Utah has more people learning Chinese as a second language than anywhere else in America and nearly one in five Utah jobs are tied to international trade. To understand why, Chris Marquis talks to Utah-based entrepreneurs with businesses focused on China. Jon Garrison recently co-founded EnRoute Global, a company that provides inflight entertainment for Chinese airlines like China Southern and Sichuan Airlines. Previously he was an executive at Dalian Wanda Group. Derrick Porter leads one of the biggest players in the hair and eyelash extension market, Beauty Industry Group and he also serves on the board of the Utah World Trade Center. He discusses the supply chain of the hair product industry, and his company’s rigorous transparency and traceability program to ensure ethics compliance.
They discuss what makes the state of Utah such a hotbed for international trade, including but not limited to the missionary trips from the Mormon church, historical reasons, Utah’s international focus, and the educational institutions.
