Private Sector Industrialization in China: Evidence from Wenzhou

The purpose of this study to help shed light on the entrepreneurship, entrepreneurs and enterprise growth in Wenzhou. The study is done by relying on a probabilistic firm survey that we carried out in Wenzhou in early 2006 for three industries: shoes, eyeglasses and general equipment. Not a field-based formal survey, but also informal questions which helps us to enrich the story. The survey was focused on getting detailed firm histories to learn about how the firms started and grew. The study was done by focusing on the origins of the firms, including prior firms that may have been antecedents. Information was collected on whom the founders were, how many, their relationships with each other, and their background in terms of experience and other human capital. Detailed information was collected on how they financed their start, and how they financed their expansion. Detailed information on the sources of technology into the firms, particularly whether it was Chinese or imported and whether the firms were getting technical instructions from foreign firms they may have been exporting to. Detailed information on markets, especially how markets and how export markets were found. Information was also collected about explicit assistance that came from governments, local and/or central. Workers at each firm: managers, skilled workers such as designers, and production workers were interviewed.