We are pleased to inform you that at the start of each month, NZBRiC will release a monthly activity calendar. This calendar has been designed to assist you in planning your schedules accordingly, allowing you to attend all the activities that are of interest to you. We encourage you to tune in monthly and utilize this tool to its fullest extent, as it will provide opportunities for networking, learning, and growth within the business community. Thank you for your continued support of NZBRiC, and we look forward to seeing you at our upcoming events.
To find out further information on the events currently available, please scroll down.
NZBRiC Activities
September Kiwi Drinks
Hosted by NZBRiC and Kea, Kiwi Drinks is always held on the second Friday of every month. It provides attendees a great setting to network with old friends and new while unwinding at the end of a work week with a glass of New Zealand wine or two. Guests have the opportunity to enter the monthly raffle and win awesome Kiwi prizes sponsored by New Zealand companies. All proceeds from the monthly raffle are donated to NZBRiC's chosen charity, Shanghai Sunrise. We hope to see you there!
Scan the QR code in the flyer to register.
CEO Corner with Xavier Naville.
The Lettuce Diaries: How a Frenchman Found Gold Growing Vegetables in China
The New Zealand Business Roundtable in China (NZBRiC) is delighted to announce an upcoming CEO Corner event featuring acclaimed author Xavier Naville and his latest book, "The Lettuce Diaries: How a Frenchman Found Gold Growing Vegetables in China." Xavier, an accomplished business leader with a wealth of experience in executive positions across global organizations, will share insights from his engaging memoir, offering valuable lessons for entrepreneurs venturing into the Chinese market. His book serves as a practical guide, emphasizing the significance of cultural understanding and adaptability while doing business in China.
We invite you to join us for an enriching discussion on Wednesday, September 18 from 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm at Shanghai Xuhui Association of Foreign Invested Enterprises Event Venue (No.70, Yongfu Rd. Xuhui District (inside the courtyard)). The conversation will be moderated by a member of NZBRiC's Board. NZBRiC would like to thank the support of Kea on this event and acknowledge the venue sponsorship from Shanghai Xuhui Association of Foreign Invested Enterprises.
About the author
Xavier Naville started Creative Food, a key supplier to major restaurant chains in China (e.g. McDonalds, KFC, Starbucks). He grew the company to what is now an organization with 9 factories serving 6,500 restaurants a day and $150m in revenue. If you ate soups, sandwiches, or salads at Starbucks, KFC, Pizza Hut or McDonald’s in China, you have likely eaten Creative Food products. He sold the company to Bakkavor PLC from the UK in 2007 and ran the business until 2011.
Xavier is now a principal at Vision Management Consultants and works on numerous strategy and M&A projects in the food sector for multinationals in China and other countries.
As a CEO & Leadership Teams coach, he also helps small and mid-size business leaders to scale their organizations faster with measurable results. He is the author of The Lettuce Diaries, a business memoir about his years in China’s food industry.
PRAISE FOR THE LETTUCE DIARIES
“In this astonishing, soulful, moving, and often funny memoir-cum-business-primer, Xavier Naville tells the story of how he traded the boardrooms of Paris for the agricultural fields of China, along the way building one of the country’s largest fresh- food companies. Word by word and acre by acre, Naville learned how to speak, and to operate, in Chinese. The Lettuce Diaries traces Naville’s journey from the industrial kitchens of Shanghai to the red-baked earth of the Inner Mongolian plateau as he encounters hostage-takings and an attempted coup, food-safety scandals, fraudulent suppliers, cutthroat rivals, loyal colleagues, and spends many hours in the vegetable fields of China with the farmers whose traditions and practices shape the food we eat every day. The Lettuce Diaries is a story of where China has been, where it’s going, and why it matters to all of us.”
— Leslie T. Chang, author of Factory Girls: From Village to City in a Changing China
If you would like to order a copy of The Lettuce Diaries, scan the QR code to get in touch with the publisher.
FMCG Industry Forum with Sophia Wang from McKinsey: Best Practices for Sustainable Growth in China's Tough Consumer Market
NZBRiC FMCG Industry Members* are invited to our first FMCG Industry Forum hosted by the New Zealand Business Roundtable in China (NZBRiC) and run by NZBRiC's FMCG Industry Chair, David Boyle, CEO at Primary Collaboration New Zealand. The forum aims to provide a platform for members to share market insights, ideas, and experiences to address industry-specific challenges.
The upcoming session will feature a presentation by Sophia Wang, Associate Partner at McKinsey & Company. Sophia will discuss Best Practices for Sustainable Growth in China's Tough Consumer Market. Following the presentation, there will be a Roundtable Q&A session, and all members are encouraged to participate. After the Q&A, members are invited to join for networking and drinks at a nearby venue.
Agenda
3:00pm: Registration
3:15pm: Forum begins and NZBRiC Introduction by NZBRiC FMCG Industry Chair David Boyle
3:30pm: McKinsey Presentation - Best Practices for Sustainable Growth in China's Tough Consumer Market through Product Innovation and Developing Sales Capabilities
4:00pm: Roundtable discussion and Q&A
4:30pm: Planning for future FMCG Industry Forum events
5:00pm: Walk down to a venue for networking drinks
*The FMCG Industry Forum is open to NZBRiC Corporate and Industry Members working in the FMCG sector.
Sophia Wang, Associate Partner at McKinsey & Company
Sophia Wang is an Associate Partner at McKinsey & Company and she is based in McKinsey’s Shanghai Office. Sophia is a highly experienced leader with over 10 years of experience at McKinsey, where she has held core leadership roles in the consumer industry in China. She has also led the product and brand innovation service line for McKinsey in China. With her recent experience, Sophia has worked closely with top players in the food and beverage industry, leading growth strategies and multi-year transformation programs. Her expertise includes product innovation, brand building, channel expansion, organizational restructuring, and talent development. Sophia has also worked with prominent global and local beauty and fashion brands, defining growth strategies and driving organizational transformation.
Member Activities
Grin Natural and Yeyo exhibiting at the Sustainability Fair at Inclusion on The Bund
Trade Activities
Asia Fruit Logistica
ASIA FRUIT LOGISTICA returns to Hong Kong’s Asia World-Expo on 4-6 September 2024.
ASIA FRUIT LOGISTICA covers the entire fresh produce industry value chain and its service support companies, as well as the latest, innovative products and ideas. It offers a totally unique opportunity to develop new business, make new top-level contacts, and gather essential market information on every aspect of the fresh produce trade throughout the entire Asian region.
https://www.asiafruitlogistica.com/about-afl/
