From Wuhan to Chongqing, Chengdu to Hangzhou, second tier cities are emerging as hubs for both international and domestic executives.
Aaron Renn has smartly noted that smaller, second tier cities are at a strategic disadvantaged in the pulling business downtown.
The governments of second tier cities and smaller are sticking their fingers into the China housing bubble, now two years old.
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They're already moving beyond early target cities like Beijing and Shanghai into second-tier cities.
"Local governments are also keener to support e-commerce retailers, which contributes to higher employment and meaningful tax revenue for the city, " said Mr. Shen, adding that the company plans to expand further in first-tier cities such as Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, where it currently has a presence, and into second-tier cities such as Chongqing and Chengdu.
We are looking at first- and second-tier cities and maybe will open one to two stores per year.
Wu is looking to second-tier cities such as Yantai, Wuxi and Changzhou for growth as first-tier cities such as Beijing mature.
Over time, you can see how London's dominance could become ever more entrenched, with Britain's "second tier" cities never reaching critical mass.
Since then Sy has opened just two more malls (and bought stakes in another), all in second-tier cities rather than major urban centers.
Prices will decline more in the city's fringe areas but not so much in the centers of first- and second-tier cities, he added.
IBM, for example, is establishing a foothold in 14 of India's second-tier cities, from Surat on the west coast to Bhubaneswar in the east.
The menswear maker, which produces garments for Tommy Hilfiger and Polo, expanded its profit by 56% in 2012 by improving its own high-end Black Label brand, which appeals to the growing ranks of middle-class men in second-tier cities.
Analysts argue that President Bashar al-Assad's regime's decision to use overwhelming military force to try to crush opposition in second-tier cities like Homs has only spread the tentacles of the insurgency into cities that were once bastions of government support.
Bramah wrapped up the panel by saying investors should favor companies that build mass-market residential housing over luxury developments, as well as ones that focus on the slightly smaller, second-tier cities in the mainland rather than metropolises like Beijing and Shanghai.
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On Feb. 26, the previously low-profile company, which controls more than 400 office properties in second-tier cities and suburbs, was thrust into the limelight when Related Cos. and Corvex Management LP announced they had purchased nearly 10% of the company and offered to buy the remainder.
The roads they drive on may be crowded in cities like Beijing, and the roads full of potholes in second and third tier cities, but Chinese consumers are giving up their bikes for cars.
The question is whether some cities have overdone it, meaning the boom will end sooner than expected as second and third tier cities look to fill in vacancies at residential and commercial developments before they mix more concrete to build more.
This is especially true in second and third tier cities, ie: not Shanghai, Hong Kong, Guangzhou and Beijing.
Many firms still have room to develop at home, going inland into China's second and third tier cities.
Right now, many China investors are paying closer attention to second and third tier cities away from the busy, saturated coast.
The personable Mr. Young foresees a continued double-digit growth in years to come as marketers start pushing into second and third tier cities.
Kejian also focuses on second-tier Chinese cities such as Wuhan, Chengdu and Shijiazhuang, leaving the biggest markets Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou to the global leaders.
The difference is, the Chinese government is doing something about that gap and investing in second and third tier cities in the interior of the country.
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The latest trend is for foreign investment flows into second and third tier cities rather than the major eastern seaboard cities like Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou.
Also in 2012 they began an own store strategy in China aiming to develop in the second and third tier cities with a strategy of hiring local Chinese managers.
Denson said the company intends to expand its distribution into second and third tier cities in the interior and is using Chinese athletes as part of its local branding campaigns to sell more sneakers in China.
"China's wealth is spreading beyond the entertainment industry's traditionally big markets in eastern cities like Beijing and Shanghai, and moving further out into second- and third-tier cities, " says Echo Yang, who compiled the list for Forbes China.
The better October flash PMI and September data paint a consistent picture of a likely further pickup in economic activity on the back of more accommodative monetary conditions, increasing infrastructure investment, recovering property market activity in second and third tier level cities and improving external demand, mainly in Asia and emerging markets.
Some cities have imposed property taxes, down payments have been increased, and more second- and third-tier cities have announced measures to dampen housing prices.
Incomes have been rising rapidly in these so-called second- and third-tier cities, outpacing the rollout of upscale retail outlets on a par with Beijing and Shanghai.
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