2,000 Islands with One Task: Gwanxi

By Kai Liu

Having spent 22 years as a part-time tour guide, restaurant connoisseur, city ambassador and expedition leader while wearing the uniform of an Ottawa police officer working in the shadows of Parliament Hill, I very quickly realized the importance of tourists to the health of the city’s economy. 

It is this recognition of the importance of tourism to my newly adopted community of Gananoque, in the Thousand Islands region of Ontario, that Mayor Frank Kinsella and his council should be commended for what I would consider a coup. They attracted top government officials from China to sign a Friendship Agreement between the 1000 Islands in Canada and the 1000 Islands Lake in China.

Thanks to rapid urbanization, rising disposable incomes and relaxation of restrictions on foreign travel, China has become one of the fastest growing outbound travel markets in the world. According to the United Nation World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) outbound trip volume has grown by an annual average of 22 per cent since 2000. UNWTO predicts that by 2020 China will be the world’s largest outbound travel market, supplying over 100 million visitors annually.

This visit by the Chinese tourism delegation has given this area of the St. Lawrence River a competitive marketing edge while ensuring that it continues to be a destination of choice for tourists.  As local businesses adapt to the changing face of tourism in the region, this Friendship Agreement is a strategic opportunity for municipal, business and community leaders to learn how they can develop a community that continues to welcome visitors to the 1000 Islands region.

Being a Canadian with a Chinese heritage, I’ve learned first hand the importance of this agreement. Canada as a tasked-based society differs culturally from China which is a relationship based society. The Chinese hold gwanxi (relationships) in high regards. The concept of gwanxi is about allowing a relationship to lead while business follows. The Chinese will first and foremost establish the relationship and, if a trusting personal relationship is developed, business transactions will come.

To focus on the growing Chinese outbound tourist market, on the weekend of Saturday, September 12, 2009 led by Mayor Kinsella, a team of community stakeholders put the concept of gwanxi in to practice.