Yiwu is a city "built on a market." The latest data shows that after 20 years of development, the total number of market entities in Yiwu has achieved a leapfrog growth, surpassing 1.28 million, ranking first among county-level regions nationwide. Calculated based on the resident population, this means that approximately one in every two people in Yiwu is engaged in commercial or trade-related activities. Among them are the bold and pioneering first-generation market traders, "foreign bosses" of diverse skin colors, and innovative "second-generation merchants" adept at seeking change. Countless fervent entrepreneurial dreams have been realized on this remarkable land, writing numerous simple yet moving stories of wealth creation and contributing to the city's legendary status.
Market Transformation: The Leap from "Exchanging Chicken Feathers for Candy" to "Trading Globally" Located in central Zhejiang Province, Yiwu is neither coastal nor border-adjacent. In the 1980s, due to poor land quality, many daring Yiwu residents, risking accusations of "speculation," roamed the streets with rattle-drums, exchanging chicken feathers for candy. These "goods-carrying peddlers" were among the earliest pioneers. In 1982, Yiwu announced the opening of its market. After breaking free from constraints, the Yiwu market developed rapidly, undergoing "six relocations, twelve expansions, and five generational leaps." It now gathers 2.1 million individual products across 26 major categories, selling well in over 200 countries and regions worldwide.
Walking into the Yiwu Yinhe Telecommunication Equipment Store in the market's second district, the person in charge, Wang Guotian, pulls out a stack of shipping documents from a drawer. "These are for South Africa, these for Colombia; we ship every day and never worry about a lack of business." Over thirty years ago, he earned his first pot of gold by renting a one-meter stall in Yiwu's fourth-generation market, the Huangyuan Market. In 2001, when China formally joined the World Trade Organization (WTO), Wang Guotian keenly observed an increasing presence of foreigners in the market and seized the business opportunity to venture into foreign trade. Today, his "circle of friends" has expanded, with products reaching as far as South America. "Some old clients have passed the baton, and their next generation still sources goods from me. Foreigners trust Yiwu because the Yiwu market has the most complete range of goods, and Yiwu bosses are also trustworthy."
The thriving Yiwu market continues to attract more people to come and start businesses or seek fortunes. Meanwhile, the Yiwu government has opened wide avenues, simplifying approval processes, reducing startup costs, and providing entrepreneurial guidance, enabling those with ideas and courage to enter the market unburdened, realizing the vision of "everyone can start a business, and commerce can happen everywhere." For instance, in 2013, Yiwu took the lead nationwide in launching two rounds of business system reforms, with measures like "license before permit" and "registered capital subscription system" leading the country, resulting in an "explosive" growth in the total number of market entities. It took Yiwu nearly 30 years to go from 0 to its first 100,000 market entities. By December 2006, the total number had surpassed 100,000; today, this figure has jumped to 1.28 million, ranking first among county-level regions nationwide.
Industrial Transformation: The Metamorphosis from "Processing and Manufacturing" to "Intelligent Quality Manufacturing" After 20 years of development, some now compare the Yiwu market to a wishing well: from the "Crying Horse" doll to the "palm-sized sun hat," once an idea sparks online, Yiwu can immediately mass-produce it. Behind this lies the rapid response and efficient implementation of the local supply chain. At Zhejiang Gaopu Apparel Co., Ltd., a hat takes only three hours from production and sewing to finished product packaging, a process that used to take three days. This "Yiwu speed" also amazed procurement agent Hanoratgen from South Africa: "We only requested a specific hat design yesterday, sent reference photos, and by this morning when we arrived at the factory, the sample was already ready. This allows us to bring products to market much faster."
The extreme improvement in efficiency is inseparable from the digital transformation of factory production lines. "Building a digital intelligent factory requires high investment, but we hope to explore a model for industry transformation," said Zhu Zhihui, the person in charge of Zhejiang Gaopu Apparel Co., Ltd. Zhu Zhihui has been deeply involved in Yiwu's hat industry for over thirty years. Reflecting on the industry's past, he expressed deep sentiment: in the early years, the industry was mired in a quagmire of low-price internal competition, with rampant copying and imitation, which once led to Yiwu's small commodities being labeled as cheap and low-end in overseas markets. This has also made more and more Yiwu enterprises realize they must break free from homogeneous competition and seek transformation for a breakthrough.
In recent years, Zhejiang Gaopu Apparel has seized the trend of lightweight outdoor consumption, independently developing new seamless hats. The products are lightweight, simple, and comfortable to wear, quickly becoming popular and best-sellers upon launch. This year, under the guidance of the Yiwu Market Supervision Bureau, the company also took the lead in formulating the "Woven Seamless Hats" industry standard and invested 130 million yuan to build a digital intelligent future factory. The growth trajectory of Gaopu Apparel is a benchmark example of Yiwu's industrial upgrading. Over the past 20 years, Yiwu's market entities have transitioned from "OEM and contract manufacturing" to "independent innovation," from "price competition" to "value creation," achieving a shift from "manufacturing" to "quality manufacturing."
A relevant official from the Yiwu Market Supervision Bureau stated that in recent years, the bureau has actively guided industry associations, chambers of commerce, and other entities to develop standards, using standards to lead market regulation and empower industrial upgrading. Currently, Yiwu enterprises have led or participated in formulating 11 international standards, 431 national standards, 328 industry standards, and 127 small commodity group standards. These standards have also been released in foreign language versions such as English and Arabic, injecting new momentum for Yiwu's small commodities to "ride the wind and waves" in the international business sea.
Openness Transformation: The Rise from an "Inland Small County" to a "World Supermarket" Among Yiwu's entrepreneurial army, there is also a special group of "foreign bosses." They come from all corners of the world, with different skin colors, yet gather in Yiwu, taking root, establishing businesses, and pursuing their dreams. Ali Kamran from Pakistan (referred to as Ali) is one of them. Today, he has not only settled his family in Yiwu but also opened two companies.
Ali said he initially came to Yiwu to study. Unexpectedly, when fellow countrymen heard he was in Yiwu, his phone instantly became a "consultation hotline," with some asking him to help source goods, and others inquiring about business opportunities. As more and more people approached him, Ali thought of simply opening a business consulting company. Initially, Ali was somewhat worried, concerned that the procedures for foreigners to apply for a business license might be too cumbersome. To his surprise, he submitted the materials in the morning and received the license in the afternoon, becoming Yiwu's 10,000th foreign-funded market entity. "In Yiwu, starting a business is as easy as shopping at the market!" Ali used this joke to express his genuine feelings about taking root in Yiwu.
This is a microcosm. As a city that has prospered through commerce and grown strong through reform, Yiwu has always adhered to the philosophy that "when market entities do well, Yiwu does well; when Yiwu does well, market entities will do even better." It continuously deepens reforms, accelerating the creation of entrepreneurial fertile ground with "low" market entry barriers, "minimal" institutional costs, and an "excellent" business environment. In 2009, Yiwu became the first county-level city nationwide authorized to register permanent representative offices of foreign enterprises; in 2020, it took the lead in implementing government-purchased services for translating foreign language materials, effectively reducing the burden on foreign investment and entrepreneurship, benefiting over 26,000 foreign businessmen; by 2025, it aims to achieve full online processing for the establishment and registration of foreign-funded enterprises. To date, Yiwu has 11,700 foreign-funded market entities, with investment sources covering over 160 countries and regions across six continents.
Today in Yiwu, Jordanian businessman Mohammed runs the three-story Baiti Restaurant, filling Yiwu's streets with the aroma of over 300 Middle Eastern dishes; Nepalese businessman Bishnu has been deeply involved in export trade for over twenty years, bringing affordable and high-quality Yiwu small commodities to all corners of the world... These "foreign bosses" with different skin colors and speaking different languages, alongside local merchants, are continuing to write new Yiwu miracles.