China is where Fritz Demopoulos (’97) decided to launch his career and make his life after b-school. Turning down a lucrative ― and stable ― offer in Europe, Demopoulos trusted his instinct for opportunity and headed for Asia.
The decision paid off.
Demopoulos founded Qunar, China’s biggest online travel company, and Shawei, its largest web-based sports portal. He’s held senior positions at Net Ease and The News Corporation and worked as an executive in the Chinese media, internet and wireless industries. An entrepreneur and investor, he is a founding partner of venture capital firm Queen’s Road Capital, which focuses on entrepreneurial investments across Asia.
Demopoulos launched his first business as a youngster — partnering with a cousin to pass out advertisments for a nickel per flier — and the feeling of freedom and independence still thrills him, he says. Before earning his MBA, he worked in aerospace but didn’t take to the institutional vibe. “At Anderson, it was the first time I was genuinely exhilarated,” Demopoulos says, crediting the school with helping him make a profound decision: “To take control of what I’m doing in life.”
That process was energizing. Anderson’s location proved crucial as well. “You need to be in a major economic center to get an amazing education,” he says. “If you’re in Manhattan, L.A. or the Bay Area you’re just in the middle of all sorts of cool stuff.”
Then there are the connections he formed. Demopoulos says he built “amazing relationships” while in business school, including the lifelong friendships he forged with Professors Bill Cockrum and Al Osborne (now Anderson’s interim dean). Demopoulos found Osborne especially inspiring, often asking himself “What would Al be doing?”
Now, Demopoulos wants to provide opportunities for others, as his own Anderson experience did for him. He has made significant gifts to UCLA Anderson, including support for the Velocity Women’s Leadership Summit and the Center for Management of Enterprise in Media, Entertainment & Sports (MEMES) board fund. He has also created a student fellowship named for the foundation associated with his venture firm.
Demopoulos’ decision to support UCLA Anderson is rooted in his personal values and history. “I have two daughters (Emma and Elise) and I want to make the world a better place for my daughters, so that they have opportunities,” he says of his decision to support Velocity. “I hope to see it continue to grow and have an impact.
“We’re (also) supporting MEMES, and as a media industry person, and a media industry entrepreneur, it’s really important to me,” Demopoulos says. His involvement in the media center is not limited to financial support; his participation as a board member is indispensable, says Jay Tucker (’09), MEMES’ executive director.
“Fritz is a brilliant alum,” Tucker says. “He has launched unbelievably successful companies in a part of the world many Americans find difficult to understand and he has a passion to share what he knows with our students.” Demopoulos is generous with his time and his financial support.
Opportunity, Demopoulos believes, is everywhere. “In a nutshell, and to echo (UCLA Anderson Professor and UC Regent) Peter Guber, the next generation needs to focus on what no one else is doing.”
With alumni like Fritz Demopoulos providing support, the possibilities are endless.
Demopoulos’ generous support adds to the school’s $300 million fundraising effort, Into the Next: The Campaign for UCLA Anderson. To date, more than 12,500 donors have given an astounding $295 million to the campaign.
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Posted by: Pooja Srivastava | 07/03/2018 at 02:58 AM
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Posted by: smartbeing | 07/03/2018 at 01:34 AM