Speakers
Tom Duke, Deputy HM Trade Commissioner, Department for International Trade, British Embassy Beijing
Tom Duke was appointed Minister Counsellor for the Department for International Trade in March 2019 and Deputy HM Trade Commissioner to China in 2020. As a member of the senior leadership team of DIT China and Hong Kong, Tom is responsible for trade and investment promotion, trade policy and market access across a range of industry sectors.
Tom has 15 years of experience working in China and East Asia, in both the public and private sectors. Immediately prior to joining DIT, Tom was the UK’s intellectual property attaché to China. From 2009-11 Tom was Director at the EU Chamber of Commerce in Seoul, South Korea. Tom speaks Mandarin Chinese and Korean. He has an MSc in Financial Economics, specialising in the impact of Chinese exchange rate policy on the Balance of Payments. In his spare time, Tom enjoys running along the canals and mountain paths around Beijing, and spending time with his family.
Ran Guo, Director, Consumer Economy China, CBBC Beijing
Ran leads CBBC’s China Consumer Economy team to provide business support services to UK consumer products companies. Ran works closely with partner UK government departments and trade associations to deliver research reports, trade missions, and local showcasing events. She also organises and participates in sector trade shows around China.Prior to joining CBBC, Ran worked in the consulting industry in Shanghai and Beijing for six years, where she developed her specialties in primary market research, company due diligence, and competition intelligence analysis. Ran has excellent research skills and a thorough understanding of the various obstacles international companies face when entering the China market.
Clinton Zhu, founder of FAN Culinary Education
Clinton Zhu holds an EMBA degree from Nankai University. Clinton has worked in the professional western cuisine for more than 26 years. Since 2005, Zhu has judged more than 50 international culinary competitions of WorldChefs. In 2016, he led a Chinese Culinary National Team for IKA OLYMPIADE DER KOCHE, and won three silver medals.
Authorized by Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security of China, Clinton Zhu also launched in 2017 the ZHU YIFAN National Master Skill Center to promote culinary skills innovation, professional communication and systematic education.
David Zhu, General Manager of Shanghai Waytop Trading Co and a representative from Hema supermarkets
David studied and worked in Dublin, Ireland from 2001 and 2007. He has been involved in imported seafood business since 2014. He is the first Chinese importer who imported blue lobsters in large quantities. He mainly imports live seafood. Main seafood products he has imported include blue lobsters, brown crabs, razor clams, and scallops.
David supplies imported seafood to HORECA channels (including Hyatt, Hilton, Shangri-la, The Middle House), retailers (including Freshippo and City’super), and wet markets across China.
Jeanie Wang, SDI Food and Drink specialist mainland China
Jeanie Wang works as the Food and Drink Specialist with Scottish Development International (SDI), the international economic development arm of the Scottish Government. She provides strategic advice to Scottish food and drink businesses seeking to enter or expand in the Chinese market. With valuable knowledge about Chinese business practices and the dynamics of the domestic market, Jeanie's expertise is highly valued by companies, including those in the seafood and Whisky industries, who aim to succeed in China.
Before joined SDI in 2013, she worked in various consulting roles with CBI Shanghai (now ICIS), and Twinside S.p.A. in Rome, Italy. Jeanie holds a bachelor’s degree in Economics with First Class Honours from Queen Mary College, University of London, and a MSc in Economics for Development from University of Oxford.
Antoaneta Becker, Director, Consumer Economy, CBBC
Antoaneta has lived and worked in China for more than 20 years. In her most recent role as a Director, Consumer Economy for the China Britain Business Council, she has supported numerous British consumer companies entering and expanding into the Chinese market.
Prior to joining CBBC, she worked as a Beijing-based reporter for several international media publications including the Economist Intelligence Unit and USA Today, covering China’s economic and social affairs. She has reported on some of the main trends and policies that have defined China’s economic trajectory over the years 2000-2010 including China’s state-owned enterprises reforms, the emergence of free trade zones, the rise of digital economy and ascendence of Chinese consumer. Antoaneta is a fluent Mandarin Chinese speaker. She holds a Bachelor’s in Chinese Language and Literature and a Master’s in Chinese Contemporary Literature & Film from Peking’s University.
