Outside of learning the ropes of starting a WOFE, Enrico is now fully competent in spoken Chinese. An amazing feet indeed considering he never took an official class! His top tips for learning Chinese from scratch are to get a smart phone and use Wechat. In short order chatting with friends will expand vocab and help with character recognition. In addition, based on one’s hobby dive into the local scene making friends along the way. Enrico stresses, being proficient in Chinese is mandatory, not simply for communication or convenience while living in China, such as to buy cheap stuff online at Taobao. Instead, mastering Chinese is the key to unlocking the “real China”, which includes being able make close local friends and truly understand the culture.

A few other top tips from Enrico include being sure the location you rent will meet all local requirements before signing the lease! Outside of the initial capital for investment in the company (this amount needs to be discussed with the district’s department of commerce) he advises expats to have at least 20,000 RMB for use while the business is being opened. In addition, even the most basic of business setups can easily require around 10,000 RMB/month to run. Last but not least, be ready for hassle in terms of preparing paperwork. Remember, everything will be in Chinese and it’s a totally different legal system. For him, the most challenging task was getting his passport authenticated. It required significant time and travel, including a trip to Bologna, then to the Chinese embassy in Milan before finally returning to Tianjin. That being said, none of this has dampened Enrico’s enthusiasm for enterprise. He looks forward to growing the new business and expanding into importation. JIN thanks Enrico for his time and valuable insights.