Global Corporate Leaders Express Confidence in Shanghai's Business Environment

Shanghai has instilled confidence in its business environment among foreign companies, according to executives attending the 35th International Business Leaders' Advisory Council for the Mayor of Shanghai.

"I want to congratulate Shanghai and IBLAC for their huge success over the last 35 years," Severin Schwan, chairman of Swiss healthcare giant Roche Holding and chair of the next IBLAC, said on October 15. "Shanghai has been a major hub for innovation and has traditionally been the gateway to the West, a city with an open and global mindset, this is why a company like Roche has been present in Shanghai since 1926.

"Roche operates a full value chain in Shanghai and collaborates with local companies for better healthcare solutions in China and for the world," Schwan pointed out.

Twenty years ago, when Basel-based Roche opened its research center in the city's Pudong district, it was the first foreign company there, but now it sits in the center of Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park, an ecosystem with hundreds of leading life science firms, he added.

During a press conference held on the same day, Mayor Gong Zheng said that a favorable business environment is Shanghai's ace in attracting foreign investment and businesses. The city is diligently revising regulations to enhance the business environment and plans to carry then out early next year, he added.

"Everybody that I know, who comes to Shanghai is excited by it," said Sir Martin Sorrell, founder and chairman of London-based digital advertising and marketing services provider S4 Capital. "That doesn't mean it's easy because the growth has been very considerable, and that obviously puts pressure on existing resources, and resources had to be developed."

"It's a good example of how sophisticated the thinking is of the government, so I think an A grade, A+++," he said.

Joanne Crevoiserat, chief executive of New York-based luxury retailer Tapestry, pointed out her company was excited by the opportunity that Shanghai presents, "welcoming more international companies.

"We have been in the market for over two decades, beginning with the Coach brand, starting here in Shanghai, and we've developed tremendous business, really speaking to local consumers and creating emotional connections with our products, delivering incredible innovation in this market," she said.

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