The Best of British Show came back to Shanghai again in October and fortunately I have plenty of people who will give me free tickets to stuff like this (when did I last pay for a ticket to any show?). My four day trade pass meant that I was in on the first day – Thursday – for a early inspection of all the stands.
It is hard to be anything but impressed by the building which was gifted to the Chinese by the Russians. The main hall is spectacular. Britishness was on show on all levels of the building, showcasing British education, beers, food (McVities, Iceland), beers, bicycles, fabric and even the Royal Mail had a stand (all the Chines
e hired hands on the RM stand sat staring at the their phones as I passed).
There was a pub set up and a resturant selling sandiches for about £9 a go. Free food was pretty hard to come by although there were some cheese and biscuits at 4pm in the pub for the F&B event.
There was a show kitchen too and various chefs demonstrated to the Chinese audience, how to make things like a proper British cooked breakfast. I don’t think any of them will ever try to recreate it in their own kitchens but they are at least curious about our strange eating traditions.
And in the main hall, a catwalk had been erected and there were numerous fashion shows, giving the mainly Chinese audience a glimpse of British (mainstream) fashion. 
I spotted a great little business form South Wales – Melin Tregwynt, which I had heard of. They have five looms and make traditional Welsh blankets in a hamlet in Pembrokeshire. I quickly snapped up one of their samples. The Shanghai winter is coming and it will be of immense help to keep me warm in my little lane house.
Overall it was nice to see so many British companies trying to get into China, not just the big guys like McLaren but the smaller brands like Snugpack and small family owned breweries. There is a lot of ambition in the UK to explore the Chinese market.
It was a good day out (well maybe not a whole day) and I am looking forward to a cold snap so I can test drive my new Welsh blanket. Bring on the winter!