APCO Opens Office in Guangzhou
Washington, D.C./Beijing (March 3, 2006) – APCO Worldwide today opened an office in Guangzhou, China positioned to assist clients in one of the country’s leading commercial and manufacturing centers, Margery Kraus, chief executive officer and president, announced.
The Guangzhou office, located in the capital of Guangdong Province, marks a new stage of APCO’s presence in South China, where it has been providing investment, government relations, and communication solutions to a wide variety of public and private sector clients for more than 15 years.
A strong Guangzhou presence enables APCO to build on its success in China by expanding its service reach to new growth areas, such as mergers and acquisitions and Chinese outward investment, as well as continuing to assist clients with contentious issues such as intellectual property protection, trade disputes, anti-trust, and labor practices.
Bingbing Shi, an attorney admitted in both New Zealand and China, is chief representative of the Guangzhou office. Prior to joining APCO, Shi was the managing director of a Shenzhen-based law firm, overseeing and managing its South China operation.
“Bingbing is just the kind of innovative, strategic thinker we look for at APCO. Her diverse background and regional expertise will prove invaluable in developing our new office and expanding our work throughout Asia,” said Christian Murck, chief executive officer of APCO’s Asia region.
Shi has extensive experience in advising foreign companies on China market strategies. She is an expert on regulatory issues such as market access and investment structuring, including joint ventures, wholly foreign-owned enterprises, and direct mergers and acquisitions. Her legal expertise also covers intellectual property protection and corporate taxation planning.
“I look forward to working with clients on issues such as market entry, stakeholder engagement and corporate responsibility as they become of even greater concern to companies around the world,” said Shi.
With offices in Beijing, Shanghai and regional headquarters in Hong Kong, APCO China is the country’s leading integrated public affairs and strategic communication firm. Since 1989, APCO China has facilitated more than $2billion in U.S. dollars in foreign direct investment in China.
About APCO Worldwide
Founded in 1984, APCO Worldwide is an independently owned global communication consultancy with offices in major cities throughout the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia. APCO was named 2005 European Consultancy of the Year by Public Affairs News, 2004 Public Affairs Agency of the Year by The Holmes Report and 2003 International Agency of the Year by The Holmes Report. Clients include corporations, governments, industry associations and nonprofit organizations. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., APCO includes among its clients six of the top 10 companies on Fortune’s Global 500. Core services include corporate, investor and internal communication; crisis management; issue management; government relations; litigation communication; media relations; coalition building; opinion research; market entry; corporate social responsibility and online communication. For more information, please visit www.apcoworldwide.com.
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Contact:
Megan Carpenter
APCO Worldwide
+202-659-7913
mcarpenter@apcoworldwide.com