Michel Sutyadi, a 35-year-old Germany-born-Chinese, co-founded his first fashion shop on the street in 2008.

"We chose to locate our first shop here because of the perfect location, a place of galleries and workshops that combines the historical architecture of the street with an artistic atmosphere," said Sutyadi.

Both the street and the shop have witnessed a boom since 2008, the year Beijing hosted the Olympic Games.

"It feels like we moved in at the right time because the rent went up ever since and it is expensive now," Sutyadi said.

Currently ties between Beijing and Berlin are quite good, Sutyadi said, adding that Merkel is visiting China against the backdrop of the European debt crisis, which is expected to encourage her to call for more investment from China.

During the 2012 Chinese Culture Year in Germany, Chinese artists will stage more than 500 programs featuring Chinese music, theater, literature and films, as well as cultural dialogues, forums and seminars in more than 30 German cities.

The culture year is aimed at enhancing bilateral relations and enhancing friendship and cooperation between more than 60 pairs of sister states (provinces) and sister cities on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of Sino-German diplomatic relations.

China Daily