A Letter Home

Champlain College International Business major Eduardo Vasquez ’10, checked in with his business professor Joseph O’Grady about his experiences after graduation. His success story, which is highlighted in the new Division of Business video, is one we also want to share with you.

Dear Prof. O’Grady,

Hope all is well with you and your family and you are having a good semester so far. I hear this winter has been very snowy but that is part of living in Vermont! I just wanted to give you an update on my life as I am now living and working in Hong Kong. I have been here for six months now and I have settled in very well. I am working at a company called Kerry Properties (www.kerryprops.com), which is a large-scale property developer (residential, commercial, and retail) in Hong Kong, China, and other southeast Asian countries. It has been a big change but a very refreshing one. I am working in the marketing and sales department (Prof. Jay McKee would be happy to know!), which has been very interesting and challenging but my Champlain education has definitely come in handy.

I am the only “Westerner” in the company as of now, which has its pros and cons. They often ask me to give insight on projects as they enjoy having a fresh perspective, but at the same time language barriers and cultural differences make it difficult. Some of the projects I have been working on include a new residential tower located in Happy Valley, Hong Kong, which is an area known for horse racing. We are in the process of naming the tower and coming up with a marketing theme, which is sometimes the most challenging part of the development!

I have also been assigned the task of creating the pricing model for another residential project in Wong Tai Sin. The project is called “Lions Rise” and it is named after Lion Rock, which is a famous mountain near the project. That project has a total just under 1,000 units on top of a shopping center and is due to be sold in May, (www.lionsrise.com.hk).

The experiences and knowledge I have gained have been invaluable and I recommend to everyone to step outside of their comfort zone and do something that really challenges them as this is the best way to learn. Everyone has told me that in today’s “global community,” cultural awareness and appreciation is important, and being here I couldn’t agree more.

The hard work and determination of the Chinese people has created a society based on ancient traditions, yet modern enough to be competitive with every other so-named “developed” country I have visited. It was a tough decision for me to pack up and leave everything I knew and am comfortable with and come to a strange country with strange food and start life all over again, but I will never regret the decision and I encourage others to do the same.

If I can be any help to Champlain College or yourself being in Hong Kong, please let me know. I would be more than happy to meet with prospective students and talk about the school and Burlington.

Best Regards, 
Eduardo