In Mexico City, Young Chinese Women Are Becoming Their Own Bosses

By Beimeng Fu, Caterina Morbiato & more on July 31, 2026

As China’s global footprint expands, Zhao is part of a growing cohort of young Chinese women building overseas careers and leadership experience at Chinese corporations in emerging markets such as Mexico. It’s a crisp day. Zhao’s mission in Mexico City is to launch the first and flagship restaurant in the country for a global Chinese chain of hot pot restaurants. Two representatives from the contractor arrive with news. The opening, once scheduled for December, may be pushed to February. “They say I need to have ‘low expectations,’” Zhao says, her face clouding with frustration. “Oh my god!” Although starting a business in Mexico is forcing her to accept a slower pace of work than she would prefer, Zhao admits that she is getting ahead faster than had she stayed at home. The 26-year-old enjoys being in charge of the high-profile launch. “Without a doubt, working here will mean I gain work experience, develop management skills and adaptability, and learn to manage stress in a short period of time,” Zhao reflects in Chinese. “It’s a valuable opportunity for my personal growth and career development.” As China’s global footprint expands, Zhao is part of a growing cohort of young Chinese women building overseas careers and leadership experience at Chinese corporations in emerging markets such as Mexico.

Jiale Zhao

on July 30, 2026

Jiale Zhao, 26, meets with builders to finalize the construction of the restaurant she was working to open, in the Polanco neighborhood of Mexico City, September 12, 2025.

Mahé Elipe

on July 30, 2026

Mahé Elipe is a French documentary photographer based between Mexico, the United States, and France. Working at the intersection of photojournalism and long-form documentary photography, she focuses on stories led by women, exploring issues of human rights, migration, reproductive justice, and the ways communities organize in response to social and political challenges.

Her work has received numerous awards, including the Sony World Photography Awards (2024), the Françoise Demulder Prize (2023), and the SAIF & Les Femmes s’exposent Prize (2025). She was awarded the National Geographic Society COVID-19 Emergency Fund (2020) and the Women Photograph Project Grant (2022). Her photographs have been exhibited internationally and published in outlets including Libération, Le Monde, The Guardian, The Washington Post, El País, Reuters, Bloomberg, American Vogue, GEO, NPR, and others.

Caterina Morbiato

on July 29, 2026

Caterina Morbiato is a freelance journalist and anthropologist based in Mexico. She covers stories related to all forms of human diversity, with a particular focus on human rights, social violence, and migration. She worked as a translator and reporter for The Associated Press’ Mexico City bureau, where she covered the increase in Chinese migration to Mexico, pioneering drug harm reduction programs, and the charm of a board game born in Mexican prisons nearly a century ago. Before that, she spent seven years as a freelance journalist covering labor rights, culture, migration, and politics in Mexico and El Salvador.

Morbiato grew up in Italy, gained a better understanding of how the world works in Mexico, and fell in love with journalism in El Salvador. Her work has been featured in various outlets, including El País, El Universal, Altaïr Magazine, The Christian Science Monitor, Jacobin, il manifesto, and La Repubblica.