Giada Zhang

A Chinese-born, Italian-raised entrepreneur with international experience across Italy, the United States, Europe, and China, Mulan co-founded and leads Mulan Group.

Growing up between cultures, Giada spent much of her childhood trying to understand her identity. Today, she channels that experience into building bridges — between East and West, between cultures and markets.

Since the end of 2018, Giada has been the Co-Founder and CEO of Mulan Group, a leading Asian food company in Europe that produces high-quality, ready-to-eat Asian meals. Under her leadership, Mulan expanded from a B2B distribution model to an omnichannel platform, serving horeca, catering, retail, and e-commerce customers, and broadened its product range to include Chinese, Japanese, Thai, and Vietnamese cuisine. She has also led the company’s internationalization into Germany, France, Austria, and Switzerland, and oversees the import and export of Italian food products to China, promoting cultural and economic exchange.

Before founding Mulan, Giada worked in finance at J.P. Morgan and Goldman Sachs in London and in consulting at McKinsey & Company in Milan. She co-founded Women in Finance in Italy, supporting over three hundred women from seventy-six countries, and has served on boards including UNHCR Italy and the Italy-China Chamber of Commerce.

She has been featured in Corriere della Sera, Il Sole 24 Ore, and Fortune as one of the most influential young entrepreneurs in Italy. Giada was listed among the 50 most influential Chinese individuals in Italy and named one of StartupItalia’s “100 Unstoppable Women” shaping the future of the country. She was also the first Italian of Chinese origin to be included in Forbes 30 Under 30 for Food & Drink.