2018年CRI Young entrepreneurs in Jinjiang seeks ways of innovation

 

Jinjiang City in Fujian Province used to be known only as "China's shoes and clothing capital". Young entrepreneurs in the city are on the hunt for innovations to meet the challenges the affluent¹ coastal² city is facing.

Li Zixing came back to Jinjiang in the southeast of Fujian province in 2013 after spending two year working in Beijing for a Hong Kong-listed logistics company.

He now serves as the general manager of the Fujian Dry-port Group.

The group began to operate the dry-port in Jinjiang in 2009, offering customs clearance³ services to more than 2,000 companies.

Li Zixing believes that the changing business landscape in what was once "China's manufacturing capital" would help support the development of the Dry-port Group.

"Before I decided⁴ to start a career in Jinjiang, I did a lot of research and I found that the market prospects⁵ were pretty good. Jinjiang was undergoing rapid industrial modernization⁶ and transformation⁷, and its export-oriented economy was growing fast, which I thought could be a huge opportunity for the land port. It was also a chance for me to make good use of my expertise⁸ in logistics. In order to adapt to changes in the global retail⁹ market, in 2014 we set up a public service platform for cross-border e-commerce. In the years since then, we've seen our businesses, like international container services and cross-border e-commerce services, growing nicely."

Jinjiang's dry port now accounts for more than 90 percent of the province's total dry port trade. It's the second largest port of its kind in the country, topped only by the Yiwu International dry port in Zhejiang.

Official statistics show that the total volume of imports and exports at the port reached over 5.7 billion US dollars, increasing by nearly 40 percent in 2017.

Another major enterprise headquartered in Jinjiang is LILANZ, a leading Chinese menswear brand.

Wang Junqing is the deputy marketing¹⁰ director of LILANZ.

He came back to Jinjiang after studying in Britain in 2009. He then went through the tough process of transforming his family's business into a modern and competitive innovative¹¹ enterprise.?

Wang has been a part of the family business for much of his life, starting out when he was a teenager working as a shop assistant at his father's clothing store.

The now 34-year-old has witnessed the ups and downs of the businesses.

"After years of development, we tried expanding our business into other areas, but ultimately we failed. It's proved to be true that if you are dedicated¹² to one thing, you are more likely to be successful. We firmly believe that it's only if we put all our energy and efforts into one area that our business can grow. After our company was listed in Hong Kong in 2009, after several rounds of financing, we've been increasing our investment into projects in our clothing businesses. We always take garment production and brand management as our priorities."

After years of rapid sales growth, LILANZ stagnated¹³ in 2012, when overseas orders slumped¹⁴ and authorities in China rolled out new quality standards for textile products.

To survive the economic downturn and the stricter industry standards, the garment manufacturer started to upgrade its production lines and brought in teams of designers from overseas.

Wang Junqing said that these changes allowed them to adjust to the rapidly changing market condition.

Compared with his father's generation, Wang is more open-minded and willing to try novel ideas when it comes to the company's brand and marketing strategy, although this has not been without conflicts.

But the results of Wang Junqing's efforts can be seen in the company's financial reports for the years that followed. Sales growth increased by 10 percent in the second half of 2017, and the total value of orders for the spring and summer season was 20 percent up on last year's result.

Jinjiang is home to 48-thousand enterprises. More than 800 of them have an output value of over a hundred million yuan.

It's expected that the young entrepreneurs who are more open-minded than their parent's generation will lead the way for companies trying to find new ways to achieve growth into the future.

1 affluent   

adj.富裕的，富有的，丰富的，富饶的

参考例句：

• He hails from an affluent background.他出身于一个富有的家庭。
• His parents were very affluent.他的父母很富裕。

2 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

3 clearance   

n.净空；许可(证)；清算；清除，清理

参考例句：

• There was a clearance of only ten centimetres between the two walls.两堵墙之间只有十厘米的空隙。
• The ship sailed as soon as it got clearance. 那艘船一办好离港手续立刻启航了。

4 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

5 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。

6 modernization   

n.现代化，现代化的事物

参考例句：

• This will help us achieve modernization.这有助于我们实现现代化。
• The Chinese people are sure to realize the modernization of their country.中国人民必将实现国家现代化。

7 transformation   

n.变化；改造；转变

参考例句：

• Going to college brought about a dramatic transformation in her outlook.上大学使她的观念发生了巨大的变化。
• He was struggling to make the transformation from single man to responsible husband.他正在努力使自己由单身汉变为可靠的丈夫。

8 expertise   

n.专门知识(或技能等)，专长

参考例句：

• We were amazed at his expertise on the ski slopes.他斜坡滑雪的技能使我们赞叹不已。
• You really have the technical expertise in a new breakthrough.让你真正在专业技术上有一个全新的突破。

9 retail   

v./n.零售；adv.以零售价格

参考例句：

• In this shop they retail tobacco and sweets.这家铺子零售香烟和糖果。
• These shoes retail at 10 yuan a pair.这些鞋子零卖10元一双。

10 marketing   

n.行销，在市场的买卖，买东西

参考例句：

• They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
• He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。

11 innovative   

adj.革新的，新颖的，富有革新精神的

参考例句：

• Discover an innovative way of marketing.发现一个创新的营销方式。
• He was one of the most creative and innovative engineers of his generation.他是他那代人当中最富创造性与革新精神的工程师之一。

12 dedicated   

adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的

参考例句：

• He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
• His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。

13 stagnated   

v.停滞，不流动，不发展( stagnate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The balloting had stagnated, he couldn't win. 投票工作陷于停顿，他不能得胜。 来自辞典例句
• His mind has stagnated since his retirement. 他退休后头脑迟钝了。 来自辞典例句

14 slumped   

大幅度下降，暴跌( slump的过去式和过去分词 )； 沉重或突然地落下[倒下]

参考例句：

• Sales have slumped this year. 今年销售量锐减。
• The driver was slumped exhausted over the wheel. 司机伏在方向盘上，疲惫得睡着了。