Hailun Piano Keys Into Atlanta as U.S. Headquarters

Ocotber 18, 2006 - ATLANTA – Hailun Company, one of China's largest manufacturers of grand and vertical pianos, has chosen metro Atlanta for the headquarters of its North American subsidiary, Hailun Distribution LLC. Over 6,000 jobs have been created by new companies that have relocated or expanded to metro Atlanta in 2006. 'We chose Atlanta metro because of its proximity to the Eastern U.S. population belt, land transport facilities and port access,' said Theresa Perry, President of Hailun Distribution LLC. 'We see ourselves as a positive addition to the metro area especially since we are a 'clean' business with no detrimental effect to the air or water quality of our environment. It is nice to see that Georgia is now making a concerted effort to attract China-based companies. The business potential for this state is significant.' The company has hired its first two employees and expects the headquarters staff, located at 400 Highway 78 in Snellville, to grow to 10 employees within two years. The headquarters functions in metro Atlanta will include sales, marketing, finance and service for the North American market. Hailun is based in China and operates a 431,000-square-foot manufacturing facility staffed by 800 workers in Ningbo, and is currently in the process of expanding the facility by an additional 108,000 square feet to meet market demand for their products. 'Hailun Distribution has selected an ideal location to grow and thrive,' said Hans Gant, senior vice president of economic development for the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce. 'The headquarters advantages of Atlanta combined with the sales and marketing talent in our region guarantee Hailun will quickly penetrate the U.S. market with quality instruments already known to musicians in China, Australia and Europe.' Both the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce and the Georgia Department of Economic Development have organized trips to China within the past two months to increase awareness of the thriving economic opportunities that exist for Chinese-based businesses in Atlanta and Georgia. Kingwasong LLC, a joint venture of China-based Lehui Enterprises and US-based WY Industries, announced earlier this year that it would locate a manufacturing facility in Newnan. 'China is a vast untapped market for Georgia,' said Georgia Department of Economic Development Commissioner Craig Lesser. 'After we open our new international office in Beijing early next year, we expect to introduce many more companies like Hailun and Kingwasong LLC to Georgia's great business climate.'