[gjkood]

If you are a hardware entrepreneur there may be better options than trying to set up in the USA.

Try setting up shop in Shenzhen, China. Just spent a week over there. It is truly a Hacker's Paradise.

You can validate your ideas and get an MVP out in much faster time than the USA. You can be close to your eventual supply chain when you do make it big. It may sound a bit like premature optimization but the advantages are huge.

Of course, it will not hurt to learn a bit of Chinese (Mandarin) if you do decide to take that route. At least start with a few useful phrases to help break the ice. 'Ni Hao' (Hello); 'Xie Xie' (Thank You) and 'Duo Shuo Qian' (How much does it cost?). Learning the number system will also help know what the price is.

I spent a lot of time in the Huaqiang Bei and LoWu malls.

A special shoutout to Andrew "Bunnie" Huang for his 'The Essential Guide to Electronics in Shenzhen'[1]. It was invaluable.

Another shoutout to my Mandarin teacher Larry Xue and the San Jose Learning Center.[2] Attending his classes made me so much more confident that I could manage there even with the language barrier.

1. https://www.crowdsupply.com/sutajio-kosagi/the-essential-gui...

2. http://sanjoselearningcenter.com/mandarin.php

[toephu2]

And let me guess, you went over on a 30-day (or 60 or 90 max) tourist visa? Try getting a Chinese work visa from a startup (or one you found). USCIS's new rule proposal allows entrepreneurs to stay legally in the U.S. an initial 2 years.

[gjkood]

I am not implying it is the best option for everybody trying to come and set up in the US, but for hardware companies there are better options than the US. In fact there are US based hardware accelerators[1] that encourage and facilitate setting up in Shenzhen for a short while so that you can be close to your eventual supply chain.

Coming and setting up in the US is no easy matter for people of Indian or Chinese origins.

1. https://hax.co

[seanmcdirmid]

Is setting up in she Shenzhen any easier for foreigners? I wouldn't be surprised if it was harder.

[gjkood]

I have been using a book called 'the Shenzhen insider's guide' [1] as a reference to help me understand what I need to do to setup something there. There is an entire chapter 'Business in Shenzhen' that lays out the groundwork needed to setup operations in Shenzhen and the different types of entities allowed to do business there. There may be advantages to having a Chinese partner in the setup.

I am currently only at the investigative stage. I will let you know as soon as I know more about bureaucratic obstacles.

1. https://www.amazon.com/Shenzhen-Insiders-Guide-Never-Ever/dp...

[seanmcdirmid]

In my experience, if something is hard to do in the USA, it is much harder to in China, which doesn't really acknowledge immigrants. Now, this is just "by the book", which the USA takes much more seriously than China. Often times, the book in China isn't even written and all they will say is "没办法", your only option is a tourist visa where they wink you'll probably be ok, unless you are unlucky enough to be caught in some crackdown, then it's 6 or so months in Chinese detention before being deported.

Only be in China if you REALLY need to be there, otherwise it's a whole lot of pain without corresponding upside.

[gjkood]

In the same vein, for those in the USA trying to do business elsewhere, please be aware of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act [1]. There is no upside to breaking those rules.

Sean, my Mandarin/Chinese is at below beginner's level. My google translate of your phrase is 'no way'. Was that what you were saying?

1. https://www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/foreign-corrupt-pract...

[witty_username]

Related:

In some documentary of some Chinese factory on Youtube, they showed an employee bicycling to a supplier to get more parts.

[tostitos1979]

I think in the documentary you refer to, the supplier and user were part of the same company. Upaa I think? They basically had a huge campus. I was also impressed by that documentary but just saying ...