GfK's Andy Zhao Named as Nielsen China President

In Shanghai, former GfK MD Andy Zhao has been appointed as President, Nielsen China, with responsibility for all business activities in the mainland People's Republic.

Zhao (pictured) joined GfK in 1994 and most recently served as MD for North East Asia, leading the company's business across China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan and Korea. While working for GfK in Japan, he set up the China division, and in 1996 he transferred to Hong Kong as General Manager, involved in establishing the Chinese headquarters. He then moved to Beijing to set up GfK Asia's Beijing office, and he founded and became General Manager of GfK Retail and Technology China Co. Ltd. in Shanghai. In addition, Zhao is President of the APAC Market Research Committee and Vice President of the China Market Research Association.

In his new role, he reports to Patrick Dodd, Group President - Growth Markets, who comments: 'Andy brings over twenty years of senior leadership experience from across multiple industry verticals including retail, eCommerce, electronics, telecommunications and IT, and has led a number of highly successful acquisitions and strategic alliance initiatives with a range of local and global players. I am fully confident that Andy's leadership will enable the Nielsen China team to drive success and help our clients realize continued growth within China's ever-evolving market'.

Web site: www.nielsen.com .