On October 11, 2006, Hurun’s rich list was posted on the same day. Zhang Yin, 49, was in the United States. Almost overnight, Zhang Yin's name was popular across the country. The emergence of Zhang Yin, the “richest woman”, also broke the pattern of men’s position that has always been the leader of the rich list.

In the 7 months before the release of the Hurun Rich List, Nine Dragons Paper was listed in Hong Kong, which became a turning point in Zhang Yin's career and was the main reason for her to be on the top list of Hurun’s wealth list.

The papermaker who once refused to board the list was low-key and humble. Until the Hurun Rich List was announced on October 11, the wealth behind Zhang Yin was announced before everyone.

Rich Runner producer Hu Run said that Zhang Yin is the richest independent entrepreneurial woman in the world, and the role of Chinese business women has undergone a "dramatic change."

The accusation of this year's "sweatshop" has also made the Dragon Paper vortex. Faced with many domestic and foreign media, Zhang Yin personally returned to respond to the explanation. The huge empire that has been built up so hard should not be ashamed for pointless accusations.

Before October 11, 2006, people barely knew anything about Zhang Yin. The reporter had previously interviewed her at the 10th Anniversary Celebration of Nine Dragons Paper, but at the time she never thought that she would become the richest man in the future.

The discovery of her is also full of chance. This even the makers of the Hurun Rich List acknowledged. Five years ago, Hurun's research team learned that there was a very big entrepreneur in Dongguan, but this entrepreneur is not known to the outside world. They started to contact Zhang Yin and they received a categorical rejection. In 2003, the mysterious Zhang Yin first boarded the “Hurun Rich List” and ranked 17th with 2.5 billion yuan in assets. As a result of this list, Hurun received Zhang Yin's lawyer letter because she did not want to list.

Deep in the "sweatshop" vortex

Since Zhang Yin became the richest woman, there have been more and more news about Nine Dragons Paper. Zhang Yin’s speech at the two sessions was bombarded. In April this year, she was deeply immersed in the “sweatshop” vortex. The tree attracts a great deal of praise in the dragon paper industry and Zhang Yin.

On April 15 this year, the non-governmental organization, the Hong Kong University Student and Supervisory Unscrupuled Enterprise Action (SACOM) issued a survey report, which will make Nine Dragons Paper ranked first in China, second in Asia, and eighth in the world. Paper-making enterprises are characterized as "sweatshops" and "shame of Hong Kong enterprises." The report accuses its work environment of being dangerous, and accumulates money through work-related accidents, and “uncertainty” and other unscrupulous acts.

The crisis is blowing. On May 7, at the press conference held by Nine Dragons Paper, Zhang Yin and other senior executives of Nine Dragons Paper all attended the event. Zhang Yan, who was listed as China's richest man by Hurun Fortune in 2006, feels a bit "awkward."

Zhang Yin said that the key to the success of Nine Dragons Paper is to find a business model of “turning waste into treasure”, recycle recycling of waste paper, create a resource-based, environment-friendly new papermaking model, and achieve commercial expansion instead of relying on it. It is bad for employees to accumulate wealth.

She said that Nine Dragons Paper is a capital-intensive company and its staff costs only account for 4.7% of turnover. In 2007, Dongguan’s average monthly social wage was 960 yuan, and Xiao Long’s helpers’ monthly salary was around 1,500 yuan. Xiao Long currently has no "temporary workers", and the number of assist workers accounts for less than 20% of the total number of employees. The company has signed labor contracts with all employees according to the "Labor Contract Law."

In response to the accusation of “frequent accidents at work,” the person in charge of Xiaolong stated that the injury rate and injury rate of its 100 million yuan output value are far lower than the average value of Guangdong Province; and the person in charge of “accumulating money from work accidents” said that it was "The nonsense." Referring to the Employee Handbook, which was heavily criticized and contained many unreasonable penalties, the person in charge of Xiaolong said that the manual had expired in 2005. The new Employee Handbook passed in August 2007 does not contain any money involving fines.

Facing the SACOM report and the negative impact it caused, Zhang Yin said, “We will always welcome goodwill. As a responsible company, we have the courage to face and work to improve some of the inadequate areas of business management. Everyone can Feel free to visit our company and see what it is like."

The crisis has passed and Xiaolong continues.

Family history

Rely on "waste paper recycling" fortune

Zhang Yin was originally from Shandong Province and was born in the Northeast. After completing his studies, he worked as an industrial accountant at the factory and worked as a financial manager in a joint venture company under Shenzhen Trust, until he worked in a Hong Kong trading company for packaging paper.

The Chinese papermaking industry in the early 1980s was almost blank, and many varieties of paper rely on imports. In 1985, Zhang Yin was commissioned by a Chinese paper mill to go to Hong Kong to purchase waste paper and began to move into the field of converting straw-pulp paper to environmentally friendly paper. She quickly learned about the shortage of paper in the Mainland and the huge market potential.

In 1985, the 27-year-old Zhang Yin quickly made a decision and resigned from the good job in China. She took 30,000 yuan alone to marry Hong Kong and set up a waste paper acquisition company.

By 1987, Zhang Yin began to select investment partners in China. The first stop was her birthplace in the northeast. The joint venture between Zhang Yin and Liaoning Yingkou Paper Mill soon achieved success. Later, she also conducted joint ventures with Wuhan Dongfeng Paper Mill and Tangshan Paper Mill in Hebei Province, and the investment scale further expanded. In 1988, Zhang Yin established his own wholly-owned factory in Dongguan, Dongguan Zhongnan Paper Co., Ltd., which mainly produces household paper. The products cover all parts of the country and are widely invested in paper making in China.

Divert the United States to create a paper kingdom

In 1990, Zhang Yin and her husband Liu Mingzhong made the decision to relocate their businesses to the United States, the world's largest raw materials market, where they established the US-based South China Holdings, established cooperative packaging and waste paper recycling businesses with supermarkets and shopping malls, and transported recyclable products for Chinese factories. Waste paper.

Careful Zhang Yin also used opportunities that others did not find. A large number of containers carrying exported goods were returned empty when they returned to China. Zhang Yin used only a very low freight to transport US waste paper to China. In the following 10 years, the United States Central South Holding established by Zhang Yin successively set up seven packing plants and transportation companies, becoming a truly “waste paper recycling king”.

In 1996, China's high-end packaging paper appeared to be in short supply, especially high-grade cattle paperboard, and almost all imported from abroad. In the same year, Zhang Yin invested 110 million U.S. dollars in the construction of Nine Dragons Paper in Dongguan, producing waste paper from the United States as high-grade cattle cardboard. In July 1999, Zhang Yin continued to inject 110 million U.S. dollars for the second phase of the project expansion. In 2004, Zhang Yin invested again more than 100 million U.S. dollars for the third phase of the project expansion. Zhang Yin is such a step-by-step approach to the achievements of today's paper industry.

family

Husband is her good helper

According to the public data of Nine Dragons Paper Co., Ltd. in 2006, the total market value of Nine Dragons Paper was approximately 37.5 billion yuan. Zhang Yin and her husband Liu Mingzhong and brother Zhang Chengfei Holdings own 72% of their shares. Among the nine directors of Nine Dragons Paper, Zhang Yin, Liu Mingzhong and Zhang Chengfei are executive directors, and one son is a non-executive director.

Zhang Yin's husband, Liu Mingzhong, was born in Taiwan, grew up in Brazil, graduated from a prestigious university, and is fluent in English and Portuguese. Zhang Yin and her husband met in a trade. At that time, Zhang Yin's career had been very successful. Liu Mingzhong's status was a doctor, he had several clinics, and he also served as a steel trader. After the two got married, Zhang Yin's career grew bigger and bigger, and she thought of pulling her husband into business. After some consideration, Liu Mingzhong promised Zhang Yin.

Reporter's notes

Dongguan Folk "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon"

A company engaged in the waste paper business created a richest Chinese woman. Dongguan's civil Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is a consensus of many people. The Wang Jincheng family, who was once known as the richest man in Dongguan, is still low-key. This is the usual style of the wealthy in Dongguan and unwilling to advertise.

Behind the bustling, the crisis of Xiaolong is only one aspect of the problem. All rich families have always been blamed for the development of the family; and how many families in Dongguan continue to be a problem that needs to be considered. Competitiveness is so important in such an era.

Dongguan is also facing environmental and corporate upgrading issues. It also faces many problems with the new Dongguan people. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon's Dongguan-rich family can do more. The miracle in Dongguan is far from over.