Tina Damsgard is a Co-Founder of Little Mermaid; a Danish branch of the Danish hot-dog company “Trosborg Event”. The start-up company is currently working on establishing hot-dog shops in prime locations around Shanghai to build their brand on the Chinese market. Little Mermaid is currently using Scandic Sourcing’s Business Support Office to handle their administrative needs in the start-up process in China.
Why did you decide to go to China?
I wrote my master’s thesis about cost-efficient business solutions in China. I visited Beijing, Shanghai and Qingdao, and saw the potential of entering this booming consumer market.
Why did you choose Scandic Sourcing?
I came into contact with Per Linden (the CEO of Scandic Sourcing) during an event in Shanghai and we started talking about my company and our start-up in China. He told me about Scandic Sourcing’s Business Support Office services and it seemed like a great solution to getting started fast in China. We found that it was the most cost-efficient solution for start-ups where you could get all the fundamental things our company needed for a fair price.
What services did Scandic Sourcing offer?
We use Scandic Sourcing’s Business Support Office service for HR services, Back Office, administration, office space and recruiting.
How would you describe your experience with using Scandic Sourcing’s start-up services?
One of the best things was that when we arrived in Shanghai we immediately came to an office where there were people that we could ask about specific issues relating to China. Entering the Chinese market as a young entrepreneur can be a daunting task, and it was quite comforting to have other people around at an office to talk to and to ask questions and get advice. The expat community in Shanghai is very helpful; but you definitely need a base when you arrive to start from somewhere, and Scandic Sourcing provided that.
What is your advice to others who are thinking about going to China?
I guess you can read too much literature about China before coming here, and that can lead to making too many assumptions beforehand. I actually suffered from that a bit because I wrote my thesis about cost-efficient business solutions in China, so I studied a lot about Chinese business; also in terms of social behavior etc., so I was a little colored by my own presumptions before coming here. I think it’s good to have some basic knowledge of do’s and don’ts in China but still arrive here with an open mind and make up your own opinion rather than base it on sometimes subjective and outdated information.
Patience is also an important trait to have in China, because most things have a tendency to take a bit longer than what might be expected. It’s also important to be super clear with instructions and the use of wording; maybe words have a different significance in China than in the West – making too many assumptions and wording things abstractly could lead to misunderstandings.
For more information about Scandic Sourcing's Services: Read more about our Business Support Office here.