28 Jan 2026 · 1 min
Heidi Dugan, CEO of Arete, got national TV exposure in China through years of trust with the government and consumers. Her cooking show made audiences curious about her life beyond the program, but she says TV isn't the only path: Instagram and guest appearances work too.
To be honest, I think that China is a very difficult place, and I was at the right place at the right time to be able to be fortunate enough to get that. I'm highly aware that being able to live broadcast on national TV is something that has only been permitted me because of the years of trust that I've built up with the government, with the Chinese consumer and the public. So I don't think that national TV always has to be the best way. But you can replica what we did on other platforms, for instance, on Instagram, or even be a guest and talk about whatever it is that you're an expert in on those shows. And that's what my show was, a cooking show. But that's not why people love me. People started to love me because I was on a cooking show, and then they became fascinated with my life and who am I? So it naturally after that, people want to delve a little bit deeper when they know that sort of you, they've got that basic structure there.
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