Is Perth being seen in wrong light?

29 Jun 2014| Posted by: Geoff Baldwin

Many would be Asian investors and prospective immigrants overlook Perth because our continual talk of it being a mining and resources centre rather than a beautiful, clean and evolving city according to RE/MAX WA managing director, Geoff Baldwin. “In recent talks with an expert Asian immigration advisor about how Perth is seen in the eyes of many in China we were informed that many Chinese picture Perth itself as the centre of actual mining and associated industries and that this is a barrier to investment and immigration”, Mr Baldwin said. “Because we live here we assume that people in other countries know that it is only the headquarters of mining companies that are located in Perth itself and not the actual operations of those companies, but unfortunately that is often not the actual perception. “While Melbourne and Sydney are automatically accepted as large conventional cities worthy of investment, we have found that it is not until the prospective overseas buyer does some research or arrives and sees our city for themselves that they recognise it is not a mine site. “In recent years Perth has been widely promoted as the mining and resource capital of Australia however we must consider that it is easy for this to be interpreted literally and for it to give a completely opposite picture to the reality. “Actual knowledge of Perth is scant in many Asian countries so it is important that it is promoted more widely and with more detail about it's beauty, scope and lifestyle if we are going to compete with the more accepted eastern states capitals”, Mr Baldwin said.