Introducing: Capitalizing on China - NYTimes.com When I started Auction Systems Auctioneers and Appraisers almost 18 years ago, my vision wasn't to own a multinational company. And I certainly did not imagine that I would one day be dividing my time between China and the United States, routinely spending three weeks abroad and then five weeks back home. I simply wanted to open a business that offered better service than my competitors. I run an auction firm with its headquarters in Phoenix and an outpost in Shanghai. On this blog, I'll share with you what I learned along the way about opening and running a business in China - and about keeping up good relationships with all those who control my ability to operate in the country. I stumbled on the auction industry through a serendipitous moment on a flight from San Francisco, where I worked, to Phoenix, where I lived. I sat by an auctioneer who was 82 years old. He shared stories of auctions, told me about the different businesses he worked with and rattled off a list of the wide range of property he had sold. By the end of the conversation, I was curious. I never saw that auctioneer again, but he started me on the path to a different career. A month after the flight, I resigned from my position working on mergers and acquisitions and enrolled in an auction academy. It was a radical career switch, but after just two weeks of training, I was ready to begin business as an auctioneer - at least in theory. It takes years to be a great bid caller. Armed with the basics, I started visiting companies to tell them how I could help them generate money by auctioning off overstocked or obsolete items they had on hand. It was great. I wasn't selling anything; instead, I was treated like a hero for helping businesses find lost revenue. At the time, auctions were a $250 billion industry controlled by roughly 6,000 "ma and pa" multigenerational firms. And auctioneers were mostly men - women constituted less than 10 percent of the industry. I was floored when male competitors visited to tell me that I wouldn't make it in the business. It took me aback, but I also learned something that has served me well in my business dealings - especially in China. I learned to love being told "no" and "it can't be done." Statements like "you won't survive in this market" motivate me like dog treats to a starving puppy. When I first traveled to China, I visited an American official whose sole job was to help American companies do business in China. He said: "You don't want to be here or do business here. You won't survive. From that point on, I was off to conquer the Chinese auction industry. My auction company had been selling goods to buyers in China long before I considered having auctions there. The idea of doing something more hit during a trade delegation trip I made with several American officials. Auctions had been a part of China's economy before the Cultural Revolution, but they were only reintroduced to the marketplace 20 years ago through events that were private or "by invitation only." In the last five years, auctions have been opened to the public. They're a regulated industry in China, which makes the field even more challenging and dependent on government approvals than other local industries. I heard a lot of "no's" along the way to becoming the first auction company in China that is a "wholly owned foreign enterprise." My company in China is called iPai, meaning "I love to bid." We opened our first location in Shanghai in November 2010. When we outgrew those facilities, we built our own auction gallery in a sleek Shanghai skyscraper in the French Concession, a district popular with tourists. We hold weekly auctions of all kinds of property, often focusing on luxury Western consumer goods. I've made plenty of mistakes and had several kerfuffles while building my subsidiary overseas. I'll talk about them as much as I can, but keep in mind, I still have to do business in China. There may be times when you will need to read between the lines, when I need to err on the side of being ambiguous. I beg your pardon ahead of time - and if you say "no," that won't work for you, it will just make me try harder. I know that about myself. Deb Weidenhamer is chief executive of Auction Systems Auctioneers & Appraisers.