In America, there was a legendary entrepreneur who lost his father at 5, dropped out of school at 14 to wander, and at 66, with a few hundred dollars in social security, drove a beat-up car to sell his fried chicken recipe to restaurants, achieving success only at 88. That man was Colonel Sanders, founder of KFC.

China also has a legendary entrepreneur. At 50, he resigned as vice president of a provincial capital city hospital, and pedaled a tricycle to sell his self-developed frozen glutinous rice balls. Now, at 63, he is recognized worldwide as the founder of China's frozen food industry, with annual sales nearing 2 billion yuan. This man is Chen Zemin, head of Zhengzhou Sanquan Food Company.

Youth Hardships Accumulate Life's Wealth

"The trials one faces in childhood and youth are the most precious wealth in life," Chen Zemin said. "The work-study in childhood and hard labor in youth cultivated my fearless attitude toward hardship and taught me deeply that only through labor can one create wealth."

From age 3, Chen Zemin followed his father, an artillery expert, living a military life and moving around. From a young age, he used spare time for work-study. At 10, he and classmates picked up cigarette butts and scrap in cinemas and theaters to sell for money, supporting the "Resist America and Aid Korea" campaign.

In junior high, the school encouraged work-study, and Chen learned barbering. On weekends, he carried his schoolbag with barber tools to the countryside to cut farmers' hair. He also did odd jobs with classmates, working as a bricklayer and loader. Seeking work everywhere honed his business networking skills, and through labor, he learned skills.

Innovation and Interest Determine Success

Chen Zemin was a radio enthusiast from childhood. From crystal radios to vacuum tube radios, then to semiconductor radios, TVs, tape recorders, and VCRs, he could assemble and repair them all.

In high school, he used the principle of hair clippers to help farmers build a harvester model.

In 1965, Chen graduated from medical school and volunteered to work in Sichuan. He made many inventions at work and was named a "Science and Technology Model." In 1979, he was transferred back to Zhengzhou Fifth People's Hospital. When a large X-ray machine worth hundreds of thousands of yuan was flooded and scrapped, Chen spent weeks of spare time disassembling and repairing it. He even built Zhengzhou's first homemade washing machine, modeled after a Japanese one he saw at a Beijing exhibition.

In 1984, Chen was transferred to Zhengzhou Second People's Hospital as vice president. But in his spare time, he still wanted to do something.

In 1989, Chen and his wife borrowed 15,000 yuan to start "Sanquan Cold Drink Department," specializing in soft ice cream. The next year, using self-made equipment, they produced and wholesaled Zhengzhou's only filled ice cream, and business boomed. But after October each year, the cold drink industry entered a slow season, and dozens of workers had nothing to do.

During his dozen years in Sichuan, Chen and his wife learned to make glutinous rice balls, puffed rice candy, and other specialties from locals. After returning to Zhengzhou, they made many glutinous rice balls for relatives and friends to taste during festivals, and everyone praised them.

Then Chen remembered a winter business trip to Harbin, where locals made many dumplings at once and froze them outdoors. He had a sudden inspiration: if dumplings can be frozen, so can glutinous rice balls. His homemade frozen glutinous rice balls would surely be popular in the market, and freezing could solve the problem of long-term preservation.

Three months later, from raw material formulas to production processes, from individual weight to packaging arrangement, from packaging materials to design, from nutrition and hygiene to production and handling, Chen had a complete design and made China's first frozen glutinous rice ball. He applied for patents for the production method and appearance packaging.

In late 1990, the TV drama "Ling Tangyuan" was broadcast on CCTV. Chen immediately named his newly developed frozen glutinous rice balls "Ling Tangyuan" and registered the trademarks "Ling," "Sanquan Ling," and "Sanquan" at the earliest opportunity.

Today, the small glutinous rice balls have brought Chen hundreds of millions in wealth and created a frozen food market worth over 10 billion yuan for China.

Braving Mountains and Rivers to Break Through

With a unique product, the door to success opened for Chen. But how to get merchants and customers to accept it?

After work, nearly 50-year-old Chen pedaled a tricycle to promote his product. He carried a gas stove and pots and pans to local food stores, cooking samples on the spot for people to taste.

In late December 1990, Chen took frozen glutinous rice balls to a well-known food store in Zhengzhou. The manager, after tasting "Sanquan Ling Tangyuan," half-believing, agreed to try two boxes. He then visited several major stores in Zhengzhou and got the same "try two boxes" treatment. However, the next day, managers wanted long-term, large-quantity supply.

Before the Spring Festival that year, Chen went to Beijing for a meeting, bringing frozen glutinous rice ball models to Xidan Vegetable Market. After patient explanation, the store manager agreed to take two tons for trial sales. Before the meeting ended, the manager called, asking him to send five more tons as fast as possible.

After that, Chen established sales channels in Xi'an, Taiyuan, Shenyang, Jinan, Shanghai, and other central cities.

After over a year of market development, Chen realized frozen food would become a huge industry. In May 1992, he resigned to focus on selling glutinous rice balls and began forming "Sanquan Food Factory."

At that time, an imported freezing machine cost over 10 million yuan, and a domestic one over 1 million. Chen bought materials, designed and built his own, creating the first domestic frozen glutinous rice ball production line, officially entering industrial production.

In late 1992, Chen handed production management to family and, alone in a second-hand bread van bought for 4,000 yuan, carried refrigerators, pots, and gas stoves across the country, cooking and tasting to promote sales.

In Chen's view, this was a very tough experience. But with this simplest method, "Sanquan Ling Tangyuan" quickly opened markets nationwide. From 1993, Sanquan's daily output reached 30 tons.

Honing Skills to Stay Ahead

Due to favorable market conditions, around 1995, many companies imitated "Sanquan Ling Tangyuan." At that time, Chen assessed the situation and decided to abandon pursuing patent infringements by peers.

He said: "Frozen food is an industry with low technical barriers. Patent lawsuits are endless and not worth the effort. China's frozen food industry is in its infancy; one Sanquan cannot meet the huge social demand. Overseas frozen food industries are far more advanced. If you block your compatriots, you can't stop others from landing. Rather than letting overseas companies march in, it's better for domestic compatriots to work together to quickly expand the market and form a national frozen food industry with some resistance in a short time. What I need to do is hone my skills and always stay ahead."

From 1995, Sanquan's development accelerated. In 1995, Sanquan was rated by the State Administration for Industry and Commerce as one of the "Top 500 Private Enterprises in China." In 1997, six national ministries listed "Sanquan Food" as one of China's most competitive national brands. In 2004, sales reached 1.4 billion yuan, ranking 61st among China's top 100 private enterprises by tax payment. This year, sales are expected to reach 2 billion yuan, firmly holding the leading position in China's frozen food industry.

Reflecting on his entrepreneurial journey, Chen Zemin believes that one's goals can be ambitious, but one must start small and work step by step. "Why are Wenzhou people so formidable? Because whether it's buttons, zippers, lighters, or shoes, toilets, toilet paper, they can develop them into large industries. Even street shoe shiners in Wenzhou can turn it into chain stores and create a big business."

-END-

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