September 24th, 2009

Tomorrow is a very busy day for me. I have more appointments with the directors of marketing for the top five-star hotels in the city. I begin my day in Pudong at 9 AM Grand Hyatt in the famous Jin Mao tower (google it!). Afterwards I visit its even more famous (and taller) neighbor the Park Hyatt in the newly completed World Financial Center (google it!). Then back to Puxi at 12:30 to check out suites and meeting rooms in the Hilton, and lastly I top it all off with an appointment at the Ritz at 2:30. I better not wear heels!

After my appointments are over, I will rush back to Pudong to meet Vivian for her tutoring. It is going well; except for yesterday when she did not bring any of text books with her. Without a reference I found it difficult to remain on track. Feeling uneasy, I decided to switch gears and run some diagnostics. I quickly jotted down math problems, vocabulary words and science terms we’ve previously covered for her to try. Based on her performance I chose the discussion topics on which to focus. Although it can be frustrating at times when her lightbulb simply refuses to turn on, I try not to stress about it too much because my main job is simple: to encourage her to speak English.

From my prompts and prying questions, I am learning a lot about the life of a 12 year old girl! I am also very fortunate because Vivian’s mother is very relaxed. According to the agency who set me up with Vivian, most parents of students are controlling monsters with ridiculous expectations. On the contrary, Vivian’s mother is sweet and even feeds me oranges when I “look hungry,” whatever that means. Speaking of hunger, Sarah Adams said that I look like I have lost ten pounds since this summer. My clothes are looser....I guess it’s because I’ve been so busy and don’t go out as much as I used to! I am literally working my butt off :)

Vivian has her first round of tests coming back next week. I hope she does well and that I can take a little credit.

September 23rd

This week I have been in some sort of a funk. I feel like I am just going through the motions, doing what I am supposed to do, somewhat robotic.

The national holiday, Golden Week, is celebrated the first week in October. During this week most businesses are closed and everyone travels back home to be with family and friends. Most of my own friends are leaving town....going back to the US or to places like Cambodia and Vietnam. A lot of them have already left actually. At first I tried to convince myself that I could simply entertain myself in Shanghai for a week; however, after my last taste of spontaneity I have an appetite for more. I woke up this morning going through the usual routine...reading the news online, eating cereal...buying an airline ticket to Qingdao.

I leave next Wednesday, Sept. 30th and will stay six days. I plan on staying in Qingdao for two days and then spending the rest of the time seeing as much of Shandong province as I can.

I really am looking forward to traveling by myself. I have never done anything like this before. I have already booked a hostel for Qingdao and will be staying in a dorm-style room with three other girls. Besides the typical tourist itinerary, I don’t have any concrete plans, and I like it!

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As for work....my work week this week has lacked structure because I been working outside of the office in Pudong. My task this week to is to find a venue for the IP Scoping Session in January. Initially we were going to host it at the Shanghai Intellectual Property Service Center, which I went to check out in person last week for Jay’s seal of approval. The SIPSC is on the tenth floor of a large building. Guess what is on the the bottom floors? One of Shanghai’s most famous FAKE MARKETS. The irony in this kills me. This government-funded center which serves to assist foreign and local enterprises with their patent, trademarks, and copyrights is located directly above a market that sells only counterfeit goods. Needless to say, I reported to Jay that the famous IP lawyers will not be impressed when they vendors peddle fake Rolexes and Gucci bags on their way to the Scoping Session. He advised me to compare venues at the top hotels in Shanghai where we can host our conference.

So, today and Friday I am meeting with the marketing directors for the Ritz and Grand Hyatt. About as far away as the black market as one can get.....

September 16th: 努力工作

I have been so incredibly busy these past few weeks! As you may or may not know, my internship with KITO will end after three months in November, which will be here before I know it. Although I feel somewhat guilty about looking for other jobs while Mr. Kamen needs my assistance so much, I am not banking on the possibility that he will hire me after this stint of work. Besides, I am not even sure if I would want to work for KITO full time. But that is not to say that my experience here so far has not been rewarding. Everyday I learn something new about doing business in China: whether it’s a minimal thing, such as interpersonal communication and office culture in China, or something much bigger, like developing an understanding for the nature of the Venture Capital industry here, each day brings plenty of learning opportunities.

That said, I terribly miss working in fashion, which is why I am looking forward to attending a Fashion Networking Event at a bar in Shanghai tomorrow night. These events (which are for nearly every industry that falls within the China spectrum) are very frequent. I get invitations on Facebook or via email every week inviting me to attend the latest mixer for Head Hunters, Advertising, Consulting Professionals, etc. In order to take full advantage of this opportunity to expand my fashion network here (which is pretty much non-existent!), I made a spur of the moment decision to get business cards made. Some online research uncovered that most expats get cards made at these high-end places which charge about ten cents per card, not within my entrepreneurial budget. But, luck was on my side. Yesterday I wanted to buy notebook for the little girl I tutor. I rode my bike to this dilapidated, dirty, dark and dingy store about the size of a pantry. When purchasing the the notebook, I casually asked if they made business cards, and sure enough they did. After some squabbling over layout and rudimentary design, I paid 36 RMB (five dollars) for 200 cards. Considering the price and the condition of the store, I am not expecting top-quality, but at least I have something to hand out at the event.

I also spent several hours yesterday sprucing up my fashion blog, Shanghai Style File. I am a little embarrassed that there is so little content on it so far. I have been so busy that I’ve barely had enough time or energy to write about Shanghai fashion. I am disappointed in myself, especially because writing about fashion and documenting and analyzing trends in foreign cultures is my passion! But, now that I feel like I am fully settled into my new schedule and responsibilities here, I feel it will be a whole lot easier to allot time for my blog. I am so excited to start collecting content! It’s a great way for me to meet industry professionals in SH.

In addition to the hours spent on my resume, writing emails to contacts and preparing for the networking event, I tutor a 12 yr-old girl named Vivian Monday through Friday, 5-7pm. I make very good money for a fairly easy job. I usually leave KITO around 3:45 to get to her Mom’s office (the City Bank skyscraper in PuDong). The job is convenient because it is on the same subway line between KITO and my apartment. But, because I leave work a little early, I have to begin work at little early....which means looooong days.

Even though I am exhausted, I am so happy with all of these things I am doing! Last night as I was walking out of the City Bank building, the Pearl Tower shone brightly right in front me. The night was cool and windy, and the Tower’s colorful lights were flashing wildly in some orchestrated dance. Usually I think of the Pearl Tower as some tacky, monstrous phallic copy of the Eiffel Tower, but last night the sight stopped me in my tracks. As I stared in awe, I felt a huge wave of gratitude surge over me, filling me with appreciation for all that I have now and excitement for whatever is to come. Continuing to marvel at the structure, I kept very still, but I was transported back to my desk at Vandy, where the picture of the Pearl Tower was tacked in between my To-Do list and my list of life goals, the first one being:
“1. Get a job and move back to Shanghai....”

August 30th: So, What do you do in Shanghai?

I’m beginning to really like this whole “grown-up” thing. At first I was just trying it on for size, but work suits me well. It feels really damn good to impress my boss, Mr. Kamen. It doesn’t happen easily, but when he approves my work, it only makes me want to push harder.

“What do you do in Shanghai?” is the first question that comes up in conversation here when I am out meeting new people. At first, I didn’t know how to explain my job, but after many explanations I have the report down. “I work for a company called Kito Group, a traditional manufacturing and consulting company based in Connecticut. With the downturn of the economy, my boss has looked toward other venues to make money, which is where I come into the picture. He is trying to tap into the legal consulting service market, offering legal services for Chinese companies who have intellectual property to protect in the US. Kito has partnered up with the largest and most respected law firm in the US which deals with IPR (their clients include Microsoft, Bose, Apple, Proctor and Gamble...). Even though their enormously successful in the US, they have yet to penetrate the Chinese market, and essentially the law firm is going through Kito as an arm to find Chinese companies with precious IPR. If we find the law firm (I’m not allowed to say which one) a client, we get a cut of the legal fees.
While the rest of the Kito’s workforce (two people in the US and three people in Shanghai office) is busy with the manufacturing/consulting business, the market research has fallen on my shoulders.

So, where the heck do I find
a Chinese company
who markets their products in the US
whose products have patents, trademarks, and/or copyrights
who can afford the law-firm’s $500-1000/hour legal fees

This is not an easy task. The way to find Chinese entrepreneurs is to think like one.

China is determined to change its reputation of imitation to INNOVATION. The Chinese government has invested hundreds of millions of dollars in China’s research and development sector, establishing hundreds of state-funded research institutions. After endless hours researching on the internet, I have learned that both domestic and foreign enterprises invest of lot of their own money into these RIs for the latest and greatest intellectual capital. For example, last month the pharmaceutical giant Pfizer pledged $500,000 per year for the next three years to the Shanghai Institute of Biological Sciences. Anyway, I have compiled an exhaustive list and detailed descriptions of these RIs.

Besides research institutions, I am researching China’s largest venture capitalist firms. In October Shanghai is sending me as a representative to a three-day long VC summit in Shanghai where all of the top VC firms in the world are convening. I am really looking forward to that! I am also in contact with various Chambers of Commerce, as well as different business organizations such as Shanghai Entrepreneurs and China Entrepreneurs.
Tomorrow morning (Monday), I am meeting with Shanghai Intellectual Property Association. I’m a little nervous about meeting the head of the department and I don’t know what to expect from Chinese bureaucracy. But I’m a grown-up now, so think I can handle it.