Mark Andrew Stribbling is in an interview of Haining TV.

I first traveled to Haining in 2001. I was working for a leather chemical company and had heard from my German friend in Sydney (where I was living at the time), about a company called Kasen that he was working with so I flew to Shanghai and jumped in a taxi to head for Haining. This was the start of my Chinese journey. I joined Kasen one year later at the invitation of Mr. Kasen to help set up an automotive leather operation and to help with opening up doors to the international car manufacturers overseas. My first impressions of Haining were mixed, as I was quite new to China I was not used to the food and understood none of the language. My Chinese language skills are still poor but I soon got used to Chinese food! The local people are very friendly and it was easy to become comfortable.

I met my future wife Kelly in Shanghai in 2002 and we married 7 years later in Haining. Now we have an 8 year old daughter who is now in Year 3 at school.  Kelly cooks Chinese food at home and sometimes I cook western food as well.  We are lucky to have our own restaurant where we can also eat together!

I set up my own little bar in 2005 with the help of the Haining government foreign investment department. I was still working for Kasen and they were very supportive for me to do it as I felt there was a business opportunity in Haining for a truly western style bar with western food due to the many foreigners doing business in Haining.

I have lived in Haining now for more than 18 years. It always amazes me to see all the changes that take place on an almost daily basis. In the eye of a foreigner, the living environment is very pleasant, there are plenty of restaurants to visit, and the development of areas such as the new Zhejiang University campus is spectacular.  

Mark Andrew Stribbling’s wife Kelly and their daughter Raina Stribbling have a good time in the garden at home.

Traffic on the roads is still reasonable without the huge traffic jams experienced in the bigger cities of China. The business environment is impressive with a government that is very supportive to business development. I have traveled to many cities in China. Hangzhou and Anji are two places that I enjoyed especially for their natural beauty; Wuzhen was for me a fascinating experience seeing the real old China in such a beautiful setting. I walked for hours amongst the old wooden buildings imagining what it must have been like more than a thousand years ago. My daughter loves to stay in hotels when we travel but they must have a swimming pool as she loves to swim whenever she can.

Haining is the city I am happy to return to. I have made my home here, my daughter was born here and I am proud to say that since the early days of setting up my bar I have changed location and greatly expanded the business. Now the Oasis Brewery & Steakhouse has flourished. Since we have introduced real craft beer to Haining, we as the first micro-brewery have seen that the Haining locals also appreciate the natural, additive-free taste of real craft beer!

Now I have retired from the leather business and focus on my restaurant and bar business and support my partners to introduce new dishes, ideas and concepts to keep our business interesting and competitive. I am happy to stay in Haining and look forward to seeing all the changes in the next 18 years. I believe that the Oasis Steakhouse and Brewery will continue to play an important role in Haining not only as a hub for foreigners and Chinese to get together, socialize and find new business contacts and opportunities but also by contributing to Haining’s international image.