Senior Advisors

Jack Chen (Founder and CEO, Transworld Capital Group)

Mr. Chen is the Founder and CEO of Transworld Capital Group. He has over 16 years of experience in managing complicated cross border M&A transactions that involve Western and Chinese companies. Mr. Chen was appointed International Investment Advisor to the Beijing Municipal Government in March2009. In his capacity as a trusted advisor, Mr. Chen helped to lead the successful acquisition of Delphi Corporation's braking and suspension unit in 2009 by a Beijing-based company, comprising the largest overseas acquisition by a Chinese company in the automotive parts industry. Previously he was with Barrington Associates ,the leading middle market investment banking firm in the Western United States (acquired by Wells Fargoin 2006), where he was the founding chairman of Asia Pacific Division. From 1993 to 1997, Mr. Chen was the co-founder and COO of Bestone Investment Group, Ltd., which acquired and took control of the largest cement company in China. Mr. Chen was honored as an Outstanding Overseas Alumni of the Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

Robert Imershein ( Managing Director, Loeb Enterprises)

Mr. Imershein is a Managing Director of Loeb Enterprises. He brings with him a proven track record in product creation, strategic leadership and relationship-building. Mr. Imershein provides strategic insight and deal-making expertise in directing the formation of Loeb Enterprises’ strategic partnerships. In addition, Mr. Imershein is the Managing Partner of the Pharmacy Discount Network.

Prior to Loeb Enterprises, Mr. Imershein founded Capstar Partners LLC – the second largest lease advisory firm in the world. The firm pioneered the development of new financing structures and closed over $75 billion of transactions. BNP Paribas acquired a majority stake in Capstar Partners in November 2001.

As Managing Director and Partner of the firm from 1990 to 2005, Mr. Imershein spearheaded many of the strategic initiatives of Capstar Partners. In this role, he applied his expertise in tax-advantaged financing and leveraged leasing as head of the Domestic Corporate Advisory Group where he led the new transaction origination efforts. He also initiated joint venture marketing arrangements with Deloitte & Touche, Morgan Stanley and LTCB Latin America and effectively cultivated long-term relationships with major corporate equity investors General Electric Capital Corporation, Philip Morris Capital Corporation and Verizon Capital Corporation. Mr. Imershein was previously a Vice President of Corporate Finance at Bankers Trust Company where he developed his expertise in tax-advantaged financing and leveraged leasing. He began his career as a Marketing Manager of Citibank’s Card Products Division where he was in charge of new Visa and MasterCard solicitations.

Dan Loeb (Senior Advisor, ARC China)

 Mr. Loeb is a member of the Fund‘s Advisory Board. Mr. Loeb is the Founder and CEO of Catavate Group, a strategy, management, and investment group committed to building fast growing consumer brands and retail businesses in China. Prior to founding Catavate Group, Mr. Loeb was the President of Starbucks Greater China, where he led a financial turnaround and strategic transformation to establish more than 700 stores, 5,000 partnerships, and four joint ventures as Starbucks‘ fastest growing global business unit. Mr. Loeb has served as the Chief Executive Officer of USG Sports China, where he led a private-equity backed merger to create a 3,000-store sporting goods retailer based in Shanghai operating branded shops on behalf of NIKE, Adidas, Puma, and other global brands. Mr. Loeb worked as the General Manager of NIKE China for 10 years and was a leader in NIKE‘s emerging markets businesses for 17 years. Mr. Loeb and has been recognized by J.P. Morgan as a ―Hands-On China‖ Expert

Michael R. Loeb (Founder & CEO, Loeb Enterprises) 

Mr. Loeb is currently the President and CEO of Loeb Enterprises. He was the President of the Synapse Group, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Time Warner, and its Chief Executive Officer from 1997 to December 2005. Mr. Loeb co-founded the company in 1992 with priceline.com founder, Jay Walker. Synapse grew to become the largest seller of consumer magazine subscriptions in the United States, leveraging its revolutionary and patented “continuous service” model to fundamentally change the industry. In 2004 and again in 2005, the company was named one of the 25 “Best Places to Work in America” among medium-sized companies. In 2001, Time Warner purchased a controlling stake in Synapse for a sum in excess of $500 million, completing that transaction in 2006. Prior to co-founding Synapse, Mr. Loeb had an eight-year career at Time Warner, where he held a number of positions including Consumer Marketing Director for Sports Illustrated and Vice President of Consumer Marketing of Entertainment Weekly. At Time Warner, he also helped introduce SI for Kids. Mr. Loeb was responsible for starting the direct response division of Deutsch Agency immediately prior to co-founding Synapse.

Denise Seegal (Senior Advisor, ARC China)

Ms. Seegal is a member of the Fund‘s Advisory Board. Ms. Seegal is a strategic global leader and CEO with proven success in brand building and management across multiple channels of distribution in the retail apparel industry for over 30 years. Her expertise in product development, merchandising, consumer focused marketing, and talent development has positively impacted the growth of apparel, accessory, and designer lifestyle companies including Ralph Lauren, DKNY, Calvin Klein, Liz Claiborne, and Nautica. In her last role as President and CEO of VF Corporation, Ms. Seegal revitalized the iconic Nautica brand and drove the growth strategy by elevating the brand, product, marketing, licensing, and geographic expansion. Ms. Seegal was the former CEO of Sweetface Fashion, where she leveraged the JLO celebrity brand for Jennifer Lopez by expanding into ten licensed product categories including fragrances with Coty. As President of Liz Claiborne Inc., Ms. Seegal drove the transformation of the core Liz Claiborne brand across all consumer touch points. Ms. Seegal also was the founding President of DKNY and launched six divisions in six years, collaborating with Donna Karan on the lifestyle brand vision. Ms Seegal holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Marketing Management from New York University.

Steve Westly

(Managing Partner of Westly Group and Member of the Advisory Board to the US Secretary of Energy, MenloPark)

 Prior to founding The Westly Group, Steve Westly served as the elected Controller and Chief Fiscal Officer of the state of California, the world's sixth largest economy. Steve was appointed as a member of the Advisory Board to the US Secretary of Energy in August 2010. As Controller of the state of California, he chaired the State Lands Commission and served on 63 other boards and commissions, including CalPERS and CalSTRS, the nation's two largest public pension funds, which together invest more than $350billion. During his four-year term, Mr. Westly spearheaded innovative tax programs that helped close the State's budget deficit and also led an effort to commit more than $1billion to clean technology investments. Before running for office, Mr. Westly helped guide the online auction company eBay through its period of most rapid growth, serving as the Senior Vice President of Marketing, Business Development, M&A, and International. Mr. Westly helped bring eBay to Europe and Asia and developed the marketing and acquisition strategies that paved the path for the firm's exponential grow. Mr. Westly began his career in Washington, D.C., where he worked first on Capitol Hill and later in the Office of Conservation and Solar at the U.S. Department of Energy. Mr. Westly holds a bachelor's degree and an MBA from Stanford University, where he served on the faculty for five years. Mr. Westly and his wife, Anita, run the Westly Foundation, which provides services for children and communities throughout California.