[Online & Offline] Optimizing a China Expansion Strategy for New and Well-Established Businesses Go back »
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Time2021-02-26 | 16:00 - 18:10
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Venue:Online via Zoom & In person from the Shanghai Office of the European Chamber
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Address:
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Fee:Members: 100 RMB |
Non Members: 200 RMB
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Speakers
Dr. Ioana Kraft
Ioana has been based in Shanghai since 2003 where she worked for the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China (European Chamber) from 2004 to 2022. From 2009 to 2022 she served as General Manager of the Chamber’s Shanghai Chapter and was responsible for implementation and development of European Chamber objectives, visibility, and advocacy activities on a regional level in Shanghai and neighbouring regions.
Ioana is currently an Associate Director with X-PM Transition Partners, a leading European Executive Interim and Transition Management firm with teams in Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong. X-PM is part of the WIL group, a network of 13 firms operating in 35 countries that deliver interim and transition solutions to clients around the world and offers a unique international “multi-sourcing” model that leverages the assets of each member firm and ensures the best assignments globally.
A German-qualified lawyer, Ioana practiced with a German law firm in Shanghai from 2003 and 2004. She also holds a PhD degree in law from Heinrich Heine University, Düsseldorf, where she worked from 1999 to 2003 as a Senior Research Assistant focussing on the areas of Civil Law, Insurance Law, Comparative Law, International Private Law and Labour Law.
Mr. Gerard van Swieten
Mr. van Swieten is a Dutch national and has been working and living in China for more than 8 years. He has 10+ years of experience in cross-border trade and investment in FMCG, manufacturing, IT, and finance.
Before founding LvS Partners, Mr. van Swieten was a partner at Mandarin Hill Capital and IJK Capital. Previously, Mr. van Swieten worked as an attorney in Amsterdam at Clifford Chance and in Shanghai at HIL. He also served as Head of Legal of BRF SA for Asia, Europe and Africa. During his tenure at both Mandarin Hill Capital and IJK Capital, Mr. van Swieten led the China expansion for multiple portfolio companies in solar, healthcare IoT, and media and entertainment sectors.
Mr. van Swieten holds a Masters in Dutch law from Maastricht University, a Masters in Chinese law from Hong Kong University, and an MBA from Tsinghua-MIT Sloan.
Dr. Peter W. Kwan
Peter is currently a visiting Professor at Shanghai Normal University and start-up mentor at National University of Singapore, Suzhou Research Institute.
He offers over thirty years’ experience in running joint ventures & market entry consultancy for multi-national companies in china including such companies as Smithkline Beecham, Bayer AG & American home products. Peter, a native of Hong Kong & us citizen, introduced the western drugstore concept to mainland china through consulting for one of china’s leading pharmaceutical groups, Neptunus, to establish china’s first western style retail drugstore chain – Nepstar (nyse: npd), and introduced the professional pharmacy & franchise concept to the retail segment under US brand, Medicine Shoppe to china. Peter was educated in the US where he graduated from Furman university with a BS in chemistry, he earned his PHD in chemistry from the University Of Washington, and he also earned his MBA from California State University.
Mr. Kenny Bloom
With almost 30 years of China experience, Bloom began his career in 1977 in NYC with Warner Communication’s Atlantic Records (Time Warner). In 1988 he became the “zero-man” for Warner in China through a joint venture with China Film and at one point controlled 85% of the international music market, produced the #1 Chinese rock star, founded the Beijing Modern Dance Ensemble with Maestro Jin Xing, produced scores of live events, and co-produced the first and most popular singing competition TV show in the country with Hunan Satellite TV.
Most recently, he formed a video broadcast technology development company. The technology provides a platform for video content partners to create unique 24-hour linear television channels that are then broadcast globally to any connected device. The technology is also being used to manage promotional video screens at retail stores enabling marketers to control the content on their screens located anywhere in the world from a central location.
Mr. Florian Weihard
Florian Weihard completed his mechanical engineering studies and started his career as design engineer in R&D in Germany in 2007. In 2010, he moved to China in 2010 and over the following years, he set up and managed engineering offices and companies in China, Singapore, USA and Malaysia. Since 2015, he has been focusing on Industry 4.0 and Digitalization as well as Fuel Cell production technologies. As CTO, he is now responsible for the Innovation Management and Technology Development at Ruhlamat Automation Technologies as well as for the Digitalization Division as GM of Ruhlamat Smart Technologies. He is also the Co-initiator and Technology Expert of the Smart Manufacturing Application Sharing Forum as well as Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of DUSA European Companies Suzhou Association. He won the Jiangsu High-Level Innovation and Entrepreneurship High Skilled Talent award of 2018 and was invited to the 2020 Spring Festival Symposium for Foreign Experts hosted by Premier Li Keqiang in Beijing.
