The "New" American In China.
Very interesting article in Esquire Magazine, entitled, "The New American" and subtitled, "Young entrepreneurial Americans are doing something they have not done much before. They are leaving. And even more than our government, our military, or our movies, they are expanding American influence in the world. Even in a crazy place like Shanghai." (h/t to All Roads)
The article is about Barrett Comiskey of the Nicobar Group, (full disclosure: Nicobar is a long-time client of my firm) and how he and his company have adapted so well to China. The article does a great job conveying Shanghai's excitement (both good and bad) and explaining why so many young Americans/Westerners are going there to make their mark.
It's Esquire Magazine and it makes for a great read.
Comments (12)
Read through and enter the discussion by using the form at the endGlenn Tiffert - October 9, 2008 10:24 AM
"something they have not done much before"?????
Um, does anyone remember Prague in the early 90s, London after the Big Bang, the list goes on...
Alex - October 10, 2008 12:32 AM
This was an entertaining anecdote made even more enjoyable by the author randomly hyperventilating and shooting off on bizarre tangents
'She has seen how Americans react to Chinese mistakes. She has had Americans treat her and her friends like Jawas, as something less than human.'
Jawas? What the hell?
Greg - October 10, 2008 12:43 AM
The vigor and optimism of youth is often tempered by the cold hard facts of local life. One must consider that many of these younger entrepreneurs are trust funders and trust funds are being vaporized by the global stock market collapse.
Arch Angle - October 10, 2008 2:47 AM
Typical article about the "types" of people who come to Shanghai; shallow stereotypes of those found in the tourist zones, lacking true depth and insight into the diversity of people and purposes for coming to Shanghai. I've read these types in lots of travelogues, which always seem to talk about the same old landmarks.
I know quite a few teachers who make these businesspeople look like fresh meat by comparison - and they don't get swindled by hookers by looking like lost sheep in Wolftown. And they don't pay 200 RMB cab fare for a 10 RMB distance. And they actually do make a miniscule cultural difference, living with and among the locals, weathering the street level racism, unlike the business people who overestimate their importance in the locals' eyes and who offer little beyond money.
So pardon me if I'm not particularly impressed by some misty-eyed tourist claptrap by someone who believes they understand Shanghai from behind a glass. They haven't begun to know where they are or what they are doing so long as their analysis consists mainly of descriptions of Potemkin.
It's these types that make the locals think all foreigners are suckers. Watch! Massage! DVD! You know who's subsidizing it.
sascha - October 10, 2008 1:37 PM
All of the above comments are true and i suppose I am just putting my 182lbs behind them. This was written by someone who knows nothing about China and dealt with a company that probably has a vanguard of young, Chinese translators doing their dirty work for them.
BUT
everyone has to start somewhere. I remember getting swindled hard-core when i first got to china, but those days are long gone. Its called learning the language.
And just for poos and laughs, I have NEVER been cheated by a cabbie in China in 10 years. In fact, they are my favorite guys to talk to. They usually have a very candid perspective on their homeland.
Bourgogne - October 10, 2008 6:41 PM
Those tiny factories in SW Shanghai are indeed another world. They are dark, dirty and nearly impossible to find via taxi. Hengshan road has its place amoung the newly arrived in Shanghai. I liked the restaurant Simply Thai and Paul for their croissants.
I gave Shanghai a go in 2007, made some $$, learned a few things, made some contacts and friends, but things change quickly and the globalised world provides opportunities that keep us on the move.
$$ is slavery in many cases. That Esq. guy is now making plastic rulers...knowing what those factories look like, sounds like slavery to me.
Greg - October 10, 2008 8:31 PM
@ sascha
"I have NEVER been cheated by a cabbie in China in 10 years."
Ironically, the only time I got cheated by a cabbie was with a Shanghainese person riding with me. Good thing for the driver that plastic shield was installed.
Scott Loar - October 10, 2008 11:38 PM
Hey, how'd this guy learn Mandarin so quickly? As to difficulty Mandarin is on a par with English and needs years of formal study; like intelligible, competent English it's not a language you casually pick up at the market or by ordering beer from the locals no matter how impressive a few phrases may seem to a writer just blown into town.
Yes, there are Westerners literate in Mandarin; no, they didn't get that way by just being here.
JL - October 11, 2008 3:37 PM
Like Arch Angle, I find the cheap shots directed at teachers and people interested in Buddhism grating and arrogant. Someone who wants to know about a system of thought that has had an enormous influence on China (and still does) must be a 'hippy', and therefore hasn't noticed Chinese capitalism? Yeah, whatever. Why do articles promoting individual expats (or particular forms of expat) so often tend to disparage other groups of expat?
Bill - October 12, 2008 10:39 PM
I lived in China for six years (Shanghai for four), and became fluent in Mandarin...etc. Overall, I think the article was pretty good. It tried to capture a time and place using one individual as a backdrop. Of course there are a few phrases and ideas that one could take issue with, but, overall, it did probably capture a certain moment, in a certain city, and a certain type of idealism that many young Americans (across many sectors) have.
Audall - October 13, 2008 7:18 AM
This article was a very interesting read for me. I am in a similar boat as the main subject. I am relatively young and started a value-added sourcing services business a few years ago, and have been dealing with manufacturers in China in this capacity over the last 4 years or so (my partner has approximately 30 years of experience doing this).
Given the article's portrayal, it seems that most of what this guy and his firm do is deal with fire-fighting problems that come up. My guess is that this is pretty accurate. There isn't a ton of rocket science behind getting products manufactured successfully. One of the most important elements is diligently checking in on vendors and projects and dealing with unforeseen issues as they arise. Often, one of the largest value-adds of a guy over there on the ground like this is, exactly that--he's on the ground for his clients.
The article's attempts to dramatize all this were a bit laughable in my opinion. Calling over to female staff and soothingly touching their hands and saying something that brings a smile despite the huge $100k error that had just been made. Or, "Get out right now! Get out of there--just run...!" Really?!
All in all, it's nice to read about someone in a similar situation as I. He may be working on some cool projects, but he's still doing ruler projects--which tells me that he's taking what he can get at this point to build his business (or just doing a client a big favor to work on a project like this). That's ok. I think all of us that are young and in this for the long haul realize that we've got to start somewhere and build. For those who stick, it will pay off.
Scott Loar - October 14, 2008 4:46 AM
I still can't let this piece of nonsense pass:
"She has seen how Americans react to Chinese mistakes. She has had Americans treat her and her friends like Jawas, as something less than human"
which is directly contradicted here in this very blog, http://www.chinalawblog.com/2008/10/ten_rules_for_negotiating_in_c.html
If anything Westerners in general but Americans in particular try to be so culturally sensitive and attuned they often suspend common sense and commercial experience accomodating perceived Chinese "face", and the worst of these are the least experienced of China like... well, like the writer who can write the quoted nonsense without reflection.