George, founder of the Group, was appointed to the Board on 6 March 2003 and re-elected on 28 April 2008. Having led and grown the Company to its outfit today, George continues to drive our strategic direction and development. With more than 30 years of industry experience, he has been instrumental in setting new standards in food trends in Asia and the Middle East.

George started his food and beverage business in Taiwan in 1982, successfully growing it into a chain of 21 Southeast Asia food outlets within a decade. Returning to Singapore in 1992, he founded Topwin Singapore and subsequently Megabite China in 1996, establishing the food court businesses. In 2000, he started the bakery business with BreadTalk Pte Ltd and eventually brought it to list on the SGX in 2003. To facilitate expansion plans, the bakery and food court businesses were strategically merged in 2005.

George holds a Doctorate in Business Administration (Honorary) from Wisconsin International University, USA. Amongst other awards, he won the Ernst & Young "Entrepreneur of the Year 2006" (Emerging Entrepreneur Category) and "Entrepreneur of the Year 2002" organised by the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises and The Rotary Club of Singapore.

Katherine was appointed to the Board on 6 March 2003 and last re-elected on 30 April 2007. She oversees the Group's research and development, as well as pioneers new ideas and concepts.

Responsible for product development and enhancement for our various brands both locally and globally, Katherine also formulates product training and technical skill upgrade programmes to ensure proper transfer of knowledge and skills to our franchisees in line with our local operations so as to sustain product quality. In addition, Katherine spearheads product costing, which is an integral part of strategic pricing.

Katherine has more than 15 years of experience in the industry. She was previously the Finance Director of Topwin Singapore prior to which she was in charge of the human resource and operations of more than 20 food and beverage outlets in Taiwan.

Kuo Hua was appointed to the Board on 30 April 2003 and last re-elected on 27 April 2006. He sits in the Audit Committee, Nominating Committee and Remuneration Committee of the Company and is also the President of the Group's China operations.

Kuo Hua has more than 20 years of industry experience in providing consultation and strategic planning in various countries such as the PRC, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore. He has held various senior positions in Topwin Singapore and Megabite China prior to joining the Group, whereby the food court businesses were merged into the Group.

Kuo Hua holds a degree in Drama and Mass Communication from the Chinese Culture University, Taipei, Taiwan.

Kian Min was appointed to the Board on 30 April 2003 and last re-elected on 30 April 2007. He is the Lead Independent Director, Chairman of the Audit Committee and Nominating Committee, and member of the Remuneration Committee of the Company.

He was called to the Bar of England and Wales in 1988 and to the Singapore Bar the following year. In addition to practising as a consultant with Drew & Napier LLC, a leading Singapore law firm, he is a senior adviser of Alpha Advisory Pte. Ltd. (a financial and corporate advisory firm) and an executive director of Katana Asset Management Pte. Ltd. He also serves as an independent director and chairs most of the audit committees of several other SGX-ST listed companies.

Kian Min was awarded the President's Scholarship and Police Force Scholarship in 1979. He holds a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) external degree from the University of London and a Bachelor of Science (Honours) Degree from the Imperial College of Science and Technology in England. He has been a Member of Parliament of Singapore since January 1997, and serves as Deputy Chairman of the Government Parliamentary Committee (GPC) for Transport.

Soo Sen was appointed to the Board on 14 August 2006. He is the Chairman of the Remuneration Committee, as well as member of the Audit Committee and Nominating Committee of the Company.

Soo Sen is currently the Director, Chairman's Office of Keppel Corporation Limited. He also holds directorships for a few listed companies in Singapore.

Soo Sen is a Member of Parliament for Joo Chiat Constituency. He was previously a Minister of State and had served in several ministries including the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports, Ministry of Education, and Ministry of Trade and Industry. Before entering the political scene, he was involved in the starting up of the China-Singapore Suzhou Industrial Park as its founding chief executive officer in 1994, laying the foundation and framework for infrastructure and utilities development for the industrial park. He holds a Master in Management Science from the University of Stanford, USA.