An exhibitor (L) talks with visitors during a matchmaking meeting for the 7th China International Import Expo (CIIE) in Shanghai, east China, July 24, 2024. [Photo/Xinhua]

The robust demand of the Chinese market and the improving business environment in the country make China a big growth opportunity for companies wishing to further expand their operations, said corporates that have registered to participate at this year's China International Import Expo.

The seventh edition of the annual CIIE, to be held in Shanghai from Nov 5 to 10, will start its 100-day countdown on Saturday.

With more than 360,000 square meters of exhibition area already signed up, this year's CIIE will see some new participants, said Sun Chenghai, deputy director-general of the CIIE Bureau, the expo's organizer, during a news conference on Wednesday.

Japanese trading company Mitsubishi Corp, US material provider Invista, French transportation company Alstom, Ireland-based auto technology supplier Aptiv and New Zealand's beauty nutritional drink brand Tracel Health will all make their CIIE debut this year.

Special demonstration areas will be set up for the first time to showcase the progress made by companies specializing in new materials, autopilot technology, low-altitude economy and energy storage for cars, said Sun.

Charlie Wang, chief marketing officer of Tracel Health, said: "In recent years, we saw demand in the Chinese market for healthcare products. Female consumers' demand for oral products is continuously growing. Sales of our products exceeded 5 million yuan ($687,132) in the first month after their debut on Tmall Global (the cross-border e-commerce site of Alibaba Group) in late May, topping its category. Through the CIIE, we hope more consumers will get to know the brand."

Shanghai-based discount grocery retailer HotMaxx will also exhibit at the CIIE for the first time this year as a buyer. According to the company's co-founder Nick Zhang, the CIIE serves as an important platform via which Chinese companies and consumers can understand "the progress being made elsewhere in the world".

Zhang said: "A large number of the products sold in our stores have just entered the Chinese markets, receiving recognition among Chinese consumers unexpectedly. We look forward to partnering with the CIIE exhibitors to see more innovative products and hope to come back in every edition."

French beauty giant L'Oreal has attended all the past six editions of the CIIE. It has introduced more than 20 new brands into the Chinese market via the expo, making up the majority of the 31 brands that the company has launched in China so far. A new air dryer featuring the application of infrared rays and higher efficiency will debut at this year's show.

More importantly, L'Oreal has expanded its footprint in China by announcing increased investments at the CIIE.

In May 2022, L'Oreal set up Shanghai Meicifang Investment, its first investment company in China. Four months later, Meicifang made its first investment move by picking up minority stakes in Chinese fragrance brand Documents and biotech company Shenzhen Shinehigh. In February, L'Oreal acquired a minority stake in To Summer, a local premium fragrance brand.

"It is all because of the huge market demand and growth potential of the Chinese market", said Lan Zhenzhen, president of public affairs at L'Oreal North Asia and China.

According to Sun of the CIIE Bureau, over 150 companies will participate for the seventh consecutive year at the upcoming CIIE. New Zealand dairy giant Fonterra is one of them.

Fonterra's Shanghai innovation center started operations in 2020.Its Wuhan application center, the sixth of its kind in China, broke ground in May and is scheduled to start operations in September, according to Justin Dai, vice-president of Fonterra Greater China.

Zhu Min, director of the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, said CIIE exhibitors have expanded their operations in China. Danish building-block toy company Lego, which has attended all the previous six editions, has seen the first phase of its Legoland theme park in Shanghai taking shape. Swiss dental implant company Straumann Group, which attended the fourth edition, is expected to see the first phase of its implant project in central Shanghai go operational in 2025.

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