Fresh start: Bates veteran David Meredith now a food and wine importer

Meredith, former chief talent officer of Bates Asia, left the agency last year, and has set up his own business called Tas’Mania, which imports fresh vegetables, seafood, wine and honey from Tasmania to Hong Kong.

Meredith started at the bottom at Bates Australia, working as a messenger in the dispatch department. During his three-decade career in the ad industry, he worked for F&B and hospitality clients including Mars Food in Europe, Australia and Asia, Four Seasons Hotel, Mira Hotel and Mandarin Oriental Group.

A native of Tasmania, Meredith has also been running the boutique Islington Hotel in his home country for the past 10 years. Meredith is proud of that fact that Tasmania has the world’s "richest soil, freshest air, cleanest water".

He told Campaign Asia-Pacific that many people are concerned about food quality in Hong Kong, especially after numerous food scares in China. This is the main reason he set up Tas’Mania to import fresh seasonal produce.

His business model is online and home delivery, with high-end partners, including the American Club in Tai Tam. Utilising the extensive relationships he has built up in the advertising industry, Meredith plans to do food promotions at key restaurants and hotels. He has recently run promotional events with celebrity chefs like Wong Wing Chee, owner of the posh Dragon Seal Restaurant in West Kowloon, and Lara Giddings, Premier of Tasmania.

He is looking to partner with high-end supermarket chains to have standalone refrigerator units with QR codes to directly connect with the grower's history.

Meredith wants to test the market in Hong Kong with the hope of expanding the business into China.