Lina Hu, CEO, Chairman and Founder of Clipper has been selected for the cover and feature profile in the 25th Anniversary issue of Minority Business Entrepreneur magazine.

The issue of MBE will provide a closer look at this dynamic business leader that built Clipper into a leading global designer, manufacturer and distributor of supplies and uniforms to market-leading companies such as Burger King Corporation, The Home Depot, Denny’s Restaurants, Target, and Olive Garden. In many ways, Lina Hu’s struggles and successes embody the classic American dream. Hu grew up in an economically depressed China with dreams of making it big. She learned what she could about production from family and friends as her country struggled to become a world power. After saving enough money for a one-way ticket in 1992, Hu made the leap and came to America. She arrived with no friends, contacts, or knowledge of the English language and was unable to even land a job as a dishwasher.

Hu realized she would need to forge her own path to the success she had sought since childhood. The next two years were spent juggling odd jobs while focusing on learning the language and building the contacts she would need to start her own business. In 1994 she literally went for broke, putting everything she had into opening Clipper. Finding herself down to the wire, Hu’s perseverance and dedication converted a chance opportunity to meet with a Burger King Corporation executive into an order for over one million crew caps.

“What looked like an overnight success for Clipper was actually a lifetime of preparation, risk and sacrifice,” recalls Hu. She leveraged the capital and cache from this first deal into a momentum that has propelled Hu and Clipper into a modern day Cinderella-style success story. Now Clipper currently provides a wide range of uniform and foodservice supplies to Burger King Corporation while also counting a multitude of market-leading corporations and Fortune 500 companies as customers.

Hu’s dedication to provide creative and intelligent solutions that enhance brand experiences has allowed her to go beyond simply offering high quality products at cost effective prices. She has stoked a culture of innovation at Clipper that can be seen from The Home Depot’s signature bright orange aprons to Clipper’s patent-winning solutions found in the kitchens of leading foodservice brands. Along the way, Hu garnered recognition for her achievements and the success of her company, including this latest honor from Minority Business Entrepreneur.

Founded in 1984, MBE magazine is published by Minority Business Entrepreneur and serves as a nationwide forum for minority and women business owners, corporations and government agencies concerned with minority enterprise development. Each issue also features the success story of a prominent minority or female entrepreneur whose life and accomplishments may serve as a role model for others.

The magazine’s 25th anniversary issue featuring Hu will hit newsstands in October. In addition to the cover and feature story, Ms. Hu will be an honored guest at MBE’s 25th anniversary party this October during the NMSDC (National Minority Supplier Development Council) conference in New Orleans.