Meet our team

Paul Eschmann

Paul Eschmann joined Basel Area Business & Innovation as Head of Investment Promotion in March 2022.

He previously worked as Commercial Manager for a medium-sized food producer and was already working as Director Asia for Basel Area Business and Innovation. Before that, he was employed as a manager at Accenture Switzerland in the Legal & Commercial Services department and as a Commercial Project Manager at Siemens Power Generation.

Paul Eschmann has a Business Administration degree from the Duale Hochschule Lörrach. He also studied Law at the Universities of Regensburg and Erlangen. He was admitted to the German Bar in 2004.

Are you planning to expand and interested to read why others chose to locate their business in the Basel Area? Click here.

Bon Oh

Bon Oh has been working for Basel Area Business & Innovation since 2020.

Bon Oh is the founder and CEO of Aurum Care Management. Prior to that, he was Chief Operating Officer at Deloitte Consulting Korea. He also led the Life Science Industry Sector at Deloitte Korea and was the leader of the Strategy and M&A consulting service. In his different functions, he has supported top-tier multinational pharmaceutical companies and startups in Korea about their overseas expansion, R&D, supply chain management, and commercialization strategies.

Bon Oh holds a Bachelor in Business Administration and Mass Communications and a Master’s degree from the Graduate School of International Studies from the Yonsei University in Seoul.

Are you planning to expand and interested to read why others chose to locate their business in the Basel Area? Click here.

Daniel Meier

Daniel Meier has been with Basel Area Business & Innovation since 2016.

He has worked in various functions at the predecessor organization BaselArea since 2007. Before this, he worked as Senior Consultant with KPMG in the field of Corporate Tax and as Account Manager at MLP Private Finance for wealthy private customers.

Daniel Meier studied law at the universities of Basel and Bern.

Are you about to expand your business to Switzerland? It would be my pleasure to advise you personally. Please get in touch. In the meantime, learn more about setting up a business in Switzerland.

Diana Cortesi

Diana Cortesi has worked with Basel Area Business & Innovation since 2018.

Diana Cortesi previously worked in Strategic Sales and Marketing at Miele. She brings with her valuable professional experience in a variety of business sectors like pharmaceuticals, insurance and start-ups.

Diana Cortesi completed a trilingual degree in International Business Management, studying in Colmar in France, Lörrach in Germany and Basel in Switzerland, supplemented with a semester in Cambridge in the UK. She subsequently completed an MBA in Bern with a specialization in Corporate Development.

Are you planning to expand? You might find our six step guide how to set up your business useful, check it out here or contact me for more information.

Fabio Marelli

Fabio Marelli has been working for Basel Area Business & Innovation since 2020.

Prior to this, he completed internships at the Swiss Embassy in Berlin and at SWISS International Air Lines, and worked for Baloise and UBS during his studies.
Fabio Marelli studied economics at the University of Basel and graduated with a Master’s degree in Markets and Public Policy in 2019.

Are you planning to expand? You might find our six step guide how to set up your business useful, check it out here or contact me for more information.

Kirsten Detrick

Kirsten Detrick has been working with Basel Area Business & Innovation since 2023.

She is an Adjunct Professor of Business at Tuck/Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire and CEO of two biotech startups. Previously, Kirsten was Chief Commercial Officer of Endpoint Health where she drove the organization’s efforts to expand to Switzerland and the UK.

Kirsten spent the majority of her life sciences career at Bristol-Myers Squibb, Amgen and Takeda. Notable international assignments include Head of Global Commercial for Takeda’s Gastroenterology team in Zürich; General Manager/Managing Director of Takeda’s businesses in Austria, Czech Republic and Slovakia; Global Marketing and Commercial Development Senior Director for Amgen with a focus on corporate expansion into Japan; and Director for Worldwide Marketing Effectiveness with BMS.

Kirsten Detrick holds a Masters of Business Administration from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Middlebury College with a major in Chemistry.

Are you planning to expand and interested to read why others chose to locate their business in the Basel Area? Click here.

Nathalan Charmillot

Nathalan Charmillot joined Basel Area Business & Innovation as Manager Investment Promotion in 2022.

Previously, Nathalan worked as a Financial Controller and Business Intelligence Analyst at the Hôpital du Jura.

He completed his bilingual Bachelor’s degree in Management at the University of Fribourg. Afterwards, he went on to graduate with a Master’s degree in Business Innovation at the University of St. Gallen (HSG).

Are you planning to expand? You might find our six step guide how to set up your business useful, check it out here or contact me for more information.

Shwen Gwee

Shwen Gwee joined Basel Area & Business Innovation in 2024.

He is the founder of #GenAI4Pharma, an Executive in Residence at Springboard Enterprises, an advisor to PharmStars and several startups and works as an independent consultant specializing in Digital Health, Corporate Innovation, and Generative AI.

Previously, Shwen was the VP/Head of Global Digital Strategy at Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS), leading digital innovation across the enterprise and chairing the Digital Advisory Board. Before BMS, he co-founded and led Open Innovation at Novartis BIOME.

Shwen studied behavioral neuroscience at Northeastern University, completed doctoral research at Cambridge University, and earned a “Chief Digital Officer” certificate from Northwestern Kellogg School of Management.

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Valentina Francia, PhD

Dr. Valentina Francia joined Basel Area Business & Innovation as Manager Ecosystems & Investment Promotion in 2022.

Valentina worked as a biomedical researcher in academic institutions in Italy, the Netherlands, and Canada before coming to Basel. She is an expert in pharmacology, gene therapy, and nanotechnology and she brings with her extensive experience as a communication manager for pharmaceutical scientific societies, project accelerator for academic and industrial research networks, and conference organizer.

Valentina received her master’s degree in molecular biology at the University of Milan (Italy) and she holds a PhD in nanomedicine and pharmacology from the University of Groningen (the Netherlands).

Are you planning to expand? You might find our six step guide how to set up your business useful, check it out here or contact me for more information.