Richest man sets sights on foreign projects

The richest man on the Chinese mainland, beverage tycoon Zong Qinghou, plans to invest in high-tech projects overseas and will continue buying trips to Europe to expand his newly launched shopping mall businesses in China.

Zong, chairman of Hangzhou Wahaha Group Co, the country's largest beverage group, says it is looking for projects involving high-end technology such as energy-saving electric motors, robots and biotechnology.

"I hope to introduce this technology and expand manufacturing and sales in China," says Zong, listed as the richest on the Chinese mainland this month by wealth research unit the Hurun Research Institute, with a fortune of 82 billion yuan ($13 billion).

Zong says many European countries have been open-minded on high-technology exports.

"Only if they sell their technology can they invest further in higher-level research," says Zong, who has been seeking suitable investment projects.

To seek investment opportunities in oil and natural gas exploration, he traveled to resource-rich countries and visited drilling platforms, but the cost was higher than he expected.

"Sometimes, you need to have long-term vision and wait for the right projects," he says. Last year, Zong started to enter the retail market by opening a luxury shopping center, WAOW Plaza in Hangzhou, capital of Zhejiang province, selling medium-to-high-end luxury brands from top European designers.

The group invested 1.7 billion yuan in the first phase, with plans to establish another five to 10 shopping malls next year and a total of 100 nationwide in five years, he says.

The company plans to regularly buy designer fashion products from Europe.

"We are targeting second-tier luxury products, which have not set foot in China yet," says Zong, who visited Spain and France last year, and is expected to approach fashion brands in Germany and the United Kingdom.

"Italy and France are overwhelmed by top designers. We need new and dynamic second-tier brands to freshen young Chinese people's minds.

"We haven't got the best deals yet," he says of the purchases in Europe. "But as we expand our operations, we could get better prices and then sell more. It is a win-win for both sides."

While many Chinese enterprises have gone global, Zong says he is not accelerating overseas competition but is aiming to expand the market in China.

"You would be kicked out if you are competing with local businesses when their market is sluggish," he says. "But if you go there solving their sales problems, they will welcome you."

wangzhuoqiong@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 03/08/2013 page21)