Slice of Bay life at Shanghai expo

The Shanghai Expo is a chance for Bay businesses to improve relationships, both in China and at home.
Hawke's Bay week starts Friday and runs until August 18. It coincides with the expo's Oceania Month and Chinese Valentine's Day.
Future Products Group managing director Robert Darroch said as a small region Hawke's Bay companies were used to competing against their neighbours, but with a population of 40 million in Shanghai and nearby cities they were working together to bring some of them to the region.
"Other Hawke's Bay businesses are not the competition," he said.
"The rest of New Zealand and the world is the competition. We need to pull together and present a really cohesive picture of the region."
The expo was not a trade show, where companies showed examples of their products and work, it was a chance to network, entertain clients and strengthen relationships.
"In China a good relationship comes first and business second," Mr Darroch said. "We'll get better traction there if we build a better relationship."
Mr Darroch will host the Specialised Manufacturing Function on Monday.
Each day of Hawke's Bay week had a specific theme, from local government to wine and food, manufacturing to education.
Every idea Venture Hawke's Bay had initiated had been "spot on" he said, with the timing for Valentine's Day and the themed days.
 "Venture really made this possible and it's a huge opportunity for Hawke's Bay," Mr Darroch said.
"I think there was a lack of vision by some people in the region when they started this project."
A DVD of the region showed not only tourist destinations, scenery and wineries, but also pieces of real life including schools, sport and shopping.
 They wanted to show guests the lifestyle, and hoped they would want to come and experience it for themselves, he said.
Bringing business from China would potentially affect almost every person in Hawke's Bay as it could increase exports and tourism.
"We need to figure out how to leverage off this and realise that the Chinese market is massive," Mr Darroch said. "If we can bring just a fraction of that business to Hawke's Bay it will be huge for a region of our size."
Shanghai Expo 2010 regional planner Janet Takarangi said the organisation had started thinking about the expo in 2008 and had been asked why they wanted to go to China.
"In those two years the Chinese market has grown to be our biggest export market other than Australia," she said. "It was hard to sell the vision so it was great to work with businesses who have the commitment to Shanghai and the expo themselves."
Selini business development manager Nigel Avery flew to Shanghai on Friday and said it was an opportunity to entertain the company's distributors in a New Zealand setting.
"It's almost like taking your customers and their customers to New Zealand for a day," he said.
Mr Avery would be hosting a Selini function on August 11, as well as the Wine and Food Day on August 15.
The focus was on the long term benefits, he said.
"You can't expect to sign up new business every time you travel," Mr Avery said.
 "Personal relationships are an important part of doing business in China."