Wang Jinlong is exactly the kind of person China wants to attract. A graduate of Columbia Law School, he worked for two big US legal firms and then Starbucks, where he headed its international operations.
In the autumn of 2000, he gave up his post at Starbucks and moved here, where he is president of Shanghai Buddies, which he plans to turn into China's biggest chain of convenience stores.
So far, so good. He has opened 502 stores in Shanghai and Wuxi, with sales of 1.1 billion yuan last year, and plans to open a further 150-200 more this year, with sales of up to 1.3-1.4 billion yuan.
But the most memorable event of last year was a week spent at the Shanghai Communist Party school, where he studied the Theory of the Three Represents, the change in party theory introduced by former president Jiang Zemin.
'The week was very useful for me. I learned a lot,' he said. Mr Wang is not a party member and, as an American, cannot apply for membership. But the week was good for both sides. It helped him understand a theory that is baffling to ordinary Chinese but has become the theoretical basis of many policies, and to extend his personal network. 'To do business in China, you must be politically sensitive and understand political economics,' he said.
The party wants to extend its support base to entrepreneurs like Mr Wang who will create wealth and employment over the next 20 years. They are included in the first of the three representatives - 'advanced productive forces'.