WHO IS ZHOU QUNFEI?!
Don’t tell me she’s one
Asian woman. Of course, the name already gives that away. So, do you know who
she is? Before I give you her summarized profile (trust me, she has a very
bulky one), let me just give us a quick reminder – Never ever allow your
background put your back to the ground.
Zhou Qunfei was born in
1970 at Xiangxiang, Hunan province, china (you don’t necessarily have to
pronounce it. Lol!... Just keep reading). She was the youngest of three
children and from a very wretched family – calling her family ‘poor’ is
disrespect to the word ‘poor’. Just before she was born, her father, a former soldier,
became partially blind and challenged in an industrial accident in the ‘60s. He
was (before the accident) a skilled craftsman who ‘supported’ his family by repairing
bicycles, making bamboo chairs and baskets. Zhou lost her mother when she was
five.
As a child, she suggested
the family ventured into animal husbandry, and it became a business that helped
her family raise small profit for sustenance. She’s the only one amongst her
siblings to attend secondary school and her teachers described her as a
"hard-working and talented” student. Her father couldn’t cope financially and
she had to drop out at age 16. She had to move in with her uncle's family to
become a migrant worker in Shenzhen, (Shezen’s economic state was like what
Lagos is now).
Hardly had she settled
in Shenzhen that she began to volunteer to work from one place to another. She
was at the same time taking part time courses at Shenzhen University, so she
ensured the places she worked were in the University’s vicinity. She studied
many subjects and passed the examinations to be certified for accounting,
computer operations, customs processing, and even became licensed for driving
commercial vehicles (something like a female ‘danfo’ driver) at the age of 21.
She said her dream was
to become a huge fashion designer but she wanted to start her own firm. (Now
this is where her profile gets interesting) Zhou got a job working in a small
family company where watch parts were being made and after just three months on
the job, she decided to quit. Her reason – She didn’t like the working
conditions and every other worker’s dispensation towards work. The factory
chief read her resignation letter and was moved to promote her instead.
By the time the factory
closed down in 1993, she had already saved around $3,000. She used this as the
capital to start her own company. She was scared but her cousin encouraged her.
The company started in a three bedroom apartment, with her brother, sister, their
spouses, and two cousins as the workers. She had, and still has a hands-on
approach to getting things done. Destiny came smiling in 2001 with the advent
of mobile phones. Her company won the contract to produce phone screens and she
had to sell her personal belongings to ensure they delivered a job void of any
form of error/complain.
Zhou Qunfei is
presently the wealthiest woman in china. She’s the owner of Lens Technology -
the producer of screens for clients like Apple, Samsung, HTC, Nokia, Huawei,
and so on. Her present staff strength is 60,000 and her factories are in 13
different locations across china. Her firm produces around 1 billion pieces of
glass for smartphones, TVs, and apple watches. 90% of smartphones in the world
uses Lens Technology product (yes, including your smartphone too).
“I’ve had to sell my
house twice to pay my workers” she said in an interview.
When asked what her
secret to success is, her simple reply was: “I have a very high desire to
learn. I learn from almost everything”.
That poor girl from
Xiangxiang is presently the 17th richest woman in the world. She’s 46 and has a
net worth of $7 billion.
Don’t forget the reminder
– “Never ever let your background put your back to the ground”.Mature Minds Talk.
0 comments: