In Memoriam
Donald R. Altman
Donald R. Altman, one of the pioneers of US-China trade in the early 1970s and a resident of Greenwich, CT, passed away on November 20, 2005 at the age of 72 following a long illness. Don was born in Manhattan and grew up in Rye, NY, before attending the State University of New York. He served in the US Army during the Korean War. Don married Elizabeth Mary (Betty) Loosier in her hometown of West Point, GA, in 1955.
During the 1960s, Don was president of the Swedish company, Bonniers, a high-end importer of designer products and objets d'art for the home. He formed the Finnish Trade Development Co. in the late 1960s and introduced American buyers, such as Bloomingdale's and many other retailers, to Finnish and Scandinavian artisanal designers and manufacturers like Marimekko, Orrefors, Italia Glass, Finlandia Vodka, and Hamada, as well as the Japanese designer Noguchi.
Don was one of the first Americans to begin working and traveling in China in 1972, just after President Richard Nixon's historic visit in February that year. As such, Don is considered by his peers as a "pioneer" in the current vast US-China trade relationship. Don concentrated on assisting US firms to sell American-made goods and technology into China. Don's firm, Altman, Inc., based in the International Club in Beijing for more than 22 years, was one of the first American-registered firms permitted to do business in China. Altman, Inc. assisted in many projects, including the construction of factories and roads, and in various aspects of the chemical, automotive, aircraft, steel, textile, poultry, and pharmaceutical industries. Don was well known as a soft-spoken, effective negotiator between the many Chinese ministries that were just beginning to emerge from decades of communism and American corporations looking to enter this vast new market.
Often asked to speak about his experiences, Don was candid about the frustrations, intricacies, and rewards of melding communist bureaucracy with capitalist entrepreneurial spirit. Starting back in the 1970s, Don worked closely with a young American attorney, Clark Randt, the current US Ambassador to China, and with Paul Speltz, another young businessman at the time he started his work in China in 1972, who is the current US Ambassador and Executive Director for the United States at the Asian Development Bank.
Randt and Speltz, both contacted by the CBR, offered these comments: "I first met Don together with his colleague Paul Speltz at the Canton Trade Fair in October 1974, where we were among the small handful of Americans in attendance. I was a green rookie on my first visit to China, and Don, already a pioneering veteran, took me under his wing. For 31 years, Don Altman remained a friend and a source of sage advice. His personal warmth, quick smile, and gentle strength, even in the face of adversity, will not be forgotten by the many whose lives he touched," said Randt. "In those very early days of US-China trade, there were so few of us from the United States--a handful. In many ways, we counted on each other for support, and Don was an important part of that group as we began our businesses. I, for one, could not have succeeded without Don's good help," said Speltz.
John Holden, former president of the National Committee on US-China Relations, said, "Don Altman was a true gentleman who will be remembered with great affection by everyone who had the privilege of calling him a friend and advisor."
"The expression 'irrational exuberance' was unknown in Beijing in the 1970s, but it afflicted more than a few enterprising Americans in China at the time," recalled Gene Theroux, former vice chair of the US-China Business Council (publisher of the CBR). "A comment by Don showed the wise and humorous approach that helped make him successful. Well aware that the opportunities in China were significant, but that negotiations were always a challenge, Don quipped, 'It's important to let them know we're not as euphoric as they think.'" Theroux opened Baker & McKenzie's Beijing office about the time Don established Altman, Inc. there.
Don was a director of the US-China Chamber of Commerce with founder Prescott Bush; he was a director of the Finnish-American Chamber of Commerce and a member of the World Trade Club of Westchester.
Don is survived by his loving wife of 50 years Betty, son Robert, daughter Beth, brother James, and his seven grandchildren, Brooke, Justin, Kristin, Jay, Lexi, Eva, and Billy. He is predeceased by his sons, Thomas and John. He will be missed by his family and his many friends around the world.
— Family and Friends of Don
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