Mainland firms target European market
Companies moving into France in bid to be 'global players'
About 100 mainland companies have overcome the hurdle of high wages to set up production bases in France, French official Clara Gaymard said yesterday.
The companies planned to use their French base to help them penetrate the European market, the president of the Invest in France Agency said.
'They use [French] trademarks, research and development and marketing strengths to quickly enter the European market. If they just export from China, they can't [be players in] the European market,' she said when facing the press at the end of her fourth visit to the mainland.
'The Chinese players are exporting a lot. It is not enough. If they want to be global players they have to invest. They need to be on site to distribute, to adapt and to innovate according to local tastes.'
Joel Pujol, a vice-president with the French Chamber of Commerce and Industry in China, confirmed the interest in buying European trademarks.
'I've got many Chinese friends looking for trademarks and French friends looking to sell, but the market is not organised,' he said.
Mainland companies spearheading the move to invest in France include TCL International Holdings, which entered a joint venture with Thomson Television, telecommunications firm Huawei, home appliances maker Haier, air-conditioner manufacturer Chunlan, steel manufacturer Baosteel and computer maker Lenovo.
The recent visit of French President Jacques Chirac to the mainland was also expected to accelerate the process of French investment in the country, and Mr Pujol forecast a wave of investment from small and medium-sized companies, especially in the Pearl River Delta.
'Before the WTO [entry], I handled two or three customers a year, and last year that rose to seven. But today I have 18 small and medium-sized companies that are interested in setting up here,' he said.
'The pipe is ready and the pressure is in the pipe,' he said, referring to a strong push by the French government to get more companies to come and invest in the mainland.
The businesses were setting up in small towns like Xiaolan in Zhongshan , where they had direct access to those who understood business, and which offered them a modern lifestyle, good logistics and access to raw materials and labour, Mr Pujol said.
'With the euro and US dollar rates going up, it's so stupid of European companies not to think of China,' he said.
