By Zhao Ying, special consultant of China affairs for governor of Alabama, USA
A motivated Chinese entrepreneur had come to realize his American dream in an unusual way. Yao Zhan, a Hunan Province native, had graduated from the National Defense University and worked in the rocket science sector in China.
Then he changed paths and moved to the United States with his wife to study for a MBA degree. He was employed in some large US companies, and had reached key positions there, including managing director of Asia for Bank of America.
Despite achieving a comfortable life style in Atlanta, Georgia, Zhan had shocked his family and friends when he resigned from the corporate world to launch a new company, Phoenix Green Food.
He introduced his ancestral home recipe, the Hunan pickle to create an organic food called, "Spicy Phoenix" from scratch. His company had entered the "Whole Foods Market" - a world-renowned global organic and all-natural foods supermarket chain, and US-based retailer.
Whole Foods is recognized for its high-standards for product quality, and can take hundreds of or thousands of hours to go through the selections process with multiple layers of reviews.
CNTV Panview interviewed Zhan, who explained that many Chinese, especially first-generation immigrants in the US with high degrees, would like to work in a stable job, such as the government, universities and corporations. Yes, they can earn a comfortable living, but whether they have a passion for it is another story.
After he had established himself financially, he wondered how to realize his American Dream and do something that he has a passion for. With his past experiences at the Bank of America, he already knew how to create wealth. As a Hunan native, he realized that there is no organic and tasty Chinese pickles in the US.
His keen sense of business had smelled an opportunity. After conducting market research and obtaining the family recipe that had been passed down from generations for over 200 years, he built his "Pheonix Green Food" company.
Zhan beamed with an entrepreneurial spirit, when explaining how he had developed the brand and expanded into the market.
Spicy Phoenix has become very popular, since it was adopted into Whole Foods, and is selling faster than they can make it. On his company's website, many American, Hispanics and Asian consumers are raving about it.
Yet, his new-found success has given him some stress. His hair has turned gray. He said the biggest challenge is that demand keeps growing and they struggle with a supply chain. The products often got sold out before they can be replenished.
So, his company must expand. After investing over $1mm of his own money, Zhan is looking for an outside investor to partner up with. He remains optimistic, believing that he has developed a niche in the specialty food segment, and holds an absolute advantage with the secret Hunan recipe.
Accordingly, Zhan's career choice represents a trend of first generation Chinese immigrants: abandoning the golden rice bowl (Chinese government jobs) to leverage their resources to embark on entrepreneurial endeavors, in order to achieve their American Dreams in different forms.
( The opinions expressed here do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Panview or CCTV.com. )
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