Dear British Business Club members,

It is with great delight that I write to you for the very first time as your new British Business Club President. I wanted to start by saying that I hope this note finds you, your families, loved ones, friends and colleagues all safe and well in this very challenging Covid-19 situation we find ourselves living in.

I would like to say a huge thank you to Don Scott, our Honorary Chairman, for the trust and belief he has shown by selecting me for this position, one that I feel proud and privileged to accept. Don has put so much of his life into building this club and of course for the last few years our dear friend Luke who was so tragically taken from us continued to move it forward, I do recognize that I have very big shoes to fill. I also wanted to recognize Edward Johnson, our new Vice President, and Svetlana Kondrashina-Scott, our Administrative Director, for all the work they have done over these last few months in keeping the BBC active and meaningful.

As some of you heard on Wednesday evening, I do have ideas that are supported by Don, Eddy and Sveta on what changes we would like to make as we start chapter 3; however, it is important to recognize and retain the uniqueness of the BBC, a club that crosses over all businesses, has members of many nationalities and as Eddy stated on Wednesday “is fun” to be part of.

My vision for the club includes myself, Eddy and Sveta working very closely together and in addition the formation of a BBC Committee and pool of volunteers before the end of 2021. The terms of reference are still being designed for the committee but will include the shape, number of people and proposed meeting schedule. On the committee which I intend to make as inclusive and diverse as possible we will need people who want to take an active part in helping with event organization, marketing, communications, and IT.

In terms of activities, I would like to see the BBC more actively involved with families and children, sport, culture, music, fashion, classical and celebratory events along with building deeper relationships with other business associations, the UK Embassy, and the Church as examples. Now I do realize that this can appear aspirational, but I also believe that done at a measured pace it can all be achieved, especially with your help and support.

Thus, my simple two requests are as follows. If any BBC member would like to be considered for either a role on the committee or just as a volunteer for different events or activities, I would ask that you drop a note to myself, Eddy or Sveta. In addition, we would welcome any ideas you may have yourselves for what you would like to see from the BBC and the type of events you would like us to consider. The contact details for all three of us can be found below.

I will finish by saying that personally I am very excited to have been given this opportunity, my discussions with many people on Wednesday evening confirmed to me how much people deeply care about the BBC and want to support where they can. I do look forward to meeting many more of you at future events and listening to all your ideas.

Kind regards,

Chris Mawer
BBC President  

Our contacts: 

Christopher Mawer +7 985 997 3580, 
[email protected]

Edward Johnson +7 915 183 3688, 
[email protected]

Svetlana Kondrashina-Scott +7 916 651 4048,
[email protected]