---
title: "He Bet His Entire Fortune at 40, and 14 Years Later Laughs with 5 Billion: Stay True to the Original Aspiration"
description: "A Chinese language teacher started a soy sauce factory, investing 48 million yuan to build an 1.8 billion yuan business, and entered the top three in the seasoning market. This is Yang Zhen, founder of Jiajia Soy Sauce. Born in December 1962 in Ningxiang, Hunan, Yang Zhen faced hardship early when his father died when he was seven. His mother raised five children alone, and Yang Zhen, determined to improve their lives, eventually left teaching to pursue business. After years of struggle, he founded Jiajia Soy Sauce in 1996, focusing on high-end products. Through innovative marketing and a successful CCTV advertising campaign during the SARS outbreak, he expanded nationally. Later, he introduced 'Noodle Fresh' soy sauce, which became a hit. By 2012, Jiajia was listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, and by 2016, revenue exceeded 1.8 billion yuan."
author: "关丹丹"
publisher: "New Distribution"
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published: "2017-08-15"
language: "en"
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# He Bet His Entire Fortune at 40, and 14 Years Later Laughs with 5 Billion: Stay True to the Original Aspiration

> A Chinese language teacher started a soy sauce factory, investing 48 million yuan to build an 1.8 billion yuan business, and entered the top three in the seasoning market. This is Yang Zhen, founder of Jiajia Soy Sauce. Born in December 1962 in Ningxiang, Hunan, Yang Zhen faced hardship early when his father died when he was seven. His mother raised five children alone, and Yang Zhen, determined to improve their lives, eventually left teaching to pursue business. After years of struggle, he founded Jiajia Soy Sauce in 1996, focusing on high-end products. Through innovative marketing and a successful CCTV advertising campaign during the SARS outbreak, he expanded nationally. Later, he introduced 'Noodle Fresh' soy sauce, which became a hit. By 2012, Jiajia was listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, and by 2016, revenue exceeded 1.8 billion yuan.

A Chinese language teacher actually opened a soy sauce factory, investing 48 million yuan to build an 1.8 billion yuan business, and he strode into the top three in the seasoning market. This person is Yang Zhen, founder of Jiajia Soy Sauce.

In December 1962, Yang Zhen was born in Ningxiang, Hunan. Ningxiang is located in northern Hunan, with the majestic Xuefeng Mountains stretching across the territory, and four rivers—Wei River, Wu River, Chu River, and Jin River—crisscrossing the area. For over two thousand years, Ningxiang has been known as the 'Land of Fish and Rice' and the 'Hometown of Tea,' and its rice, soybeans, and wheat were even designated as tribute to the imperial court.

However, Yang Zhen had a hard life; his father passed away when he was seven. His mother was a strong woman who bravely took on the responsibility of raising five children, 'feeding pigs, raising cattle, brewing tea, cooking meals, and managing everything inside and outside the house.'

Children of the poor mature early. Yang Zhen was sensible from a young age, helping his mother cut pigweed and collect firewood after school, and he never worried his mother about his studies. From elementary to middle school, he was always first. In 1980, he was admitted to the Chinese Language and Literature Department of Yiyang Teachers College from the county key school Ningxiang No. 4 Middle School.

After graduating in 1983, Yang Zhen was assigned to teach at a high school in Ningxiang. Logically, a farmer's child who escaped the countryside through the college entrance exam was already quite successful—'eating state grain, how many people envied that!' But Yang Zhen was troubled.

Why? Because he was a filial son. Whenever he saw his mother working in the fields with a frail body, Yang Zhen felt a pang of pain: 'I must move my mother to the city as soon as possible.' But how could he do that with a teacher's salary of just over 20 yuan a month?

So, Yang Zhen resolutely resigned. Over the next 10 years, he tried his hand at aquaculture, food processing, and promoting invisible window screens. He did earn some money, but buying a house for his mother in the city was still a distant dream.

A son never thinks his mother ugly, and a mother never thinks her son poor. His mother understood his filial piety and often comforted him, saying, 'As long as you are happy, I am happy.' But Yang Zhen couldn't get over the hurdle in his heart: 'The greatest sorrow in life is when a child wants to care for a parent but they are no longer there.'

Since he couldn't make money, he decided to at least let his mother eat well! At that time, his mother loved braised pork, and soy sauce was essential for making it. Soy sauce is a daily necessity, and there were many brands on the market, but after buying five or six brands, either the color was too dark or the taste was too light, and the braised pork never matched the old lady's taste.

Yang Zhen was puzzled: 'Is it that hard to brew a soy sauce for braised pork?' After researching the market, he understood. It turned out that making soy sauce is like brewing liquor—each place has its own flavor. The color and aroma of soy sauce depend not only on raw materials like wheat and soybeans but also on the quality of the water used in brewing.

Ningxiang had a history of soy sauce production spanning several hundred years, with over 100 small handmade soy sauce factories at its peak. However, in modern times, due to their small scale, they were squeezed out by southern soy sauce factories.

With the Wei River rich in minerals and wheat and soybeans that were once offered to the emperor, how could they not produce high-quality soy sauce? Yang Zhen was furious: 'I'll make soy sauce!' At the end of 1996, Yang Zhen used his savings of 12,000 yuan to buy 3 mu of land and established Jiajia Soy Sauce Factory.

To ensure the craft, he specially recruited a retired master from a former state-owned soy sauce factory to oversee production. Actually, it wasn't really 'recruiting'—the master had been laid off for years and was worried about not having a place to use his skills.

The master told Yang Zhen that making a good bottle of soy sauce wasn't complicated—just three steps: steaming, fermenting, and brewing—but it was a slow process. In particular, brewing took half a year, and sun-drying took another month, totaling a year. Yang Zhen wanted exactly that: 'A gentleman loves wealth, but he gets it in the right way. I don't have the luck to make quick money.'

Sure enough, it wasn't until a year later that Jiajia's first batch of soy sauce came out. That day, Yang Zhen was very excited. He specially ran home and used his own soy sauce to make a plate of braised pork for his mother. This time, his mother was very satisfied: 'This is the taste.' With that, Yang Zhen's confidence soared!

At that time, the soy sauce market in Hunan Province was dominated by three brands: Longpai, Fenghuang, and Furong, all focusing on low-end products at 1.5 to 2 yuan per bottle. Should he follow the trend and also focus on low-end? Yang Zhen didn't even think about it and gave up. Indeed, the failed soy sauce factories in Ningxiang were a lesson. 'We must aim high and let Jiajia Soy Sauce be born with vigor.'

So, Yang Zhen positioned it at 6.5 yuan per bottle from the start.

But high-end products need to look the part. To that end, besides making the soy sauce itself high-quality, Yang Zhen also put great effort into the packaging. For example, the bottle cap used a pull-ring design to avoid cutting hands, and the soy sauce bottle abandoned the traditional beer bottle style in favor of a wine bottle shape, 'looking elegant and classy.'

As a result, Jiajia Soy Sauce's main battlefield had to be big cities. After all, which rural old man would spend twice as much on a bottle of soy sauce? To conquer Changsha, advertising became the magic weapon.

At that time, the largest print media in Hunan was Wencui Bao, with a monthly circulation of over one million. Yang Zhen's advertising slogan was simple: just 'Wheat + Soybean = ?' in large characters, published for seven consecutive issues. It wasn't until the eighth issue in May 1998 that the answer appeared: 'Wheat + Soybean = Jiajia Soy Sauce.'

Unexpectedly, the effect was excellent! During that period, Yang Zhen received hundreds of calls a day, and within less than two months, he had secured 20 first-tier distributors.

Three months later, Jiajia Soy Sauce covered every street and alley in Changsha and spread to second-tier cities like Zhuzhou, Xiangtan, and Yueyang. Hunan people have a heavy taste, and Yang Zhen's dark soy sauce suited their palate. Moreover, the bottle looked like a work of art, completely overturning traditional soy sauce perceptions and attracting many young people.

As a result, within less than a year, Yang Zhen unified the market and took the lead in high-end soy sauce in Hunan. Then, he continued his momentum and successively captured Jiangxi and Hubei. In 1997, Jiajia Soy Sauce's sales revenue exceeded 13 million yuan.

But capturing the central-south provinces of Hunan, Hubei, and Jiangxi was easy; going national was hard. Especially facing competition from Guangdong seafood soy sauce and light soy sauce, Yang Zhen didn't know where to start.

The financial director suggested lowering prices, and distributors echoed, 'The product is priced too high; it's hard to sell.' Yang Zhen slammed the table: 'Once a brand is positioned as low-end, it's impossible to raise it later. We must not lower the price.'

If not lowering the price, how to make the whole country know about it? Yang Zhen decided to emphasize value for money. Using the characteristic that dark soy sauce colors easily, he labeled Jiajia Soy Sauce as 'One bottle can be used as two!'

But to let the whole country know about Jiajia's value, he had to go to CCTV. So, in November 2002, Yang Zhen went alone to Beijing's Media Center to bid. In the advertising world, the Media Center is a magical place, always stimulating the ambition and fighting spirit of Chinese entrepreneurs.

Yang Zhen was no exception. Even for a soy sauce ad, he was determined to gamble big. '48 million yuan'—in the end, Yang Zhen won the advertising rights for two prime-time slots: the 7:00 time announcement and the end of the 7:30 News Broadcast, for two months.

However, 48 million yuan was all of Jiajia Food's assets. Success would mean stepping from a corner of Hunan into the national market. Failure would mean seven years of hard work reduced to zero.

As they say, heaven helps the good. Just then, in 2003, the SARS outbreak occurred, causing nationwide panic. People stayed at home, afraid to go out. With everyone at home, more people watched TV, and Jiajia Soy Sauce's ads received extraordinary viewership.

Distributors surged in like a tide, and soon, over 2,000 agents were developed nationwide. The public's recognition of Jiajia also skyrocketed. By 2004, Jiajia Soy Sauce's revenue exceeded 500 million yuan, with products forming 3 major series and 20 varieties.

However, tall trees catch the wind. Soon, big players like Haitian and Lee Kum Kee began to counterattack. The fledgling Yang Zhen was no match and suffered successive defeats.

What to do? Yang Zhen decided to do subtraction: 'Selling 100 products without characteristics is worse than selling one unique product.' He learned that the high per capita soy sauce consumption in Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan was because their soy sauce products were mainly light soy sauce, which is light-colored. Only people in Hunan and Jiangxi preferred dark soy sauce, or thick soy sauce.

'Actually, the biggest difference between thick and light soy sauce is the amount of caramel color. Light soy sauce has less caramel color and is healthier.'

Through market research, Yang Zhen captured a trend in people's eating habits: 'Southerners who love rice also have noodles on their tables.'

At this point, Yang Zhen saw a huge business opportunity. More than 60% of the country's regions have the habit of eating noodles for breakfast. Chinese people are very particular about food—they want it tasty and healthy. This means consumers have potential demand for new seasonings.

Demand is opportunity. How to make noodles tastier, more nutritious, and more convenient? Thus, 'Noodle Fresh' was born.

What are the characteristics of Noodle Fresh? One bottle, multiple uses. When making soup noodles, there's no need to add MSG or chicken essence. When making mixed noodles, there's no need to add salt. Notably, Jiajia Noodle Fresh can also be used for steaming fish, steaming meat, making cold dishes, dipping seafood, and mixing with preserved eggs.

At that time, Yang Zhen no longer relied on TV ads but switched to experiential marketing. He held over 1,000 experiential tasting events, cooking noodles on-site and letting people taste them. 'Retail stores, supermarkets, shopping malls, and farmers' markets—not one was missed.'

'Use Jiajia dark soy sauce for stir-frying, and Jiajia light soy sauce for cold dishes.' Previously, households had only one bottle of soy sauce. With Yang Zhen's promotion, people immediately bought two bottles at a time. Within one year, sales of Jiajia 'Noodle Fresh' exceeded one million boxes.

Soon, logistics couldn't keep up. One truck to Guangxi, one to Jilin—the cost was too high, and people couldn't handle it. So Yang Zhen simply set up factories regionally, establishing three major production bases in Hunan, Henan, and Sichuan, radiating to the whole country.

In 2010, Jiajia's 1,200 distributors covered more than 80% of the county and city markets nationwide, with revenue exceeding 1.3 billion yuan.

On January 6, 2012, Jiajia was listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, hailed as 'China's First Soy Sauce Stock,' breaking into the top three in the market, with a market value once reaching 9 billion yuan.

Three years later, in 2015, Yang Zhen embraced e-commerce and spread the wings of 'Internet+'. In 2016, Jiajia's revenue exceeded 1.8 billion yuan.

A brand born out of filial piety—Yang Zhen attributes everything he has today to his mother, as he said, 'A mother is the soul of a family.'

Source: Master's and Doctor's Circle
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