Waldo Wong plans to open at least 40 stretching centers in Guangzhou in two years. [Photo by Zheng Erqi/chinadaily.com.cn]

Waldo Wong said he made the right decision when he opened a physical fitness stretching center in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, more than eight years ago.

Wong said the center, which mainly provides sports rehabilitation and stretching services for local residents, is doing brisk business in the southern metropolis.

Wong, who was born in Hong Kong in 1984, said the emerging sports rehabilitation and stretching service sector actually has great potential in the Chinese mainland, where people have started to pay attention to their health and the number of people with subpar health is increasing.

Wong said his stretching center is the first of its kind in Guangdong, and he has opened five branches in prime locations, employing more than 20 physical therapists and staff members.

"A center can now receive more than 40 people a day," he said.

Wong said he plans to open at least 40 stretching centers in Guangzhou in two years to meet growing demand. He expects to employ more than 200 people within two years. He added that he will consider opening similar stretching centers in other cities in the mainland in coming years after he has met the needs of the market in Guangzhou.

Waldo Wong helps a client stretch. [Photo by Zheng Erqi/chinadaily.com.cn]

With expansion in mind, Wong said he is now cooperating with local universities, sports departments and hospitals to help train more physical therapists.

More than 40 percent of his current customers are local residents who do office work, he said.

Wong noted that the Guangzhou government and related departments have introduced a series of preferential policies to encourage and attract young people from Hong Kong and Macao to start a business or be employed in the city in recent years. He now rents an apartment owned by the government at 30 percent of the market price and an office at 50 percent of the market price.

The cost to start a business in Guangzhou is lower than in Hong Kong, he said.

Meanwhile, special forums and lectures have been organized to promote and interpret national and local policies, laws and regulations to help youth from Hong Kong and Macao start businesses. Efforts include visits to museums to see relics that will help them better understand the culture and history of their motherland, he said.