Xi'an brand visibility growing

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Concentration of startups. multinational firms a sign of city's newfound clout, Ed Zhang reports

In a large country like China, businesses are sometimes faced the tough question as to where to locate themselves. Must they, for instance, go to big, crowded and expensive cities like Beijing and Shanghai, or even move abroad? Is it essential for them to be based in coastal cities close to some major port facilities?

Not necessarily, according to the experience of John Xuz and Peter Zhou, two electronics engineers heading small but competitive computer chip companies in the ancient city of Xi’an. Neither is a native of the city, but both companies are headquartered in the Xi’an Hi-Tech Zone, an investment park that hosts around 18,000 companies, according to its administrative committee.

Most of the companies there are small and privately owned. But international giants, like Samsung and Micron, a US –headquartered semi-conductor company, also have production or R&D bases there.

They have been recently joined by large Chinese companies, most noticeably Huawei and ZTE.

Xuz is a native of Wuxi, a lakeside city in the Yangtze Delta, and a long-time resident of Canada. He is CEO of Xi’an Tianxin Electronic Science Technology Co Ltd.

Peter Zhou, grew up in Zhejiang, a south-eastern coastal province, before he obtained his doctorate in the United States. He is chairman of Xi’an HuaXun Microelectronics Inc.

Why did they choose Xi’an? Xuz’s reason seems simple: “My wife is from the Xi’an area, and I also have friends here.” But that still may not be the sufficient reason for him to give up his comfortable life in Canada.

“I can feel more useful now that the products from my company are proving competitive on the market – even at a time when profit margins are being squeezed by a cheaper Japanese yen and a more expensive Chinese yuan,” he said. “We have large orders from major clients.”

Xuz’ company makes chips for automobile central control systems and various vehicle equipment.

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