On April 8, Mr. Wu Jie, Chairman and CEO of Rifa Holding Group, accompanied the Zhejiang Business Delegation to visit the United States. The purpose of this visit is to learn about the cutting-edge information of American companies, especially the management of American companies, through close contact with American companies, entrepreneurs, and managers; Doubts in corporate practice; through dialogue with US government officials, the voice of Zhejiang merchants on behalf of Chinese entrepreneurs, so that the influence and image of Zhejiang merchants from a pure economic field to a broader social space. The visit will last two weeks and will involve multiple economic centers such as Chicago, Washington, and California. Due to the potential social value and news value of this event, the largest domestic financial newspaper "21st Century Business Herald" has preliminarily determined to conduct full and in-depth coverage of this event.
Mr. Wu first arrived at the University of Chicago with the delegation. As a representative of a well-known entrepreneur in Zhejiang, he combined his own experience and gave a speech on the establishment, development and inheritance of private enterprises in China.
Dear teachers, students, ladies and gentlemen of the University of Chicago:
First of all, I thank the organizers of this gathering for giving me the opportunity to come to the world-famous University of Chicago and gather with you in this picturesque and culturally rich place.
As we all know, the University of Chicago is a world-renowned private university. By the oil king j. D. Rockefeller donated funds to establish. It is an internationally recognized advanced academic research center and a world-renowned adult education pioneer. It comes from enterprises, and returns to enterprises with academic achievements and scientific innovation services. As a member of a Chinese private enterprise, I am deeply impressed!
Today, we are bathed in the University of Chicago and the brilliant sunshine, and we can experience its long and profound history and culture together. The theme of my speech is "A brilliant life, those who know are not confused". I will briefly introduce a family business that grew up in China, reviewing history, thinking about the current situation, and thinking about the future. Looking forward to making a splash!
The development of the Zhongbao Group has roughly gone through three stages:
At the beginning of the business
I was born in 1967. During the Cultural Revolution, Chinese society was impoverished and impoverished. The countryside is even more unbearable, and people starve to death every day during the years of the Great Famine. Poverty perishes most people, but it also awakens the prophet. In 1982, my father, an ordinary craftsman, took a great risk and took over a plastic processing factory with total assets of less than ten thousand U.S. dollars. At that time, China was a completely planned economy, and all materials were produced according to plan. State-owned and collective enterprises enjoy the largest resources and the most extensive privileges, leaving very little space for private enterprises. But there is an old saying in China that it is the heavens that make things happen, and the people that make things happen. The weather is bad, so it's all man-made. With hard work, thrift and diligence, his father slowly developed the factory in the era of scarce materials.
Reform and Opening
China's state-owned enterprises have their policy advantages, which is to concentrate social resources for large-scale production. But there are also unavoidable disadvantages: employees do more than they do, there is no incentive, no passion, and no creativity. And this is precisely what private enterprises can change through the reform of the distribution system. What my father lacked was precisely this kind of exploratory spirit and courage to reform. He could face political risks directly, not afraid of going to jail, not afraid of criticism. The times have created heroes. With the spring breeze of reform by Mr. Deng Xiaoping, he took the lead in launching the equity reform of Chinese private enterprises and became the first group of people to eat crabs. In a seller's market, when people's enthusiasm and creativity are fully stimulated, the arrival of wealth seems so natural: in 1990 the factory was transformed into a joint-stock company, and the Shanghai Stock Exchange opened in the same year. The company took the lead in becoming the first batch of joint-stock reform pilot enterprises in Zhejiang Province. . Since then, the enterprise has embarked on a new development path.
Geometric growth
We know that the fastest growth in numbers is geometric. Two in one life, four in two, sixteen in four...
In 1993, Zhongbao Group incubated the first company, Rifa Corporation, which was founded by me. This company was reorganized into a group in 2002 and now has three industrial groups: textile machinery industry, machine tool industry and parts industry. . There are more than ten legal person companies and hundreds of alliance companies. If it goes well, Rifa Digital will be listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange this year.
Less than a year later, Zhongbao Group initiated the establishment of Wanfeng Company. The aluminum alloy wheel company under its jurisdiction is currently the largest manufacturer in Asia. In November 2006, the automotive wheel company (Wanfeng Aowei 002085 sz) was listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange.
Through this geometric rolling development, the total assets of the Zhongbao Group now reach 1.5 billion U.S. dollars. In 25 years, the enterprise has been enlarged by 150,000 times.
The 26 years of enterprise development have been full of hardships and ups and downs. At the beginning, there were no policies, no resources, no technology, no market, and no talents. Looking back, I think it is nothing more than to answer the question of development. A group of parents who stood at the forefront of the times, with courage, perseverance, loyalty, hard work, and hard work, have achieved today's results. The development of China is also the enrichment of enterprise development.
This year, I am 41 years old and my own company is 15 years old. Confucius said: Forty is not confused. It means that when a person is forty years old, there is nothing to worry about or doubt. A more determined way of speaking is that at this age, there is no choice or the mentality to back down.
My father’s generation completed the primitive accumulation of wealth. Many people think that there is a problem of original sin. The most typical is to obtain huge wealth through bribery and reselling national materials. In the countryside, there are also privileges and resources available for use. I think the partners who came with me today do not have such privileges. Those with privileges cannot be industrialists, and wealth that is too easy to obtain is too easy to lose.
When I founded Rifa Corporation in 1993, my venture capital was 10 times more than that of my father, with US$100,000. I can use the money to buy equipment and recruit talents. Moreover, the central government had also encouraged the development of the private economy at that time, and many industrial parks were built in various places to introduce foreign capital and technology on a large scale. China is full of vitality and Vientiane is renewed.
And it is extremely rare that the demand at that time is also amazing, as long as there is man-made, someone will buy it. You can make a fortune in any business. I think most of the billionaires now are mass-produced in the early 1990s. Of course, as far as I am concerned, I am a person who has dreams and pursuits. First, I did not commit fraud, second did not commit piracy, and third did not be a bad man. But thinking about how to serve the country in industry, there is a slogan in our industry: We must equip China with Chinese equipment. Today, counterfeiters and sellers have been arrested, those who manufacture and sell pirated copies will face severe punishment by law, and the bad guys are basically extinct.
The dream of made in China has slowly become a reality. Perhaps the American people may not have a good impression of Made in China, but please allow me to express some of my views. Not long ago I saw a book "A Year Without "Made in China"" written by an American journalist. She has Feeling that the home is full of Chinese-made products, I can't help but feel sentimental: Without Chinese products, can we Americans really not be able to live? So in 2005, she decided not to buy any products made in China this year. During this year, she boycotted the products made in China, but she had to constantly comfort her husband who was aggrieved and wanted to rebel because of the sharp rise in household expenses. The youngest son’s wish fell through, and he suffered from not being able to buy birthday candles, shoes and other small items. 2005 became a year that drove her crazy. In fact, according to calculations by American economists, from cheap Chinese manufacturing, the average American family can enjoy savings of more than US$500. The more money spent on Chinese manufacturing, the greater the benefits. Its effect is believed to be comparable to the tax reduction plan introduced by President Bush. Therefore, Made in China is not a threat, but a win-win situation.
For the future, I believe that I also believe that the enterprise will continue to advance on a healthy track, as long as the world gives us a peaceful environment and everyone lives on the same planet in a friendly way. The world will only get better! In Zhejiang, as well as in Shanghai, Jiangsu, Guangdong, Fujian, etc., most of the enterprises are private enterprises, and there are very few state-owned enterprises. These provinces are the most energetic, wealthy, stable, and enlightened places in China. Chinese sages have said that they know the courtesy for the real estate, and the honor and disgrace for the food and clothing. The biggest social responsibility of entrepreneurs is to provide employees with adequate food and clothing.
In the inheritance of the family business, I also have high hopes for my son, just as my father expects me. The Mayor of Chicago Daly is a living case. The old Mayor Daley was in office for 21 years, and the younger Mayor Daley succeeded for another 20 years, and now that the term of office has not expired, breaking the record is expected. Mayor Daley was also named the best mayor in the United States. I think it’s good for a son to inherit his father’s business. First, he knows that his predecessors have had a hard time in starting a business. Today’s achievements are hard-won and will cherish them. Second, he has been inspired by his childhood and has been cultivated in the corporate culture. Third, he is taught by his father’s words and deeds. , Can grow rapidly; fourth, can make good use of and protect the elderly of the enterprise, and win the support of employees.
ladies and gentlemen!
Spring is the solar term for the renewal of Vientiane and the revival of all things, and it is also the season for sowing and farming. This time we bring the seeds of friendship, peace, progress, and development with friends in the Chinese business community. We hope that it can take root, grow, and bear fruit on American soil.
Finally, I wish my friends good health and all the best! Thanks!
