By Liu Lingling, Bai Ziwei, Liu Junguo, People’s Daily
Yiwu, a city in east China’s Zhejiang province，is neither a coastal hub nor a border town. Yet it has built a trade network that reaches across the globe. Today, the city is home to more than 10,000 foreign-invested businesses and around 38,000 foreign merchants who live and work there.
People’s Daily reporters recently visited Yiwu to meet foreign entrepreneurs who have built successful businesses and settled down in the city. They shared stories of growing alongside Yiwu and becoming part of its remarkable transformation.
“I wouldn’t be where I am today without Yiwu,” said Senegalese businessman Sourakhata Tirera, a sentiment he often expresses. He first came to Yiwu in 2003 to source hardware products and was immediately impressed by the Yiwu International Trade Market. He noted, “If you can’t find something here, it’s probabaly because you haven’t searched carefully enough.”
In 2007, Tirera opened a foreign trade agency in Yiwu. In 2012, leveraging Yiwu’s comprehensive foreign trade pilot reform project, he established a wholly foreign-owned trading company. Today, his company ships 200 to 300 containers every month, dealing in more than 1,000 product categories and providing one-stop sourcing services for clients across Africa.
“Everyone is fascinated by Yiwu because it’s a plcae full of opportunities. Things that once seemed impossible can become reality here,” Tirera told People’s Daily after he finished receiving a trade delegation from Gabon.
Yemeni businessman Maged Mohammed Ali Al-Huraibi came to Yiwu alone in 2008 to pursue his entrepreneurial dream and founded a cosmetics trading company. In 2024, Yiwu launched a one-stop entrepreneurship service for foreign talent, offering factory leasing, policy consultation, and talent recruitment. Seizing the opportunity, Al-Huraibi invested in a cosmetics factory early that year, successfully transitioning from trader to manufacturer.
“Yiwu made my entrepreneurial dream come true. Now I want to bring cosmetics made in Yiwu to even more countries and regions around the world,” Al-Huraibi said.
Yiwu’s success is not simply about gathering products. More importantly, it comes from the city’s ability to create what the market needs — pioneering new approaches where none exist and forging new paths through continuous exploration.
Nepalese businessman Khadka Raj Kumar first came to Yiwu in 2002. In 2011, Yiwu pioneered a dual-track system for representative offices and foreign-invested business entities, addressing
Foreign and local residents celebrate a traditional Chinese festival together in Jimingshan community, Yiwu, east China’s Zhejiang province. (Photo/Lyu Bin)
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