BRIGHTMEGA - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Board Advisor
- Business Executive
Jan De Silva is an experienced international business executive with a track record of excelling in on-the-ground leadership roles. As President & CEO of the Toronto Region Board of Trade, Jan is spearheading efforts to make Toronto one of the most competitive and sought-after business regions in the world. Prior to joining the Board, Jan spent 14 years in leadership roles in Asia. She served as CEO of Sun Life Financial's Hong Kong subsidiary and Mainland China joint venture. She co-founded and was CEO of Retail China Limited, which was acquired in 2010. She later served as Dean of Ivey Asia, leading the Hong Kong campus and Asia operations of Ivey Business School of Western University. Highly respected for her business advocacy and government engagement efforts, Jan has been named one of ‘Canada's Top 100 Most Powerful Women' and ‘Woman of our Time' by Hong Kong's South China Morning Post and made the Canadian Board Diversity Council's inaugural ‘Diversity 50' list.
We are focusing on competitive advantage of companies that able to create value through growth.
Joe Mimran is a retail, fashion, and business pioneer who has helped build some of Canada's most recognized apparel and lifestyle brands - Joe Fresh, Club Monaco, Pink Tartan, Alfred Sung, and Caban. Joe is also known for his starring role as a Dragon on CBC's hit show Dragons Den from 2015 to 2018 and is a champion of young entrepreneurs. He is currently Chairman of Gibraltar & Co, a venture capital firm in Toronto. Through his consulting firms, JM&A and NYBS, provides design and consulting services to major retailers such as Kroger in the US and Staples in the US and Canada. Joe also sits on the board of Canopy Rivers and Khiron. Joe was the honorary Chairman of the inaugural Canadian Arts and Fashion Awards, and the recipient of the Canadian Style Award. He has recently been inducted into Canada's Marketing Legends Hall of Fame. He's been featured in publications including The New York Times, Bloomberg BusinessWeek, and The Globe and Mail.
We are focusing on the competitive advantage of companies that able to create value through growth.
Sarah joined the CCBC in 2007 and has since revitalized CCBC's role as Canada's premier bilateral trade and investment organization. Sarah has re-centered the Council's activities around providing business services, catalyzing business growth and activity, and advocating for stronger Sino-Canadian bilateral trade and investment. This has resulted in extensive public outreach activities, internal infrastructure improvements, the launch of new programs such as the Business Incubation Centre, and thriving member relations. Prior to joining CCBC, Sarah worked for 11 years in marketing, product development, and management with a major multinational corporation, where she had multiple assignments involving China. Sarah managed worldwide product businesses that marketed to China and used China-based sources of supply. She was also involved in several projects requiring cooperation with the Chinese government. Sarah has led both established and start-up businesses within the context of a global corporation and has broad emerging market business experience, and has been involved in the Greater China region since the late 1980's when she lived and worked in Taiwan. There, she was the first non-Chinese employee of a local high-tech start-up firm, where she gained a deep understanding of Chinese business practices.