Key note speaker three:
Lim Siong Guan, group president, government of Singapore Investment Corporation

Mr. Guan is the only government officer among all the invited guests. He is very friendly and got a little bit of humor in his personality but his presentation is just too formal and he relied much on his scripts.

He mentioned the open-up of Singapore’s first Casino which happened on Chinese Lunar New Year Day, Feb. 14, 2010. The introduction of Casinos to the city for the first time is obviously a key part of a drive to boost tourism revenue which is especially needed in face of the recession. However, the real interesting thing is that local residents, not foreign visitors, are required to pay a $72 fee to the government each time they enter a casino. Unlimited entry for each casino requires a $2000 annual fee.

From governors’ perspective, this policy is placed to limit local residents’ attendance and prevent people from dangerous gambling.

Singapore, as we all know has always tried to bring in skillful and educated immigrants. That’s why the country, slightly more than 3.5 times the size of Washington DC, can always stay atop on the list of GDP per capita. Mr. Guan, making no exception, didn’t forget to recruit presented students to go to Singapore at the end of his speech.

Key note speaker four:
Arun Sarin, former CEO of Vodafone, senior advisor at Kohlberg Kravis Roberts

Arun is the last speaker of the conference who has brought up the whole event to its summit. His speech is not only vastly informative but also filled with emotional impact. He has elaborated on the challenges that a company will meet while doing business globally and he strongly encouraged young people to get outside of the U.S. to see the large world.

During his speech I caught up one point that he briefly mentioned – Vodafone’s 3% share in China’s largest telecom carrier, China Mobile, which is much less than its investment in India which is about 70% or 80%. I asked why it is only 3% in China and he said it was already a privilege that they have got from China’s government. This point actually echoed with Scott Matlock’s statement that China has much more limitation than India on foreign capital investment.

He’s already retired from Vodafone. However, it excited everyone sitting in that room to listen to the most talented and experienced CEO in the world.

Consumer panel:

“Consumer” is always the most interesting topic for me. I’ve complained to my American friends before that why the food in KFC or Pizza Hut was so unpleasant than in China? I was also wondering why people here don’t like Wal-Mart which is my favorite shopping center in Beijing? It’s so enjoyable to listen to veteran marketers from Wal-Mart, Gap and H&M to discuss these questions. Here I’m listing two key points concluded from the panel. (Mr. Harris, I saw your trackback to my post. I thought of you as not only a lawyer but also an experienced marketer, in the context of that panel. Thank you for coming to the conference; I enjoyed your panel so much.)

1. China is a manufacturing country. However, we are mostly surrounded with “cheap price and low quality” products. Western brands, no matter which one it is, have generally enjoyed a good reputation in terms of quality. This perception of Chinese people has enabled the upgraded brand positioning of Wal-Mart, KFC, Pizza Hut, etc. In fact, these brands are really popular and successful in Asia. Same stories can be seen with Hagen Daz, Levi’s.

2. Retail is tough business. In a manufacturing country, it’s very hard for a boutique store to compete with local brands which feature much lower prices, not to mention the vast amount of knock-offs which can appear over night after a new product launch. That’s why the director from H&M said the company had to play with the economy of scale and chose the best location for its retail stores in China.

To be continued…