Josh Woodard, a mechanical engineering grad from the US, arrived in Shenzhen expecting to spend two years soaking up language, culture and industrial know-how. Fast-forward seven years, and now he’s running his very own Shenzhen company! He and Alex McCutcheon, who used to live in this tech-forward metropolis, meet up for a nostalgic stroll and a spicy meal in the area where Josh first lived, back in 2019. This story is living proof of the city’s motto: “Come here, and you’re a Shenzhener.”