Taipan's tale of progress

Over his more than three decades at Swire, Slosar has worked in the United States, Hong Kong and Thailand.

"When I started in the beverages business in 1998, one of the first places I went to was Zhengzhou," he says of his time as chairman of Swire Beverages in the capital of Central China's Henan province.

"At that time, the Zhengzhou bottler sold about 4 million cases a year. And now 16 years later, they sell 125 million cases." The group's most mature activity in China is the beverages business, he adds.

Slosar, who has two children aged 20 and 18, says although his work keeps him busy he tries to strike a balance between work and life in general.

"I like to go to the gym to keep fit," he says. "I also write book reviews for Hong Kong Club magazine. My wife, who is from Thailand－I need to be with her as well."

Experienced in a wide range of business areas, Slosar encourages calm even in times of economic crisis.

"Each business has its challenges and different businesses at different times can be difficult, but that's just business," he says.

He gives the example of the 2009 global financial crisis.

"In the spring of 2009, the Chinese economy was very badly impacted. All the factories in the Pearl River Delta just stopped for three or four months. That affected our cargo businesses very badly and our passenger businesses as well."

The trick is always not to let emotions get in the way, he says, adding: "Don't get too self-congratulatory when things are good and don't get too down when things are bad. Try to stay on a stable level."

Swire has three ongoing real estate projects－Taikoo Li Sanlitun and Indigo in Beijing and Taikoo Hui in Guangzhou, South China's Guangdong province. All are bustling modern developments which are leading shopping, dining and entertainment destinations. The group's property business tends to be retail-led, Slosar says.

"Our real expertise seems to be bringing together brands, in an attractive and interesting environment that facilitates people having a chance to shop for those brands. Maybe there are some offices, hotels and service apartments involved, but the real leader of the business for us is retail. That's where our skill is."

Swire will be busy with property in China over the coming years, he says. "Properties only just broke even last year (in China). Five years from now, it should be doing quite well."

Due to open soon, for example, the Daci Temple Project in Chengdu, capital of Southwest China's Sichuan province, is a retail-led mixed-use development.

Another major project, the Dazhongli project in Shanghai, will combine office space, retail and hotels and is expected to be up and running by late 2016.

A joint venture project with China's CITIC Real Estate is set for Dalian in the northeastern province of Liaoning. The retail property will hold residential units, which marks the group's first experience with a residential project in the country.

A key feature Swire maintains with its Chinese projects is not just in construction, he says, but also in the running and operation of the buildings in order to develop and encourage businesses. This approach is not followed by all developers.

"Our philosophy is to do things in the long term that can really add value, where focusing on excellence (and) on quality can make a difference," he says.

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