Duluth Native and China Expert

JAMES McGREGOR SPEAKS AT UMD

Duluth native and China expert James McGregor to Speak at UMD October 12. Sponsored by the Labovitz School of Business and Economics.

James McGregor, author of the book One Billion Customers: Lessons From the Front Lines of Doing Business in China will speak at UMD at 11 a.m. on Thursday, October 12 in the 4th Floor Rotunda of the new library at UMD. The event is sponsored by the Labovitz School of Business and Economics.

McGregor, originally from Duluth and graduate of the University of Minnesota School of Journalism, is a journalist-turned-businessman who has lived in China for nearly two decades. McGregor’s China career began in 1985 when he backpacked through China to explore the country and decide if he wanted to learn Mandarin and focus on being a journalist in China. At the time, McGregor was a reporter on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. for Knight-Ridder Newspapers. McGregor’s 1985 trip to China convinced him that China would be the most interesting place in the world during his lifetime.
In 1987, he and his wife Cathy, both age 33, sold their belongings and moved to Taipei, Taiwan, with two suitcases each and began studying Mandarin. McGregor established a freelance news service, and within six months was hired as The Asia Wall Street Journal Taiwan bureau chief. In 1990, McGregor moved to Beijing as The Wall Street Journal China bureau chief. From 1994 to 2000, McGregor was chief executive of Dow Jones & Co. in China, and a vice-president in the Dow Jones International Group. From 2000 until 2003, McGregor was a partner and the China managing director for GIV Venture Partners, a $140 million venture capital fund specializing in technology investments in China and India. He is currently a China business investor, advisor and entrepreneur, who regularly “commutes” between Duluth and Beijing.

McGregor is a frequent public speaker and television commentator on China. He is regularly interviewed by the major network nightly newscasts, as well as by CNBC, CNN, PBS, NPR and BBC. He also has appeared on many public affairs shows, ranging from Nightline to Firing Line.

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