Simple is a busy woman.
She works for BlueFocus, China’s leading integrated marketing and advertising agency. As the General Manager for the entire Shanghai Brand Centre, she is responsible for around 200 employees.
She builds relationships with clients, shapes marketing strategies, manages multiple departments, and makes sure that the entire Shanghai operation is profiting and running smoothly. She is notorious for responding to texts at midnight.
BlueFocus has 100 offices in 10 countries, but the Shanghai office that Simple is responsible for is one of the largest. Her clients are some of the world’s leading brands, like Canon, Pepsi and Mercedes.
Before achieving a role that many people dream of, Simple lived at Vita Student First Street, in Manchester. She moved to the UK in 2019 to study for her MBA at Alliance Manchester Business School, which is a part of the University of Manchester.
“My experience of living at Vita Student was an amazing journey. The experiences made life-long, unforgettable memories for me and I cherish the friendships I built from spending time with mates at Vita.”
Any international student moving to the UK will tell you that the transition of starting a new life, in a new country, isn’t easy – especially when you have the British weather to contend with. But Simple found her second home in Manchester, making memories that would last a lifetime.
“I enjoyed Manchester… Even though it rained a lot.”
“I loved the cultural diversity, music and arts of Manchester. I appreciate the community spirit and people often come together to support one another.
“I felt a bit nervous at the very beginning [of life in the UK]. My class was made up of 113 people from 30 countries… I was worried about the learning pace and the language barrier. However all my classmates were so helpful and thoughtful so after only one week, I got used to living in the UK.
During her early studies, Simple knew that she wanted to work in marketing. Its fast pace keeps her hungry and passionate for progress.
Working across different industries like lifestyle, automotive, fashion and tech gives her a diverse day-to-day and encourages her to keep learning. It’s “cool” to be a marketer, she says.
“One of the most challenging and interesting things is I and my team need to quickly learn about the industry of our client.
“Then through comprehensive data analysis, we help our client find a winning point for their marketing promotion.
“However, the requests from my clients and the whole changeable Chinese marketing environment always motivates me to keep fresh and hungry to refresh my industry knowledge.
“These experiences are full of fun, so I’ll never get tired of my job.”
Although Simple is leading a thriving career and is incredibly busy in her role, she still makes time to stay a part of the Vita Student community through our Alumni network in China.
