My CIIE Story • Big Market: doTerra gains strong foothold via expo

Editor's Note: Preparations for the fifth China International Import Expo have entered the home stretch. Over the past five years, many foreign companies have developed greater confidence and increased their investments in China through the expo. Numerous organizations and individuals have gained memorable experiences during the fair and witnessed its spillover effects.

The CIIE Bureau and the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai) launched the "My CIIE Story" activity on June 1 and some excellent works centered on "grand strategy" were published in July. In August, more stories with the theme "big market", which showcases how the CIIE shares benefits of the Chinese market with the world, will be published.

"Moss flowers, small as grains of rice, practice being peonies." This line, from the poem Moss by Yuan Mei in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), is one of my favorites. doTerra, a US essential oil company, was like moss flowers aiming to bloom despite being unnoticed at the start.

doTerra first entered the Chinese market seven years ago and we were encouraged by the favorable business environment and massive market potential in the country. Presently, doTerra is one of the world's largest companies in the industry and China is our biggest market outside the United States. The remarkable change is partly due to our continued involvement in the CIIE during the past four years.

At the inaugural edition in 2018, we booked a 9-square-meter small booth just to test the waters. To our surprise, many visitors showed interest in our products and we saw a surge in the number of orders. Heartened by the expo's spillover effect, we set up a regional headquarters in Shanghai only a month after the first CIIE and began to build a factory and our first overseas laboratory in China.

doTerra's booth was then expanded to 108 square meters in the second edition, and 150 sq m and 200 sq m in the third and fourth CIIE respectively, a showcase of our confidence in the expo and the Chinese market. The value of tentative deals we signed during the CIIE also increased from 380 million yuan ($55.48 million) to 1 billion yuan.

doTerra has debuted at the CIIE several kinds of essential oils that are extracted from aromatic plants native to China, such as Chinese sweet gums, osmanthus flowers, and Kushui roses.

By gathering parties from multiple sectors, the CIIE offers enormous opportunities for us to connect with partners and develop businesses. doTerra will continue to make the most of the trade fair to provide Chinese customers with more high-quality products. We will also increase investments in research and development, production, services, and talent training, push ahead with digital transition and sustainable development, as well as open more stores in Chinese cities.

Owen Messick is the president of doTerra China and the president of the Foreign Investment Association of Jing'an District, Shanghai.