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CHEMBA Students Visit Design Powerhouse Wimberly
Allison Tong & Goo
Yen Chun
Manager, China Business Program
HONOLULU — On July
16, China-focused MBA (CHEMBA) students
visited Wimberly
Allison Tong & Goo (WATG), the world’s number one
design consultant for the hospitality, leisure, and entertainment
industries. Don Goo, senior vice president of WATG, and Zhao “Robert” Zheng,
director of business development, Greater China, hosted the students
in their conference room of the Honolulu office.
Goo and Zheng indicated that China is currently a key player
in WATG’s business; 75% of the Honolulu office revenue
and one quarter of WATG’s worldwide revenue is generated
from China. They noted that from 2001 to 2003, revenue from China
doubled.
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Zhao “Robert” Zheng, director
of business development, Greater China, gives CHEMBA students
a tour of WATG's designs.
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With China’s acceptance to WTO, China has started
to open service sectors to foreign providers. Under the WTO agreement,
China will have to let international design firms operate freely in China.
China’s admission to WTO in general, will boost foreign
investment in the tourism and hotel industries, in particular. WTO membership
has also intensified competition not only between Chinese and foreign
firms, but also between Chinese firms. This is one of the major reasons
why foreign designers are retained to work in projects in China on Western
terms. Some residential developers indicated that in order to sell their
projects to consumers, they feel they have to hire U.S. architects because
their competitors have done so. In addition, they have to find better-qualified
foreign architects to beat the competition.
Goo and Zheng shared their valuable experiences operating
in China. Below are some highlights of tips of doing business with
China:
- Be unique with the product or service you provide.
- Clear contracts should have all the terms to clearly
indicate the scope of service and method of payment.
- Personal contact is important. Contracts alone do not
to protect your business agreement
- Knowing your partner can be difficult, but it is necessary.
Establish two-way communication with your customer and business partner.
- Know the culture, but not too much. As Westerners,
we are often told to learn about China’s culture. However, knowing
too much may result in losing your Western identity. WATG’s advice:
if knowing Chinese culture makes you unsure how to conduct business
there, forget about knowing it. Be humble and listen. Don’t rush.
Be firm and stick to your business principles and practice.
- Much has been said about building long-term relationships
in China. But you must survive short-term, if you’re going to
be in business long-term.
- Consider a “cash and carry” policy for
goods and services.
- Be realistic, the China market represents huge potential
and risks. Ask yourself how much risk you are willing to take as you
enter a new market. You don’t have to do it differently from
other new markets. You should also have an exit strategy. If things
turn sour, exit.
- If you decide to enter the China market, you need to
be willing to follow through, since it requires constant attention.
After the briefing, CHEMBAs were treated to a tour of the
design firm. They were all impressed by the many famous and significant
designs done by WATG worldwide.
Since its founding in 1945, WATG has designed and completed
projects in over 150 countries on six continents. One of the most successful
firms in Hawaii doing business in China, WATG’s offices are located
in Honolulu, Newport Beach and Los Angeles, Seattle, Orlando, London,
and Singapore.
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