Wharton clubs visit businesses in Asia, Europe

For the Wharton Europe Club and the Awareness of International Markets group, spring break was not highlighted by the usual sunny beaches and partying. The Wharton Europe Club visited London during the break and the AIM group sponsored a trip to Hong Kong and Taiwan. Wharton Europe President Raphael Rottgen, a Wharton sophomore, said the trip helped foster an awareness of European business ventures. "We were bringing students to Europe to give them first-hand experience," he said. Wharton and Engineering senior Jennifer Wei said that AIM's visit educated students about the business climate in Hong Kong and Taiwan. "The whole purpose of AIM is to expose students to international markets," she said, adding that the intention was "to learn about business and culture first-hand in Hong Kong and Taiwan." Students on both trips also attended presentations by corporate executives. Andy Prindl, chairperson of London's Nomura Bank, gave a lecture to Wharton Europe about the company's operations and the effects of the recent drop of the dollar. Students also spoke with representatives of PFA Consulting, a high-tech European company, and the BET Corporation, a large cleaning and catering company in Britain. Members of AIM met the chairperson of the Far Eastern Group, a textile company, and the Editor-in-Chief of the Asian Wall Street Journal. They also visited a Phillips electronics factory and attended a lecture by two members of the Hong Kong Legislative Council. Toward the end of the week, the students in London took part in a mixer with members of the Wharton Alumni Club. Rottgen said the gathering gave students a chance to be introduced to the heads of various companies in different industries. "The purpose [of the mixer] was to give students an informal opportunity to meet executives," he said. Wharton Europe students also visited prominent London landmarks such as Buckingham Palace and Westminster Abbey. They traveled outside of London and went to -- among other places -- Oxford, Cambridge and Edinburgh. The students on the Hong Kong/Taiwan trip visited the National Palace Museum and Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall in Taipei, the Taiwanese capital. They also took a cruise in the harbor surrounding Hong Kong and several students went into southern China and visited Macao and Shenzhen. Rottgen said the group enjoyed the trip immensely. "There was a very positive resonance at the end of the trip," he added.