Liu Minxia

    mllmx@msn.com

    WATCHING a Turkish TV series, listening to Turkish music or reading a Turkish book over a cup of Turkish coffee or a plate of Turkish snacks, visitors to the ICIF may mistake a certain large booth for a street corner in the world’s cradle of civilization.

    The Turkish Embassy in China is using the ICIF as an opportunity to showcase their country’s diverse traditional and avant-garde cultures, as well as explore Chinese markets, by presenting more than 10 companies at the booth, the ICIF’s largest set up by an overseas exhibitor.

    Offering free coffee flown in from Turkey, Kurukahveci Mehmet Efendi Mahdumlari, a time-honored coffee chain in the country, attracted long queues of visitors Friday after the booth was unveiled.

    “We’ve opened outlets in Shanghai and hope to open more in other Chinese cities,” said Levent Ozden, an export sales executive for the company.

    Huseyin Maras, an employee of Cerez Pazari, a leading Turkish dried food manufacturer that is giving away Turkish snacks like raisins and hazelnuts for free at the fair, worried late Friday that he might not have brought enough products.

    “We didn’t expect ICIF visitors to be so fond of Turkish snacks,” he said.

    Mahir Cavus, a program sales executive for Turkish Radio and Television Corp., said he was looking forward to Chinese companies buying TV programs made by his company.

    “‘Subat,’ which means ‘February,’ is a popular TV series in Turkey, and we hope to meet potential buyers here although it seems it’s not so easy,” Cavus said.

    Ilknur Yigit, a counselor with the Turkish Embassy’s Culture and Tourism Office, said she hopes more Chinese travelers will go to her country. Turkish Airlines is also exhibiting at the fair.

    Opposite the Turkish booth, several real estate agents were hawking properties in downtown Kuala Lumpur at a Malaysian booth that was brought to the fair by Kwong Wah Yit Poh Press.

    Tang Hong-heng, assistant general manager of the press group, said it’s the first time for the Malaysian booth to feature properties, after it had showcased Malaysian food, Nyonya culture and Malaysian paintings at previous ICIFs.

    Other small overseas exhibitors are also seeking business opportunities in their own ways at the fair.

    “Attending fairs is a major way for us to find new customers in China,” said Feng Guochen, China sales manager for Nepal Traditional Art and Handicraft.

    Waqas Saleem, owner of Rana Co., an export-oriented jewelry maker from Pakistan, said he’s also using the Internet to increase sales to China buyers.