Impressions of Wenzhou: People of excellence, land of wisdom (5)

5. Gender equality and the ‘She-economy’

Zhang Huamei (left), is a female business leader and the first registered private business owner in China. (People's Daily Online/He Zhuoyan)

As one of China’s most prominent economic hubs, Wenzhou is also a city that is open to female entrepreneurs, providing them a level playing field with their male counterparts in the business arena.

According to local statistics, in 2008, only 8,638 women registered companies, while the number soared to 59,014 in 2019, accounting for 33.79 percent of total new business owners that year. Currently, there are over 326,000 female business owners in Wenzhou, who have stimulated growth in the so-called “She-economy”, and leading to many business streets and shopping malls with the “Woman power” theme springing up around the city. Female business leaders have also formed their own business unions, helping young women realize their business dreams and pursue their desired careers.

As the first registered private business owner in China, Zhang Huamei, owner of a company that designs and manufactures buttons, noted that Wenzhou’s businesswomen are representatives of modern women in China, fully capable of competing with, and even outperforming, their male counterparts.

“It’s not your gender but your talent that makes you a successful business leader. Women in modern times are equipped with knowledge and a hardworking spirit, and our success and achievements have proven that women are just as good as men, and we can also become prominent business leaders,” she said.