He gives the example of applying for a Chinese driver’s license after handing in a written application three times. For two years, Hata Norio was busy handling all kinds of affairs so he needed a Chinese driver’s license but it took him three applications to finally acquire one. Because of his Chinese-looking name and his fluent Chinese, the nationality of his license was mistaken as Chinese. Now at the age of 75, Hata Norio still uses this special license to travel around the city.

Hata Norio has always been grateful for all the support that Shanghai gave him in the hard times of starting the company. With help from the association of foreign investment, the Minhang United Development Company lent them a telephone line, solving the pressing issue of communication with the headquarters in Japan. In addition, they also enjoyed tax free benefits. Hata says, “The Shanghai government carried out many favorable policies to support foreign investment, facilitating many foreign investment companies to expand investment, enlarge company size and attract batches of foreign invested processing companies.”

In the meantime, Hata Norio and his enterprise also contributed a lot to Shanghai’s business attractiveness and fund raising. Due to his determination and efforts, the funds his company raised were used highly effectively in the very first year of fundraising, making his company a legend among Sino-Japanese companies. This case became a best practice for the municipal government to attract more businesses.

(For the interview, Hata Norio takes out many materials about Sino-Japanese friendship that he has collected over the years.)