GCPC Accompanies Milan Deputy Mayor Tommaso Sacchi on Visit to Suzhou, Advancing China–Italy City Cooperation and Industrial Exchange
Recently, Tommaso Sacchi, Deputy Mayor of Milan, Italy, visited Suzhou for a series of exchange activities. Zhang Jie, President of GCPC Investors, accompanied the delegation throughout the visit and participated in a series of business and government meetings. Ji Jing, Vice Mayor of Suzhou, met with the delegation, and the two sides held in-depth discussions on strengthening cooperation between Suzhou and Milan and promoting industrial exchange between China and Italy.
During the meeting, the two sides conducted in-depth discussions on establishing a framework for cultural exchange and cooperation between Suzhou and Milan. They agreed that, as influential cities in China and Italy respectively, Suzhou and Milan enjoy broad prospects for cooperation in culture and the arts, fashion and creative industries, advanced manufacturing, and other fields. Both sides expressed their intention to further strengthen exchanges among governments, institutions, and civil society, actively establish a long-term and pragmatic cooperation mechanism, and continuously deepen friendly relations between the two cities.
During the discussions, the two sides focused on leveraging Milan’s international advantages as a global fashion capital and a hub for the world’s leading luxury brands, while drawing on Suzhou’s profound silk heritage, well-established textile industry, and high-end fabric manufacturing capabilities. They explored opportunities for cooperation in fashion design, brand partnerships, supply chain collaboration, and industrial innovation.
The two sides also discussed supporting greater interaction through international platforms such as Milan Fashion Week, helping Suzhou-based enterprises connect more deeply with the global fashion industry. In addition, they proposed establishing exchange and cooperation mechanisms between museums, art galleries, and other cultural institutions in the two cities to facilitate reciprocal exhibitions, cultural communication, and academic exchange.
They also actively explored potential cooperation between renowned Milan football clubs and Suzhou in areas such as youth football development, sporting events, and sports-related cultural exchange. These initiatives are expected to further enrich the scope of cooperation between the two cities and enhance their international influence.
As the head of an international platform enterprise with long-standing experience in facilitating global industrial cooperation, Zhang Jie, President of GCPC Investors, stated that, in addition to cultural exchange, Suzhou and Milan also enjoy significant potential for industrial cooperation. Suzhou is home to a globally leading new energy industrial chain and a strong advanced manufacturing base, while Milan, as one of Europe’s major economic, financial, fashion, and innovation centres, serves as an important gateway for Chinese enterprises seeking to enter the European market.
GCPC will fully leverage its strengths in integrating international resources to actively promote deeper connections between Suzhou’s new energy industrial-chain enterprises and the European market. The company will assist Chinese enterprises in expanding into the European Union while also facilitating investment and cooperation in Suzhou by European companies, industrial resources, and international capital. Through these efforts, GCPC aims to help establish a new platform for China–Europe industrial cooperation based on complementary strengths and mutual benefit.
Zhang Jie noted that GCPC has always been committed to building bridges for cooperation among Chinese and European governments, enterprises, and capital providers. Looking ahead, the company will continue to leverage its international cooperation network to support Chinese enterprises in “going global” and facilitate the introduction of high-quality international resources into China.
GCPC will continue to deepen cooperation between China and Italy, as well as between China and Europe more broadly, in fields including new energy, advanced manufacturing, cultural exchange, the green economy, technological innovation, and international investment. Through these efforts, the company seeks to make further contributions to China–Europe economic and trade cooperation and sustainable development.
The visit further strengthened mutual understanding between Suzhou and Milan and laid a solid foundation for the establishment of a long-term cooperation mechanism between the two cities. Moving forward, GCPC will continue to leverage its strengths as an international platform and actively promote deeper and higher-level cooperation between Suzhou and Milan in cultural exchange, industrial collaboration, and two-way investment, continuously supporting China–Italy subnational cooperation and advancing China–Europe economic and trade relations to new heights.