Mei Xu is a Chinese-American businesswoman who founded Pacific Trade International and its subsidiary, Chesapeake Bay Candle. Xu stepped down in November 2018 as CEO of Chesapeake Bay Candle. She is the CEO of Mei Xu & Co. LLC and its online platform, YesSheMay.com, a community and marketplace for women entrepreneurs.

Early life and education

Xu grew up in

Hangzhou Hangzhou ( or , ; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), also romanized as Hangchow, is the capital and most populous city of Zhejiang, China. It is located in the northwestern part of the province, sitting at the head of Hangzhou Bay, wh ...

, China. At the age of 12, she was among 80 children selected to be trained as a future diplomat and was sent to study at the

Hangzhou Foreign Language School Hangzhou Foreign Languages School (HFLS) ( Chinese: 杭州外国语学校 (simp.)/杭州外國語學校 (trad.)), colloquially referred to as "Hangwai"(杭外), is a grade 7–12 public high school located in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China. Founded ...

. After graduation, she attended

Beijing Foreign Studies University Beijing Foreign Studies University (BFSU; ), is a public university in Beijing, China. BFSU boasts the oldest language programs in China offering the largest number of foreign language majors on different educational levels. Located in Haidia ...

. While there, she worked as a part-time project manager for the

World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Inte ...

. She graduated in 1989 with a BA in

American studies American studies or American civilization is an interdisciplinary field of scholarship that examines American literature, history, society, and culture. It traditionally incorporates literary criticism, historiography and critical theory. Sch ...

. In response to the

Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 The Tiananmen Square protests, known in Chinese as the June Fourth Incident (), were student-led demonstrations held in Tiananmen Square, Beijing during 1989. In what is known as the Tiananmen Square Massacre, or in Chinese the June Fourt ...

, the Chinese government assigned menial jobs to many youths. Xu was assigned to track mineral deliveries at a warehouse in

Dalian Dalian () is a major sub-provincial port city in Liaoning province, People's Republic of China, and is Liaoning's second largest city (after the provincial capital Shenyang) and the third-most populous city of Northeast China. Located on ...

. Frustrated with the work, Xu quit and would eventually move to the United States to study

journalism Journalism is the production and distribution of reports on the interaction of events, facts, ideas, and people that are the "news of the day" and that informs society to at least some degree. The word, a noun, applies to the occupation (pro ...

at the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the Flagship un ...

. She earned a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

in the subject. After graduation, she hoped to return to work for the World Bank, but was thwarted by a hiring freeze.

Career

Xu first found a job at a medical company in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

. She would then return to

Annapolis, Maryland Annapolis ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland and the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east ...

, in 1994, co-founding (with her then husband, David Wang) Pacific Trade International, a candle and home decor company. She was initially inspired to create the company because of her frequent walk-throughs of a local

Bloomingdale's Bloomingdale's Inc. is an American luxury department store chain; it was founded in New York City by Joseph B. and Lyman G. Bloomingdale in 1861. A third brother, Emanuel Watson Bloomingdale, was also involved in the business. It became a divi ...

in New York. In its first year of operation, Pacific Trade International earned $500,000. Xu and Wang would experiment with candle-making in their home with wax poured into soup cans, ultimately creating the company's flagship brand, Chesapeake Bay Candle. In 1995, Xu's sister opened a factory in Hangzhou to manufacture the candles. In 2005, Xu founded an interior lifestyle brand, Blissliving Home. Two years later, the Asian Women in Business organization honored her with their Entrepreneurial Leadership Award. In 2011, Xu opened another production and distribution facility in Glen Burnie, Maryland. In 2014, U.S. Senator

Ben Cardin Benjamin Louis Cardin (born October 5, 1943) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the senior United States senator from Maryland, a seat he has held since 2007. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously was the U.S. representat ...

toured that facility. In September 2017, it was announced that

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York (state), New York; on the ea ...

company Newell Brands had acquired Chesapeake Bay Candle for $75 million. Pacific Trade International was not included in the deal, and Xu remains CEO of that company.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Xu, Mei Year of birth missing (living people) Living people American people of Chinese descent University of Maryland, College Park alumni American businesspeople