The Transformation of China’s Urban Entrepreneurialism: The Case Study of the City of Kunshan

This article examines the formation and transformation of urban entrepreneurialism in the context of China’s market transition. Using the case study of Kunshan, which is ranked as one of the hundred “economically strongest county-level jurisdictions” in the country, the authors argue that two phases of urban entrepreneurialism—one from the 1990s until 2005, and another from 2005 onward—can be roughly distinguished. The first phase of urban entrepreneurialism was more market driven and locally initiated in the context of territorial competition. The second phase of urban entrepreneurialism involves greater intervention on the part of the state in the form of urban planning and top-down government coordination and regional collaboration. The evolution of Kunshan’s urban entrepreneurialism is not a result of deregulation or the retreat of the state. Rather, it is a consequence of reregulation by the municipal government with the goal of territorial consolidation. Introduction There is no doubt that local authorities the world over play a crucial role in promoting economic development in the context of globalization (Harvey 1989; Brenner 2003; Ward 2003; Jessop and Sum 2000). On the one hand, globalization may cause huge unexpected job loss when investors decide to shut down their companies and move out. Capital flight may also create opportunities in a different site. To deal with these challenges and opportunities, local authorities become entrepreneurial in improving their regions, in the hopes of accommodating more business investment and attracting more quality human capital. This is what is called “phenomenon of urban entrepreneurialism.”