About Me

THE SHORT BIO

Christine Lu has been involved in cross border China business for the past 15 years. She has spent the last several years at the intersection connecting China and the U.S. via technology and cross border events and projects.

Based on a network of China contacts and her need to stay connected and current with China, Christine Lu launched a series of podcasts for Entrepreneur Magazine upon her return to the US and used that base of content to found The China Business Network. She sold her stake in the company in early 2009 and went on her version of a “sabbatical” which included being an organizer of two [re]think conferences, two GeeksOnaPlane tours, launching TEDxShanghai – the first TEDx in China and getting pulled into great advisory roles with companies like Tudou (one of China’s largest video sharing sites) and projects for orgs like the Hawaii Tourism Authority. Her current obsession is a cross border company called Affinity China - a private Chinese network providing access to unique luxury, lifestyle, and travel opportunities for its members as they go beyond China.

You can follow her on Twitter at @christinelu

THE LONGER BIO

Christine Lu has been involved in China since her family’s manufacturing and retail business entered the market in the early 90s. During the mid-90s she spent her summer breaks during college in Shanghai studying Chinese and interning for The American Chamber of Commerce.  In the late 90s her entrepreneurial instincts led her to design and launch two clothing lines in China’s first tier cities of Shanghai, Beijing and Shenzhen while simultaneously working to launch an internet/e-commerce site for women in China during the “dotcom bubble” days.

From 1999-2004, Christine served 5 years as head of Marketing for TV Shopping Network (TVSN), a joint venture funded by DFS Group (Duty Free Shoppers) founder Robert Miller’s private equity firm The Search Investment Group, Prudential Assets Management Asia, and IAC’s HSN (Home Shopping Network) Christine oversaw the company’s business development and incubated its e-commerce and direct marketing businesses in China. Her disruptive entrepreneurial nature led her to push internally for the launch of a mail order catalog business during the early stages of the TV Shopping Network’s growth in China. Within 2 years it accounted for 51% of gross sales from a monthly circulation of 700,000+ to its higher net worth shoppers in the company’s database.  Christine was also an active member of The American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai’s Marketing Committee.

Upon returning to the U.S., Christine produced a podcast show for Entrepreneur Magazine in 2007 called “The China Business Show” which led to her founding of The China Business Network. In 2009 she sold her interests in the company and remained active in cross border China initiatives that included co-organizing two GeeksOnAPlane Asia tours with Silicon Valley venture capitalist Dave McClure and bringing the first TEDx event to China as the first curator of TEDxShanghai. She was recently an advisor to Tudou ($TUDO), a leading video site in China and Miss Universe China. She is a shareholder in China based WA Regenerative Medicine and private shareholders club M1NT Shanghai. She has also served as the Liaison to China for the Oahu Economic Development Board in Hawaii.

She is currently the co-founder and CEO of Affinity China - a private Chinese network providing access to unique luxury, lifestyle, and travel opportunities for its members as they go beyond China.

Christine has a BA in International Relations from Boston University.

(photo: Robert Scoble)

The below is a micro-documentary of Christine giving an overview of the Shanghai segment of 2010′s GeeksOnAPlane Asia tour which included a meeting with Secretary Hillary Clinton, a visit to the Shanghai World Expo, Ignite Shanghai and Startup2Startup Shanghai. It was featured on TechCrunch TV.