vacancy rate is below 6% for Grade A buildings. The lowest vacancy rate in Puxi are in Luwan (1.4%) and in Xuhui (1.2%) , that’s why the landlords have more and more leverage during the negotiations: we were before in a tenant-oriented market but the trend is now changing. Every year, the rental increase by 10% to 15%, that’s why the landlords are usually reluctant to sign more-than-3-year lease agreements.

More and more MNCs choose to relocate to decentralized locations, especially in business parks, because of the continual rental raise. Nokia, Microsoft or Unilever for instance have already or are about to move out in sub-centers, less expensive and easier to access now thanks to the municipality’s relentless effort to develop transportation infrastructures. For instance, Da Ning district offers very good quality buildings at a much lower rate than downtown.

You can find all the companies who could help you with those on http://www.nextstepdirectory.com/real-estate

(Contributed by Yves Roulleau yvesroulleau@gmail.com)

If you don’t want to become another victim of the new visa laws, I recommend you have your passport with you and make sure you are registered at the police station of your residential area.

Someone reported to me from SOS Expat recently that policemen are particularly focusing on the Jing An District (I heard about a building being surrounded by 80 cops checking foreigners for the visa status and even arresting some of them).

When they come to you, they will show you a small card with the following written on it:

“Notice:

1. In accordance with Chinese laws, you should go to the local police station to complete the Registration Form of Temporary Residence within 24 hours of arrival at your residence each time. It can be done by the hotel if you stay with a hotel. Once you change your place of residence, you should repeat the above procedures again.

2. If you want extend visa, you should go to local police station to apply for temporary residence permit first.

3. You should always carry your passport and relevant certificates with you for possible examination by police.”

Here are some address of the police stations per district :

Jing An Si Police station at : No 55-5 Wan Hang Du Rd

Nanjing Xi Rd Police Station at : 931,Yan An Middel Rd

Shi Men Er Rd Police Station at : 351, Da Tian Rd

Jiang Ning Rd Police Station at : 1332, Xin Zha Rd

Cao Jia Du Police Station at 684, Wan Hang Du Rd

So, if you want to stay in China, you’d better make sure that your visa and other documents are okay.

Don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any updates.

As a consultant, I am learning how to juggle with the chinese authorities every days. And lately what’s taken most of my time has been related to visas…. Since every one reading this blog may be concerned, or at least knows someone who could be, I thought you might be interested to hear that this news that was sent to me by the French Authorities based in Beijing.

“Olympic cities block foreign business visas (SCMP)
Curbs tightened ahead of Games

Quinton Chan and Celine Sun
Updated on Jul 24, 2008

Five of the six Olympic cities on the mainland - including Shanghai and Beijing - have in effect suspended the issuing of business visas to foreigners until after the Games.

In the latest entry restriction introduced ahead of the Olympics, authorities in the five cities have stopped providing invitation letters, also known as notification letters, which are required in support of applications to visit the mainland for business visits, market research and training.

The move has shocked businesspeople with interests on the mainland, some of whom say it could cost them millions of dollars.

The Shanghai Foreign Economic Relations and Trade Commission, the municipal authority dealing with foreigners’ visa applications, posted a notice on its website on Monday saying all applications for notification letters would be suspended until mid-September. Read the rest of this entry »