Shanghai | In Conversation with UBC Sauder Leaders

Warren Spitz is an entrepreneur, philanthropist, and investor. He is founder and CEO of the Spitz Group of Companies, which includes UCS Forest Group. Actively giving his time to numerous organizations, Warren is currently Chair of the Faculty Advisory Board at the UBC Sauder School of Business and is on the Board of NOW Health Group. Additionally, Warren is a member of the Chief Executives Organization (CEO), Young Presidents Organization (YPO) and the Entrepreneur’s Circle of the Canada American Business Council (CABC). Previously, Warren served as President of the International Wood Products Association, Board Chair of the TD Toronto Jazz Festival and was on the Board of the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). In 2012, Warren was a recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal for his work in support of Canadian military families. With his family, in 2015, Warren created the Spitz Fellows Program for Indigenous Women at UBC Sauder.

Belinda Wong oversees Starbucks business in the Chinese mainland, focuses on executing its purpose driven China growth agenda. Beyond reimagining the third-place (store) experience and pioneering transformational digital innovations, she is responsible for leveraging Starbucks scale for good to enable thriving communities, as well as sharing Starbucks passion for coffee by helping to cultivate coffee culture and building a leading specialty coffee industry in China. Belinda is a member of Starbucks global executive leadership team, contributing more than 30 years of rich field knowledge and leadership in China and the Asia Pacific region to the company’s global decision making.

Since 2011, Belinda and her leadership team have led Starbucks China to achieve unprecedented growth and transformation, earning the reputation as one of the most successful multinational brands in the market. From fewer than 500 stores, China grew to become one of two lead markets for Starbucks and a vital engine fueling its global business growth and performance. Today, 60,000 passionate partners (employees) wear the green apron proudly across more than 7,000 stores in over 800 Chinese cities. The company will open a new store every nine hours to reach 9,000 stores by 2025, creating over 10,000 new jobs a year. 

Belinda serves on the Faculty Advisory Board for her alma mater University of British Columbia’s Sauder School of Business, and is an INED for Hysan Development Company (0014.HK) and Canada Goose Holdings Inc (GOOS.TO). In 2020, she was among only 10 recipients to be presented the “Magnolia Gold Award” by the Shanghai Municipal Government, in recognition of her continued outstanding contributions towards Shanghai’s economic and social development. She also appears regularly on lists of most powerful businesswomen by Forbes and Fortune, both in China and internationally.