Green and China–Who would know that’s a good business opportunity?
Here’s a creative business idea: pair U.S. and British television producers and an environmentalist with a Chinese documentarian and environmental activists and government official to come up with a television series for the Chinese market funded by U.S. investors.
U.S. production company, Landreth Associates, is working with the Chinese CCTV Economic Movie and Television Center and The International Cultural Exchange Audiovisual Publishing House (an agency of the Chinese Ministry of Culture), on what is to be a weekly documentary television show in China called “Seizing the Moment in China” beginning in the summer of 2008.
Ted Landreth once headed the international news department at CBS News, and other team members include Peter Pagnamenta, who once ran the BBC Current Affairs show as well as John Liu who has produced documentaries on the Chinese environment while living in China for sixteen years. The team feels that the Olympics in China offers a good focus for the Chinese population and the world to consider the extreme challenges China faces, as well as the little known conservation and restoration projects, which are underway.
To me, this production project is one of the most creative green-based businesses I have heard of in 2007. U.S. investors (and I suppose those from any other country) are being offered a share of the profits, based upon profits from sponsors whose messages are targeted to reach over one hundred million in the Chinese audience and many more abroad in an English version of the shows.
If you would like more information, you can contact Michael O’Reilly, a Los Angeles-based lawyer and consultant working for Landreth Associates via email: michael “at” oreilly “dot” net.
Hi Leah,
This is Jason Wang from China and thank you for your attention on China. I have been planning my eco business for a while, but no breakthrough. The business areas i would like to start are:
1. Second hand goods business
2. Baby Toys rental
3. Eco products
Would you please give some your advices and opinions?
Thanks a lot!
Hi Jason,
It is great to know we have readers/contributors half a world away.
The best way to answer your question about which type of business to launch is to do market research in your market area. If you want to have an actual store, the market area might be one city. If it will be an online business, your market might be more distributed geographically but might be somewhat younger and more computer savvy than all of the population.
Think about who might be a customer for the three types of products you mentioned and ask them:
- What are their frustrations or complaints about existing sources of second hand goods, toys or eco products?
- How/where do they buy those types of products now?
- How much would they value being able to rent and return toys? What would encourage them to buy second-hand or eco- products, if they don’t do so now?
You can survey your friends or friends-of-friends. If possible, ask forty people. It won’t be an unbiased sample, but it will be a fairly easy way to conduct market research. If nothing else, this research may help you choose one of the three business opportunities to evaluate in much greater depth.
Good luck to you!
Hi Leah,
Thank you very much for your quick response and good advices.
For these 3 types of business, would you please recommend some companies which have successful stories?
Jason
Hi Jason,
I don’t know the financial status of many companies like you describe, so I couldn’t way which ones are successful.
I think this it is a good question to pose in the Green Options Media discussion forum:
http://discuss.greenoptions.com/index.php
There are a lot of eco-informed readers in this blog network that might have some insights to share.
Leah
Hi Leah,
Thank you! I will do what you suggest and will share with you my progress in the future.
Keep in touch!
Jason