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Adventure in China
Can a small-town girl from the boondocks of China discover happiness in the international adventure-travel industry? Consider the tale of Zhang Mei (MBA 1996), “the daughter of a humble electrician” from one of the remotest and poorest regions of the country, as the South China Morning Post (January 8, 2001) reported. The article described how Zhang, through hard work and sacrifice, made her way to HBS and eventually founded WildChina.com, a firm that specializes in off-the-beaten-track tours of China’s scenic and culturally rich landscape.
A graduate of a provincial university in Kunming, where she excelled at English and law, Zhang went to work as an assistant and interpreter at the regional railway. She so impressed a visiting Thai bank president after interpreting for him that he offered to pay her way through HBS if she would later work for his bank. Zhang accepted the offer, but her initial enthusiasm was tempered when she arrived at the School. “I had only worked on projects in a state plan but I was being told about shareholder value, equity, and management,” she recalled. “It was all new.”
Zhang was a quick learner, however, and after the Thai bank released her from her commitment there (asking her only to repay its tuition costs plus interest), she worked at McKinsey for two years after graduation. Growing restless, she spent six months backpacking on her own through three continents, an experience that inspired the launch of WildChina.com. CEO Zhang has set up trips that include biking along the Silk Road, hiking pilgrimage trails in Tibet, or exploring Shanghai’s colonial past. “This year we will have several thousand clients, mostly foreigners,” Zhang said. “By 2002, we aim to have half foreigners and half Chinese.”
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