•Mass innovation spaces

•Incubators

•Co-working spaces

 

I started swimming when I was two years old. My coach Duffy was teaching me with an approach that I found refreshing and interesting, so I developed a deep interest in swimming at a very young age. In my college years, I joined several swimming competitions and maintained a personal record for many years. In 1995, I was certified a professional swimming coach and began coaching. Through creating the swim club, I wanted to let kids in China have the opportunity to learn to swim well while being able to improve their English, and to experience American culture through a teaching methodology built around fun games - killing two birds with one stone. The David Awesome Swim Club currently has five and three swimming centers respectively in Shenzhen and Guangzhou.

David started the Dawei Awesome Swim Club in 2010 in Shenzhen. With English as the language of instruction, the Swim Club's vision was to let students learn to swim while improving their spoken English, to experience a different culture while enjoying a fun sport.One day, a friend from the U.S. came to visit and found that David’s office was really comfortable and vibrant, which made it an ideal workplace. He talked about wanting to lease an office space in Shenzhen, but had no idea where to start. David approached professional start-up consultant EG from Start-Up Guide, and asked if he could explain to his friend the differences between a mass innovation space, an incubator and a co-working space.

There are three main types of office spaces in Shenzhen: Mass innovation space, business incubator and co-working space. Despite the differences in scale, model of operation and services, the common aim of these spaces is to provide small entrepreneurs in the early stages of their venture with a platform to grow rapidly, and to assist them in the key phases of their company's activation, including office space, hardware, resources matching, raising funds and business coaching.

"Zhong Chuang" (mass innovation) is a phrase coined in China. In September 2014, Premier Li Keqiang said at the Summer Davos: We want to create a new wave of entrepreneurship among the people and grass roots, and encourage "collective entrepreneurship and innovation". In March 2015, the State Council introduced the idea of "Zhong Chuang Kong Jian" (mass innovation space) was introduced for the first time: It is a new service platform for entrepreneurs that cater to people’s innovation and entrepreneurial needs with stronger and more professional service capabilities. Examples include new incubator models such as makerspaces, cafes and innovation workshops, which offer the fundamental benefits of an affordable, convenient, comprehensive and open workplace.

 

Over the four years since their inception, mass innovation spaces have encompassed several forms, including business incubators, co-working spaces, makerspaces and entrepreneurs' communities, all with the common aim of providing the public with the convenience and resources necessary for innovation. With the dominance of the hardware industry in Shenzhen, makerspaces have become a rather unique expression of the mass innovation space concept in the city. In addition to providing foreign entrepreneurs in hardware-related fields with needed equipment such as 3D printers, and welding and cutting tools, they also host public educational training courses focused on the STEAM (acronym for Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Maths) fields, to educate the public on general knowledge of science.

Name of mass innovation space	Address	Website	Overview
Wedo	14th Floor, New Times Plaza, No. 1, Taizi Road, Nanshan District, Shenzhen	https://www.ucommune.com 13559775851	Wedo is a community-based co-working space + business incubator, which is also the incubator base for Charles Xue’s NEEQ enterprises, a national-level incubator for tech enterprises, and the demonstration unit for Shenzhen’s first makerspaces.
Huaqiangbei International Maker Center	7th Floor, Podium, Huaqiang Plaza, No. 1019, Huaqiang North Road, Futian District, Shenzhen	http://www.hqdna.com 4008380040	The Huaqiangbei International Maker Center is an integrated ecosystem for innovation enterprises providing one-stop services for entrepreneurs.
Maker Institute CAS	Building C2, Nanshan iPark, No. 1001, Xueyuan Boulevard, University Town of Shenzhen, Xili Subdistrict, Nanshan District, Shenzhen	http://maker.siat.ac.cn/htm/# 0755-86392087	Maker Institute CAS is an international makerspace in Shenzhen that is a joint initiative of the Nanshan District government and the Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
China Academy of Science and Technology Development	Incubator Center Building, China Academy of Science and Technology Development, Gaoxin South 1st Road, Nanshan District, Shenzhen	http://www.castd.cn	The China Academy of Science & Technology Development is a professional organization specializing in the development of hi-tech technology and incubation of technology enterprises.
Nan Ji Quan	4B-602, Shenzhen Software Industry Base	http://www.nanjiquan.com	Nan Ji Quan provides one-stop services for entrepreneurs including incubation, financing, brand advisory, human resources and training for entrepreneurs.
Techcode Shenzhen	18/F, Yihua Finance Building, No. 2388, Houhai Boulevard, Nanshan Boulevard, Shenzhen	http://www.techcode.com/Portal/ Accelerators/index/id/2.html 13411095573	With an edge in internet technology and smart hardware along with a global vision, Techcode Shenzhen aims to become the leading innovation space in the global online and smart hardware field.
TechTemple	2nd Floor, the Base of Industry-academia-reseach of China University of Geosciences, No. 8, Yuexing 3rd Road, Nanshan District, Shenzhen	http://www.kejisi.com/en/ 13530678139	TechTemple aims to create the most globalized innovative platform in Asia. It offers services covering the entire supply chain ranging from access to Chinese and English bilingual media for entrepreneurship and investment, international tech events, a globalized community, a mass innovation space to start-up investments, bringing the online and offline segments of the start-up ecosystem neatly together.
We work	Tower D, CR Land Building, Nanshan District, Shenzhen	https://www.wework.com/en-GB/	WeWork is an office space leasing company based in New York, offering co-working spaces in an open workplace environment with comprehensive workplace facilities. It first opened its doors in New York in April 2011, providing services to entrepreneurs in the city.
Tencent WeStart (Shenzhen)	Building 6, Software Industry Base, Shenzhen (Shenzhen Bay Inno Park)	https://c.qq.com/base/detail?bId=100021	Created jointly by Tencent, Shenzhen Investment Holdings and the Coral Group, Tencent WeStart (Shenzhen) is a mass innovation space focusing on internet technology and smart hardware. Based in the Shenzhen Bay Inno Park, with its first phase occupying an area of 10,000m², Tencent WeStart provides a full suite of three-dimensional incubator and accelerator services to help entrepreneurs boost the growth of their start-ups.

Business incubators focus on supporting early start-ups with novel ideas. The core of their services lies in start-up counseling, to prepare them for rapid growth and development. Business incubators are mostly industry-specific, such as software, medicine, VR, finance or hardware. Incubators are able to endorse entrepreneurs with their strong industry background, and provide them with the necessary channel resources, specialized technology and tools.

 

Joining a business incubator usually involves a strict review process. A start-up would typically be given startup counseling for a period of three to six months by the incubator. During this period, the selected enterprise would meet regularly with a designated mentor to work on key issues such as its business model, product development, marketing, branding and personnel structure. In the end, the entrepreneur would participate in Pitch Day where they would present their business idea to investors.

 

Shenzhen is called the Silicon Valley of China. It has a comprehensive industry network for the development, manufacturing and distribution of hardware products, which is why it has attracted a huge number of business incubators and accelerators in the hardware field, such as HAX, Shenzhen Capital Group, Chaihuo Maker Space, and the Huaqiangbei incubator cluster which consists of SegMaker, Huaqiang Makerspace, Huaqiangbei International Maker Center, etc.

 

Start-ups are usually required to offer 5-10% of equity in exchange for an incubator’s services. Therefore, before deciding to join an incubator, it is advisable for an entrepreneur to conduct extensive research and seek the advice of start-up teams that have joined the incubator.

1. Space and business facilities; 

2. Incubator or investment and financing services for start-ups, and connecting entrepreneurs with individual 

and institutional investors; 

3. Entrepreneurial training sessions focusing on legal, tax, investment strategy, production strategy and other 

aspects. 

Approximate rental: RMB 1200-2000/space/month

Source: National/Shenzhen Incubators, and recommendations of industry professionals

Name of incubator	Address	Website	Description of incubator
HAXLR8R	21A, Century Plaza, No. 3018, Shennan Middle Road, Futian District, Shenzhen	https://hax.co	HAX is a hardware start-up accelerator + makerspace started by foreigners in the Huaqiangbei area. HAX is the world’s leading hardware accelerator, providing support services such as seed funding, mentoring, offices and work spaces, and comprehensive assistance including product design, parts procurement, industrial design, market positioning, sales strategy, etc.
China Academy of Science & Technology Development	Incubator Center Building, China  Academy of Science and Technology Development, Gaoxin South 1st Road, Nanshan District, Shenzhen	http://www.castd.cn	The China Academy of Science & Technology Development is a professional organization specializing in the development of hi-tech technology and incubation of technology enterprises.
The Center for Innovation, Design & Entrepreneurship of the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen	3rd Floor, Letian Building, Chinese University of Hong Kong Shenzhen, No. 2001, Longxiang Boulevard, Longgang District, Shenzhen	http://cide.cuhk.edu.cn/zh-hans 0755-23518770	The Center for Innovation, Design & Entrepreneurship (CIDE in short) seeks to create an incubation services system for innovation enterprises on campus, and provide innovation entrepreneurs with an open space for working, networking and socializing that is affordable, convenient, and all-encompassing.
Tian'an Cloud Park Incubator Base for Start-ups	Tian'an Cloud Park, No. 2018 Xuegang Road, Bantian Subdistrict, Longgang District, Shenzhen	http://www.szyungu.com/ 0755-89396868	Located in the Huawei Tech City, Tian'an Yungu aims to develop emerging industries with a focus on cloud computing, internet technology, IoT, or other forms of newgeneration IT, and to establish itself as an integrated body for emerging industries and a national-level demonstration base for strategic emerging industries that is globally competitive and brings product development, supporting businesses, supporting residential projects and convenient services together under one roof.
SegMaker	World Trade Plaza Branch:12th - 13th Floor, Huaqiangbei SEG Plaza, Futian District, Shenzhen;Zhenxing Branch:3rd Floor, West Block, Building 101, Shangbu Industrial Zone, Hongli Road	http://www.segcyhapp.com/ 18620327271	Located in the Shenzhen landmark SEG Plaza, the first phase of SegMaker takes up a total area of 5000 ㎡ , of which the 11th floor of SEG Plaza features a large roadshow hall and a 360-degree sky garden, and the 12th floor houses a hardware processing workshop and open work spaces, while the 13th floor is a hardware innovation accelerator equipped with 100 open work spaces and 30 dedicated incubator rooms. They provide smart hardware entrepreneurs with a most comfortableand conducive collaborative platform and entrepreneurial space.
Shenzhen Internet Industry Park Incubator	No. 68, Guowei Road, Liantang Subdistrict, Luohu District	http://gd.zhaoshang.net/yuanqu/ detail/ 9973400-168-6016	The Shenzhen Internet Industry Park Incubator selects enterprises based on the core principle of "cluster development", with the underlying focus of attracting e-commerce service enterprises, and guided by the rationale of its "vertical and horizontal" axes.
Maker Institute CAS	Building C2, Nanshan iPark, No. 1001, Xueyuan Boulevard, University Town of Shenzhen, Xili Subdistrict, Nanshan District, Shenzhen	http://maker.siat.ac.cn/htm/# 0755 86392087	Maker Institute CAS is an international makerspace in Shenzhen that is a joint initiative of the Nanshan District government and the Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

 

Foreign entrepreneurs who have joined co-working spaces view community support as the most notable advantage of this type of workplace. For instance, Nausheen Ishtiaq-Chen, CEO of film and television production company Zen & Zany, has been part of three different co-working spaces and points out that apart from hardware equipment support, they also provide users with a sort of “psychological support”:

There are also certain things to keep in mind when choosing a co-working space:
(1)Try it out first before deciding.
Many co-working spaces offer free trial periods for users to experience their services and facilities.

Most co-working spaces also organize events like entrepreneurs' gatherings or sharing sessions. You can pay them a visit to get a feel for their community atmosphere, and see if these features will benefit your company.
(2)Cost control
For certain locations in Shenzhen, the fee for co-working spaces may in some cases be higher than leasing a business office.

(3)Impression management
Although this is happening less now, there are still entrepreneurs who are concerned that potential clients would see them as novices or amateurs if they are based in a co-working space. The clientele of digital marketing company Somos Digital consists of many large traditional Chinese enterprises. To foster a better image for themselves, before they were able to take up an independent office space in 2018 they paid visits to their clients in person.

On May 6, 2020, the Department of Science and Technology of Guangdong Province issued the Measures on Technology Business Incubation Carrier Management of Guangdong Province, and for the first time proposed the concept of "Science and Technology Business Incubation Carriers". In addition to the original maker space and incubator, for the first time, accelerometer accreditation was included in the management measures. The accreditation conditions for accelerators are higher than those for maker space and incubator in terms of the area of the incubation venues and complete supporting service facilities. Enterprises will have more and more choices for venues. Because accelerators are newly included in the management measures, there are few references at present.Overall, mass innovation spaces, business incubators and co-working spaces all have their own pros and cons. Entrepreneurs need to choose the kind of workplace which best suits their own needs and the development of their company, to help it grow and develop in a more focused way.