"Entrepreneurship in in Zhejiang Province"

Professsor Jun Jin of  Zhejiang University spoke on 7/24/09 at PSU’s School of Business on “Entrepreneurship in in Zhejiang Province.” (see here for info on province)

Note, before 1980, private or individual businesses were illegal in China. Everything was state run. So, Professor Jin spoke on the development of private enterprises in Zhejiang Province since 1980. Zhejiang Province is located just south of Shanghai on the coast. She presented two models: (1) the Wenzhou model of private enterprises in a free market, and (2) the Yimu model with a larger role for government. Both are cities in Zhejiang. Wenzhou is on the coast. Yumi is inland in the mountains.

Throughout Zhejiang there are transportation and language dialect problems. Much of the province is mountainous. While the Wenzhou dialect, for example, is very difficult, like a foreign language, for Mandarin speakers.

According to Professor Jin, people from Zhejiang are natural business people, found in businesses all over China and the world. They like being “bosses,” have entrepreneurship “in their blood,” and find it easy to learn.