Renee Hartmann, CFA (Founder)
Renee has more than 15 years of strategy, operations and consulting experience in China and the United States, focusing on cross border business including China Market Entry consulting for companies such as Under Armour, Horizon Hobby and Symphony IRI and US listings for Chinese companies such as NetEase and AsiaInfo.
Prior to founding HotPot Consulting, Renee co-founded and sold China consumer insights, strategy and design firm, Enovate (www.enovatechina.com), which counsels multinational and Chinese companies on selling to the emerging Chinese consumer. Renee is also a co-founder of Shanghai-based start-up lifestyle apparel brand, Eno (www.eno.cn). Eno owns and operates more than 25 retail stores in China, and designs and manufactures branded apparel targeted at China’s youth sector. Eno was named one of the Top Ten Most Innovative companies in China in 2010 by Fast Company Magazine (http://bit.ly/dlAugb).
Renee also spent six years in the financial industry as an equity research analyst in the consumer sector for Putnam Investments, as well as Director of Investor Relations for Ogilvy and Mather’s Mainland China practice.
Renee holds an MBA from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business and is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA).
Sage Brennan (Founder)
Sage first visited China in 1987 on a summer exchange in Beijing, and has been studying the language and culture ever since. Having lived in China for more than seven years, Sage has deep knowledge and experience in the technology, media and telecom sectors in China.
Sage was previously the General Manager of China’s leading independent investment research firm, Pacific Epoch (http://pacificepoch.com) where he provided in-depth China market intelligence on public and private companies in China, particularly in the gaming, Internet and media sectors. Sage has also served as the China Research Director for Pacific Sun Investment, as well as a Consultant for China advisory firm BDA (http://www.bda.com). In the United States, Sage was the General Manager of boutique winery Mountain View Vintners, and held sales positions in technology companies such as mobile telecom provider Nextel and network monitoring software firm ProactiveNet.
Sage is an active commentator on China’s technology sector, who is often quoted in publications such as the Wall Street Journal, CNBC, Bloomberg and others. He also authored a regular column on Marketwatch called Sage Brennan’s This Week in China.
Sage has also been active in developing international industry associations in China. He was the co-founder of the first Tedx conference in China – TedxShanghai, co-founded the Shanghai chapter of global mobile industry association, Mobile Monday, and helped to organize the “Geeks on a Plane” China tour, led by Silicon Valley super angel, Dave McClure.
Sage holds an MBA from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and is a lifetime Tar Heel fan.
