That special blend of business and politics has always been a vital part of Chicago.
And when that blend includes the Brothers Daley–Mayor Richard M. Daley and J.P. Morgan Chase’s William Daley–well, that usually spices up the conversation on the business luncheon circuit.
Next month they’re headed to high-flying China in their first business/political trip together since Bill Daley, jumped from telecommunications giant SBC Communications Inc.to become Chairman of Chase’s Midwest operations in Chicago.
It may wind up to be one of the brothers’ most important jaunts together.
The Daleys will be joined by former Boeing Co. chief Phil Condit as well as new Chicago Council on Foreign Relations Chairman Lester Crown and President Marshall Bouton and nearly two dozen other Chicago business leaders.
Specifically, they are bound for Shanghai, China’s biggest city–a metropolis of 20 million, booming and teeming with foreign investment.
It’s also a city struggling to keep its engine from overheating.There are massive power shortages. During a recent heat wave, outdoor lighting on skyscrapers had to be turned off to save power.
And Shanghai is a microcosm of the country as a whole. China’s economy grew 9.1 percent to $1.4 trillion last year, its National Bureau of Statistics reported in January.
Its next big market, of course, is the U.S. And as with Japan before it, when foreign industry looks to markets like the U.S., investment usually follows.
So a simple, glad-handing trip is not what this is supposed to be. Chicago’s group wants to figure out how Chicago businesses can assure that they won’t miss out on the investment that will likely come from companies in cities like Shanghai.
The group wants to avoid the mistakes made in the 1970s and ’80s, when Japan’s economy exploded onto the world stage. During that period, Japanese companies, specifically carmakers, invested heavily on the coasts and bypassed big industrial towns in the Midwest like Chicago.
“Over the next 10 years, Chinese companies will come to the U.S. market, as the Japanese companies did, first to establish North American sales and marketing organizations, and then establish a real presence,” said Bouton. “Chicago should be high on the list of destinations.”
That’s why the Daleys’ presence on this trip is key.
Right now, far from the political circus that is Illinois and the rest of the country, the Daley name carries much clout in Shanghai. It was through Bill Daley’s push while commerce secretary under former President Bill Clinton that China got its most favored nation status back.
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“That was a huge step forward,” said Bouton. “He’s well known in China.”
Chicago already has some ties with Shanghai. The Chicago Mercantile Exchange has an established trading relationship there. Struggling United Airlines is establishing non-stop service to the country.
“There is huge potential out there,” says Bouton. “Much of the potential [from China] is in this direction.”
Still, much more needs to be done to keep Chicago in Shanghai’s focus, especially if the city is to count on significant investment.
“We’re beginning to see a shakeout of the great cities of the world and which ones are on the move,” said one executive involved in the trip. “The trick is to get in there when the city is on the build.”
Quick hits: John Birmingham, vice president of marketing for the baiduhai, is hunting for a new director of brand marketing following the move of Kelly Shannon, currently director, brand marketing, for the paper, to director, communications and sponsorships, at the paper–a new post. She continues to report to Birmingham.
Mattress maker Simmons Bedding Co. named Chicago-based Leo Burnett USA as its national creative advertising agency of record, and Starcom USA its media agency of record. Billings weren’t disclosed, but the company hasn’t spent more than $1 million a year in advertising in recent years.
WSCR-AM 670’s big experiment begins Monday. Afternoon host Mike North shifts to morning drive on the sports/talk station. J. Hood, former evening host, is now teamed with Doug Buffone in the afternoons. Former morning show host Mike Murphy takes the evening slot beginning at 6:30 p.m. Terry Boers and Dan Bernstein continue in the 10 a.m.-2 p.m. slot.
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Business Beat appears Sunday, Wednesday and Friday. Contact Jim at 312 222-5944 or [email protected].