Sihan Yang: Business Owner

Sihan stands with her arms folded smiling at camera

Sihan Yang

BSc Economics, 2011

Based in:

China

First job:

I worked in Michael Page as a Head-hunter and led four teams in Retail, Consumer Sales, Education, Property, and Construction.

Business Owner, Suzhou QL Trading Co Ltd and Haenim Technology Co. Ltd

Describe your current role and what attracted you to it.

I am a business owner running my own brand, SMARTcare, which focuses on premium home appliance products, especially in the baby market. It’s 80% online and 20% offline. I am passionate about establishing myself in the business world, and, of course, making money!

What’s your favourite part of the role?

Making our own business strategy, developing products, and competing with other brands.

What are the key skills you learnt at Warwick that have helped you with your career to date?

People skills. Warwick is a big university, so it attracts students from all different areas with different backgrounds and majors. It was a great opportunity for me to listen and learn from them, and to make friends with them, which helped me a lot in the future.

Did you have a specific career path in mind when you chose to study at Warwick?

I wanted to be a businesswomen from the first day I went to Warwick.

What top tips do you have for Warwick graduates who would like to work in your sector?

Join a big corporation first to learn, then find your strengths to set up own business. Also, having a good partner is very important.

What has been your greatest career challenge to date and how did your experience and skills help overcome it?

When I worked at Michael Page, a UK-listed headhunting company, before starting my own business, I was the youngest person to achieve China’s Annual Top Sales and maintained that position for many years. The biggest challenge was figuring out how to beat the other more experienced consultants in a very short time. I think the most important thing is learning. You must know how to learn and ask the right questions first, understand why they succeeded or failed, and then you can come up with your own logic and ideas.