Deepening reform and opening-up, innovative tech ecosystem, and astonishing（令人震惊的） success of domestic startups（初创企业） inspire foreigners in China to unleash（释放企业能量） their entrepreneurial energies
Editor's Note: There is an old Chinese saying that a coward（懦夫） can't be an entrepreneur. Potential big rewards go hand in hand with risk. If you try and fail, at least you will have learnt something. As it transpires（表明）, many foreigners in China who started up are not only learning but earning rich experiences and fat（丰厚的利润） profits too. They, like their Chinese counterparts, would testify（证明） that the People's Republic of China has come a long way since its founding 70 years back, and turned a corner over the last 40 years, on the back of reform and opening-up. Business environment has improved, and so has the ease（舒适） of doing business in China, thanks in no small measure to（极大归功于） the advent of cutting-edge technologies developed domestically. Your newspaper records 11 success stories of foreigner-founded businesses in China, spanning（涵盖） a range of sectors or segments: manufacturing, public relations, outdoor products, beer, fitness, food, catering, human resources and tea. Based on exclusive（独家访谈） interviews conducted by China Daily's reporters, these real-life stories capture（描述） the essence of China's technology juggernaut（强大力量） - no matter which industry you choose to excel（卓越） in, China is the place to be in, if you are a global entrepreneur. This special package is as much a tribute（纪念） to the gutsy（有勇气的） foreign business people succeeding in China as it is a wake-up call for the hesitant（犹豫的） others to boldly take the entrepreneurial plunge.
New, fit model for the millennials（适合千禧一代的新模式）
Matthew Allison believes that by creating a "third place" that can combine fitness and entertainment, millennials, or the younger generation, would be able to lead healthier, positive and socially vibrant（充满活力的） lives.
So he went ahead and created Space, an active-lifestyle firm that operates premium boutique（优质精品） fitness studios.
Many young people, he said, face the challenge of balancing a demanding work schedule with healthy lifestyles. "Howard Schultz aimed to make Starbucks the 'third place' in people's lives (the first place being home and the second workplace)."
In the 1980s, Allison found that many young people in China were seeking their "third place" in public spaces to stay healthy and fit.
He came to China in 1997 from the United States and launched Sony Music's operations. He then decided to focus on health and wellness（健身）. He began by setting up yoga studios. He founded Space Yoga in 2005. His vision was to build fitness centers but with music as a central theme.
Space, then known as SpaceCycle, launched its first community in Beijing in 2016. Since then, it has opened three new locations across Shanghai and Beijing. It is now working with Alibaba Group, the lead investor in the B round of funding, to expand further and has found the business environment in China encouraging.
"The wellness market in China is developing faster than anywhere else in the world. There are a growing number of millennials who are focused on leading healthier and more positive lives.
"They are moving into cities with the challenge of how to do that in exciting, meaningful and social ways. Therefore, we are building a new business model in China that is, in many ways, ahead of what is happening in the US or Europe and we're building it for very connected（有联系的） millennials," said Allison.
"As we go forward, there are many other Chinese cities that I am interested to explore. I've always loved Chengdu and am fascinated by what's happening in Shenzhen," he said.
Feeding energy to outdoor activities
Unlike many foreigners who prefer living and working in China's top-tier cities so they could be closer to businesses, art shows and global food options, Dan Siekman, from the United States, chose Kunming, Yunnan province, Southwest China.
There, he found a sweet spot that balances his life and work perfectly.
The 35-year-old is one of the three American owners of Dali Bar Natural Energy Foods, a Kunming-based company that produces premium（优质的） food products for sports and outdoor activity lovers.
He said culturally, geographically and ecologically, Yunnan is perhaps China's most diverse（多元的） province. Its fine weather generates（创造了） plenty of opportunities for recreational cycling, hiking, rock climbing and other outdoor activities.
"Overall, my perception is that China is rapidly turning into a more mature economy. This means there are fewer opportunities to introduce entirely new types of goods and services," said Siekman.
The costs of starting a business, as well as the costs of marketing and promotion, have also risen greatly as wages have risen. There is more competition from more companies within each industry, he said.
With China's business environment maturing and amid continued government reforms, foreign companies in China are benefiting through joint ventures（合资） and wholly foreign-owned enterprises.
As China's technology industry is unveiling（推出） world-leading new products, and as consumers grow more sophisticated（消费者偏好更为复杂） in their preferences and understanding of everyday products and services, the country offers a major contrast to the US. Things can change very quickly and companies of all sizes must be ready to adapt quickly to new trends and adopt new tools, Siekman said.
For example, China had essentially no e-commerce 20 years ago. Now, China has become home to many e-commerce giants. There are thousands of potential channels to sell through.
"Because we are a food seller, we always assumed that brick-and-mortar retail（实体店） would be our strongest driver of sales. But, in fact, online sales are growing at a much faster rate than offline," said Siekman.
