Hampshire Asian Network (HAN) Committee
The Hampshire Asian Network, helping Asian businesses from Basingstoke to Southampton, Andover to Portsmouth and beyond has a Committee that has been formed to provide direction and move issues along so that it is more than just a "talking shop".
The Interim Chair of the Committee is Ian Welland and Jimmy Chestnutt, CEO of Hampshire Chamber of Commerce is also pleased to be on this Committee working for the membership.
Hampshire Asian Network (HAN) is an integral part of Hampshire Chamber of Commerce.
HAN interprets ‘Asian’ in its broadest cultural sense and welcome businesses from all sectors, sizes and communities to become an active part of the network.
The Committee List below comprises of:
Jimmy Chestnutt, Chief Executive - Hampshire Chamber of Commerce
Jimmy joined the Chamber in 2005 having spent the previous 11 years with Associated British Ports, as the Deputy Port Manager and Harbour Master for the Port of Southampton. In 1996 he was appointed Marine Advisor to the ABP Harbour Authority and Board.
Rashmi Chande – Perrys Art & Office Supplies
Rashmi Chande is a founder and co-owner of Perrys Art & Office Supplies, Southampton, founder and Chairman of the East Street Traders' Association, a former Board member of Southampton Chamber of Commerce until it merged to become Hampshire Chamber of Commerce and a long standing member of the Southampton Rotary Club.
Rashmi and his wife, Arvinda, who are both of Indian origin born in Tanzania, have run their family retail store specialising in the sale of art materials and stationery in East Street, Southampton, for the last 23 years. Today Perrys has become a leading name in its field in Southampton and Hampshire.
Rashmi was born into a business family in Tanzania, where his father, a self made businessman, successfully ran a rice, oil and a flour mill for over 33 years. He came to the UK in 1962 and studied in Bournemouth and later in Birmingham where he graduated in Business Studies. He subsequently worked in management in the machine tools industry, accountancy, insurance, advertising and public relations before taking over the village Post Office in Hamble in 1979, which he and Arvinda ran for nearly 9 years.
Rashmi hopes that HAN will become a leading voice for the Asian business community playing a vital role within the Hampshire Chamber of Commerce.
Sandeep Sesodia – Royal Bank of Scotland Group
Sandeep Sesodia, Relationship Manager, Corporate Banking, Royal Bank of Scotland covering Southampton and South Hampshire. 27 years in Banking and Finance. Sandeep has extensive experience in networking and working with customers and professional and business partners to look for solutions to help businesses grow and to develop mutually beneficial partnerships.
Jojar Singh – Solicitor, Lawcomm Solicitors (Chairman)
Jojar is a Litigation Solicitor at Lawcomm Solicitors, based in Whiteley. He graduated from Southampton Solent University with a LL.B (Hons) with Business degree in 2003.
Jojar joined Lawcomm Solicitors in 2006 and qualified as a Solicitor at Lawcomm Solicitors. He was instrumental in creating the Business Development Committee and enjoys taking an active role in the firms marketing, business development and networking.
With an eye for business Jojar quickly set up his first business in 2003 importing luxury leather goods from China and Canada for re-sale to retailers in the UK. In 2004 Jojar went to Canada to help the business grow, later returning to sell the business before finishing his studies. Today, Jojar is busy helping run the family-owned Property Investment Company in Chilworth, Southampton, and assists with projects the company has across Southampton, the South-East and in India.
Jojar was born in Southampton and takes an active role in his local community. He has set up key alliances with a number of organisations assisting them with their work including the Crown Prosecution Service in Hampshire and Isle of Wight, the Hampshire Chamber of Commerce, the Wheatseaf Trust, working with various SME's, Registered Charities and working with Educational establishments.
Sampuran Singh – Chilworth Holdings Limited
Sampuran Singh is Chairman of the Chilworth Group of Companies. He has a highly entrepreneurial approach to business which has led successfully to the creation of the Chilworth Group, of which he is the Chairman. The Group now consists of eight companies set-up around the world - UK, USA, Italy, India, France and Spain. He is a Director of the Board of all Chilworth subsidiaries having a key business development and entrepreneurial role to strategically drive the companies.
Sampuran joined the University of Southampton in 1976 and conducted research in the field of Electrostatics technology and lectured to undergraduates in material sciences. In 1980 he was awarded a prestigious Senior Research Fellowship from the Science Research Council to conduct research into pollution control using Electrostatic Precipitation Technology.
Sampuran has a comprehensive range of experience in working with a range of industries in Europe, Asia and the USA. He has secured and managed major research projects funded by the EEC and DTI and lectured in Europe, USA, China, Japan, Malaysia and India. Sampuran has served as an Honorary Secretary of Static Electrification Group (Institute of Physics) and as Technical Editor of the British Standards Committee on the revision of “Control of Undesirable Static Electricity, BS5958”. He has published technical papers and Edited Electrostatics Conference Series No.66, published by the Institute of Physics.
Sampuran belongs to several professional bodies including: Member of Institute of Physics; Member of Institute of Engineering and Technology; Member of the Electrostatics Society of America; Member of the Institute of Directors and Companion of Institute of Chemical Engineers
Jan Ward, President of Southampton Office - Hampshire Chamber of Commerce
Jan has been a member of the Chamber board for several years and is a keen supporter of the Hampshire businesses, and a champion of UK exporters. She took over as President of the Southampton office of Hampshire Chamber of Commerce in July 2009. Jan is a Mechanical Engineer by background and has spent 30 years working in the metals industry. She is the CEO and founder of Corrotherm International Ltd, a company which specialises in the supply of high alloys to niche markets. The company has been established for 16 years and has offices in UK, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Iran, India, South Africa and Libya.
Jan has also had 10 years experience acting in an advisory capacity to various UK government departments on local, national and international business issues. She has extensive contacts throughout the oil producing countries of the Middle East. She currently holds several advisory and non executive positions with various government departments and private limited companies.
Jan was the Nat West Everywoman Entrepreneur of the year in 2009 and a finalist in the IOD Director of the year Awards 2010
Ian Welland – Head of Area Development, Hampshire Chamber of Commerce
Ian joined Hampshire Chamber of Commerce as their new Head of Area Development in October 2011. Ian is the former Southampton City Centre Manager and former Director of Hampshire Chamber of Commerce (Southampton) Policy Board. Ian is well known for his support to the Asian business community, particularly as a presenter with Unity 101 radio, but also for hosting Chinese New Year celebrations at Bargate and promoting various events such as Southampton Mela to a wider audience. Previously, Ian has been involved with the Asian business communities in Slough and High Wycombe.
Dr Mike Wilkinson, Deputy Vice Chancellor – Southampton Solent University
Mike joined Southampton Solent Univerity as Deputy Vice-Chancellor in August 2010. He is responsible for student recruitment, marketing, the international office and commercial partnerships and oversees the activities of the Maritime and Technology Faculty. Mike was previously Pro Vice Chancellor at London South Bank University.
Mike is a frequent international visitor and has helped to establish strategic collaborations with several leading universities. These collaborations include the Confucius Institute for Traditional Chinese Medicine, London, and the Centre for Efficient and Renewable Energy in Buildings, both of which he chaired. Mike is a Visiting Professor at the National Academy of Education Administration, Beijing, China. His research interests include widening participation in higher education and leadership, particularly with an international dimension.
Mike studied at the University of Cambridge (Trinity College) obtaining an MA degree in Natural Sciences, followed by a PhD in Synthetic Organic Chemistry. He worked for Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI) - a global chemical company - for over 21 years in leadership roles in Research and Development, Marketing, Export & Licensing, Strategic Planning, Logistics and Business Management. This included extensive international work in Asia Pacific, America, Europe, the Middle East and Africa and secondments to live in Germany (4 years) and France (2 years), where he operated through the German and French languages. He worked with the steel, aluminium, domestic appliance and building sectors as customers and researched, developed and launched innovative, patented products into the market place. He has worked in the business-to-business and business-to-consumer sectors and has lengthy experience with household international brand names.
Ravindra Parmar - President of the Vedic Society Hindu Temple of Southampton; Member of Southampton Council of Faiths
Ravindra Parmar is the President of the Vedic Society Hindu Temple of Southampton and Member of Southampton Council of Faiths. Both these roles are voluntary but his profession is as a Global Product Marketing Manager for a very large multi-national firm. Through his position at the temple he is actively involved with the Indian community in and around Southampton.
Ravindra has worked extensively for large multi-nationals for the vast majority of his professional career. His roles have included electronic design engineering, software engineering, consultancy, project management, business development and product marketing. As part of his professional career, he has extensively visited and worked with a number of companies globally and has also had overseas sabbaticals.
Of Indian origin, Ravindra was born in India, brought up in Uganda but has lived in the UK for nearly 40 years; 23 of which have been in Southampton. He has a B.Sc(Eng) in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from University College London and an MBA from Portsmouth University. Being a keen sports person, he also participates in a diverse range of sports including badminton, martial arts, caving, windsurfing and golf.
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