Gu Gengyu, the king of the bristles, the legendary empire, the past is unforgettable.
Since the second half of the 19th century, pig bristles have become the preferred raw material for all kinds of brushes because of their strong toughness and strong elasticity. After entering the 20th century, the bristles were widely used in large-scale mechanized warfare, making them a strategic material.
China is one of the few countries in the world that is rich in bristles, and the production of bristles in Sichuan is particularly high. In this context, Gu Gengyu has become a leader in the industry, and with his keen sense of smell and bold style, he has achieved great success in the domestic and international bristle market.
His Tiger bristles are well-known at home and abroad, and he is known as the "King of Bristles". He built a vast bristle empire that monopolized more than 70% of the bristle market in the southwestern provinces.
Even the U.S. company was willing to trade a $1 million "revolving letter of credit" for his $10 million worth of bristle preemption. The friendship between Gu Gengyu and *** is also a good story.
His bristle empire is a legend.
Gu Gengyu was born in Chongqing in 1905, and his uncle and grandfather, Gu Suizhi, was a famous entrepreneur in Chongqing and the president of the Chongqing General Chamber of Commerce. The "Niu" brand bristles founded by Gu Suizhi enjoy a good reputation at home and abroad.
Gu Gengyu's father, Gu Huaiqing, was originally a subordinate of Gu Suizhi, and was later sent to Shanghai to deal with the export of mountain goods. After accumulating a certain amount of wealth, Gu Huaiqing opened a store in Chongqing called Jihengshan Goods, which mainly dealt in mountain goods such as pig bristles and sheepskins.
In order to distinguish it from the "Niu" brand of his uncle Gu Suizhi's Tongmaofeng firm, Gu Huaiqing named the bristle trademark he operated as the "Tiger" brand.
When Gu Huaiqing, a middle school classmate, signed a contract for the purchase and sale of pig bristles worth 200,000 taels of silver at Longmao Foreign Bank, he believed that he would be able to deliver high-quality goods on time.
However, when the goods were received, the other party refused to pay on the grounds of poor quality. Gu Gengyu's father, Gu Huaiqing, tried to explain to the foreign bank Taipan, but was unable to express his opinion because he did not understand foreign languages.
In an emergency, he thought that his son Gu Gengyu knew English, and although he had not yet passed the sixth-level exam, basic communication should not be a problem. So, he invited his son to come and help solve the problem.
Gu Gengyu's father and son worked together, with their fluent spoken language and logical reasoning, they successfully persuaded Longmao to agree to the payment, so that both parties gained valuable understanding.
Gu Huaiqing firmly believes that reading is the right thing to do, and that it is necessary to continue learning when dealing with foreigners. Gu Gengyu realized that to do foreign trade, it is necessary to avoid middlemen to earn the difference, and direct contact with foreign buyers is the key.
Father and son are in the same school, heart to heart. In 1919, Gu Gengyu was admitted to St. John's University in Shanghai, where he majored in English and business administration. During his four years at St. John's University, Gu Gengyu benefited a lot, not only broadening his horizons, being exposed to cutting-edge knowledge, but also learning advanced business management concepts.
These valuable experiences have had a profound impact on his career.
In 1923, Gu Gengyu returned to China after completing his studies and became an apprentice of his father Gu Qingji. Gu Qingji is a time-honored brand, and his father is unwell and decides to hand over the family business to Gu Gengyu.
Gu Qingji also hired his apprentice Liao Xiyong as the shopkeeper to assist Gu Gengyu in running the family business.
During this time, Gu Gengyu had a very important foreign teacher, who was the head of the British British Baili Foreign Company, and he was doing business in Chongqing. Gu Gengyu learned a lot of basic knowledge and operational skills about international ** from him.
A year later, Gu Gengyu, who was only 21 years old, officially took over Gu Qingji's business. Although his peers despise Gu Gengyu and call him a "doll class", in Chongqing's mountain goods industry, whether in terms of financial resources or reputation, Gu Gengyu and his Gu Qingji cannot be compared with some time-honored brands.
In addition to selling pig bristles, Gu Qingji also sold sheepskins. Gu Gengyu is proficient in English, often reads English newspapers and periodicals, and understands the dynamics of the international market. He noticed that the sheepskins would be the best of the way, so he raised all the money to buy all the sheepskins.
The peers thought that he was young and vigorous and unfamiliar with the market, but when they saw the soaring foreign sheepskin ** and wanted to buy it, they found that Gu Gengyu had blocked the acquisition channel and missed the opportunity.
This business action made Gu Gengyu famous and won him a reputation for his business. After the start of the Northern Expedition, the Northern Expeditionary Army successfully marched into the Yangtze River basin, and since Chongqing was located in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, major Western companies were worried that the Yangtze River traffic would be cut off, so they withdrew from Shanghai one after another.
The withdrawal of foreign foreign companies from Chongqing also brought opportunities for the development of local businesses, and it was at that time that Gu Gengyu began to gradually emerge. In the winter of 1926, a man named Hb.The Americans of Nales came to Chongqing to buy sheepskins on behalf of the largest tanners in the United States.
The American is very skilled in tanning and international **, but he does not know much about the situation in the Chongqing market. For example, there are no local businesses in Chongqing that provide packing or rental balers, only Geely has a baler, but it can only be used for their own use, unless they don't need it, they will rent it.
The American bought a large number of sheepskins, but because he did not have the equipment to process them, he could not pack them and load them on ships. In addition, Chongqing was in the dry season of the Yangtze River at that time, and it could not be transported even if it was packed.
The sheepskin is very delicate, and if it is not processed within a month, it will become moldy and rotten, and finally it can only be thrown into the manure pit to be used as fertilizer.
There were some deficiencies in Nars's investigation of these matters, especially since he did not know how to use the compradors, so he went to Chongqing alone with a letter of credit issued by the bank, and bought a large number of sheepskins from various mountain goods stores.
When it was time for the debt to be settled, dozens of sellers came to ask for money, but his letter of credit could only be offset by 60% of the Bank of China vouchers in Chongqing, and the amount to be paid greatly exceeded this figure.
The creditors pressed on, which made the American very distressed, and he was anxious every day, and he had no clue. In order to prevent foreign businessmen from coveting Chongqing's financial resources again, Gu Gengyu stood up and said: "I not only want to drive away this American, but also make him dare not come again next time."
Gu Gengyu, a key customer of the Bank of China, found that Chongqing's mountain goods stores were in danger of collapsing, which would affect small terminals and mountain merchants across Sichuan. He went to Nars to find out what was going on, and found that Nars was not messing around, but was just acting without investigative research.
In order to help Nars, Gu Gengyu proposed to hand over the sheepskin to Gu Qingji for disposal, and paid eighty percent of the purchase price to the seller at a very low interest. Bank of China is the preferential creditor, and the rest of the arrears are handled by Koo Ching Kee.
Thanks to Gu Qingji's assistance, Nales was able to escape, and expressed his gratitude to Gu Qingji. Since then, Gu Qingji's reputation has become famous, and it is known as "a sudden rise and half of the world's goods in Chongqing".
Gu Gengyu was only 25 years old at the time.
During his operation, Gu Qingji inevitably had to deal with warlords in Sichuan. Just like his uncle Gu Suizhi when he ran the Tongmaofeng brand, his business spread all over the province, some places belonged to Liu Xiang, and some places belonged to other warlords.
In order to do business, the Gu family must treat all warlords fairly and impartially, especially avoid cooperating with warlords, and even if the warlords have deposits, they would rather refer them to the bank to deposit them than deposit them in their own name.
The purpose of this was to prevent the warlords from losing power and their industries being treated as "enemy property", which in turn would affect Gu Qingji's business.
Gu Gengyu is convinced that "when you see a Bodhisattva, you will burn incense", "you must hold black when you are red", and his philosophy of life is people-oriented. When he becomes popular, you burn incense and kowtow to him, he may not particularly care, because he knows that many people will do the same, and he pays more attention to your character and value.
When a black bodhisattva is cornered, asking them for help can be seen as reaching out in their difficulties, and they may be grateful to you and repay you when they come back one day.
Maintaining a good relationship with them, although the cost is small, but the benefits can be large, this is the secret of "red is more black".
Gu Gengyu does not cooperate with warlords to do business, but he has a unique secret to making money. The warlords do the bristle business in their respective "defense areas", but the production and sales of bristles have obvious seasonality, the largest production in winter, and the purchase and processing of bristles in spring and summer, when the price of bristles is usually **.
And the warlords are often in a hurry at the beginning of the year, ignorant of the laws of the market and the laws of supply and demand. Gu Gengyu is different, he knows how to use the laws of the market, and then ** when the bristles are ***, so as to earn more profits.
This is a money-making secret that most people may not think of.
Gu Gengyu, the founder of the Gu Qing Ji Bristle Processing Factory, successfully monopolized the bristle resources of the warlords with his unique business strategy. He foresaw the trend of mane prices in the second half of the year, and advised the pig farmers to wait until then to sell to him in order to get a better **.
If the pig farmers were in dire need of money, Gu Gengyu also provided borrowing services secured by pig bristles, which made the warlords happy and led Gu Gengyu to open many "pig bristle banks" in various production areas.
Gu Gengyu gave some benefits to the warlords, and he got even greater benefits himself, he both curried favor with these warlords and monopolized their bristle resources. It is worth mentioning that Gu Gengyu buys a large number of bristles every year, but he pays very little interest, and it turns out that he borrowed interest-free loans saved for him by warlords.
On August 13, 1937, the Battle of Songhu broke out in Shanghai, and the national ** issued a declaration of self-defense, and the clarion call for China's all-out war of resistance was sounded. On the eve of the war, the Minsheng Steamship Company informed Gu Qingji that there would be a ship to transport pig bristles, and Gu Gengyu noticed the sensitive news of Chairman Lu Zuofu, and immediately realized that the Sino-Japanese war was imminent, the Yangtze River shipping might be interrupted, and the exporters in Chongqing would rely on the Yangtze River, and business might stop.
Gu Gengyu immediately convened an emergency meeting of the three partners to discuss countermeasures. After in-depth research, they reached an agreement and decided to hand over the goods of the three companies to Gu Qing Ji (Gu Qing Ji had a large transaction volume and insufficient inventory) before the outbreak of war, quickly packed the ship, obtained the bill of lading, and then settled foreign exchange with the Bank of China.
The proceeds were first used to pay for the deposits taken by the three brands, while the part owed to the bank was temporarily unpaid. When the bank was due to clear the debt, the three brands came forward to say good things, and Gu Gengyu was responsible for coping.
All these were emergency measures taken in the two days before "August 13".
On August 15, Japanese troops invaded Shanghai, and two days later, the Nationalists blockaded Jiangyin, causing the Yangtze River shipping between Chongqing and Shanghai to be interrupted. On the same day, the Chongqing market stopped trading, banks were closed, imported goods soared, and people were in a state of panic when exporting goods.
He Guoguang, chairman of the Military Commission, convened a meeting of representatives of industrial and commercial circles from all walks of life in Chongqing and demanded that the market be reopened within 20 days. At the meeting, Gu Gengyu's speech attracted everyone's attention.
He criticized: "The Japanese army is still in Shanghai, and Chongqing has begun to be chaotic, what does this mean? The War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression was protracted, and the coastal and riverside areas were likely to be occupied by enemy troops, and then China would no longer have seas and rivers.
Exports stopped, there was no foreign exchange to buy arms, so how did we fight the war? Gu Gengyu was in favor of opening the market immediately, and said that the Mountain Goods Gang did not need a loan from the four banks, and he would pay it alone.
He said: "I have two million in the Bank of China, the mountain goods gang wants ** goods, you can sell them all to me, I am the only buyer, I promise not to reduce the price again." But I have three suggestions: first, customs landing, and managing exports from land.
As long as exports are not interrupted, people will be more stable. Second, the battalion ordered the requisition of a number of new trucks in accordance with wartime decrees to form a convoy to transport export supplies.
At present, the export can also pass through the Guangdong-Hanzhou Railway, but to prevent the interruption of the Yue-Han Road, it is necessary to use the military highway from Chongqing to Kunming as a passage from Kunming to Haiphong.
Thirdly, to restore the communication of exporters with foreign countries, to ask the military authorities not to withhold and check our coded telegrams. After the meeting, Ye Yuanlong, who presided over the meeting, asked Gu Gengyu to stay and said to him: "I can't reply to you at the meeting for the three suggestions you just made.
These three proposals all relate to wartime decrees, which can only be decided by Chairman Chiang, and I need to ask Director Shihe first, and I will accompany you to him tomorrow. ”
With He Guoguang's approval, Gu Gengyu was accompanied by Ye Yuanlong to meet him. The military commissariat was soon notified and put into practice. This matter not only made a contribution to Gu Gengyu, but also gained great benefits.
First of all, he stabilized the face and hearts of the people in Chongqing in the early days of the Anti-Japanese War. Secondly, he helped the Chongqing mountain goods industry, at that time, the export goods bank restricted deposits, if he had not acquired, these industries would be in trouble.
Gu Gengyu, 32 years old, made an amazing move in the Chongqing market. At that time, the bristles fell sharply, and he resolutely decided to buy all the bristles in Chongqing to stabilize the market.
The United States has always been a major market for Chinese bristles, and before the war, 80 percent of Chinese bristle exports were shipped to New York, while the remaining 20 percent were destined for London.
After August 13, 1937, Japanese troops invaded the coastal areas of China, leading to a famine in the American market. To this end, the United States issued the "M51 Bristle Restriction Act", which stipulates that all bristles over three inches are given to the navy, army and air force, and the people can only use mixed brushes.
As a result, U.S. brush factories have significantly reduced their production, and many have started using old brushes and dry brushes that have been glued to paint as raw materials. In 1939, the United States asked the embassy in China to make a formal request to China, requesting that all the bristles exported from Chongqing be shipped to the United States, and China agreed to this request.
This allows China to export bristles to the United States in exchange for a large amount of dollars.
While the Sichuan Animal Husbandry Company (the predecessor of Gu Qingji) monopolized the export of pig bristles, the domestic pig bristle purchase and processing links were scattered by many small and medium-sized traders, small and medium-sized stores, and small and medium-sized washhouses, and there were more than 240 such related enterprises in Chongqing alone.
Although Gu Gengyu had unpleasant conflicts with the Kuomintang authorities in terms of operation and transportation, the Kuomintang top brass at that time knew that if they wanted pig bristles, they had to find Gu Gengyu.
For the sake of the overall situation of the Anti-Japanese War, Gu Gengyu made sacrifices and accepted and participated in the unified purchase and sales plan of Fuxing Company and Fuhua Company, a government-run organization, under the leadership of the Kuomintang Committee.
In the later period of the Anti-Japanese War, Chinese mainland's foreign land transportation was interrupted, and Gu Gengyu's Tiger bristles were continuously exported to the United States through the Sino-Indian route in exchange for valuable foreign exchange, making great contributions to China's anti-Japanese war finances and supporting the anti-fascist allied forces.
However, the production of bristles was reduced due to the effects of the war, and the price of bristles was therefore **. Chongqing No. 27 with container per pound by 12 yuan rose to more than 3 yuan, and at the same time, the foreign exchange dollar ** also increased from 3$3 was revised to $20.
This made Gu Gengyu's "Sichuan Animal" a leader in the same industry and made huge profits. Seeing that it is profitable, the capital of all parties has applied for the establishment of companies to process pig bristles for export, and want to take the opportunity to make a fortune.
The Kuomintang restricted Gu Gengyu through unified purchasing and sales and the establishment of a revival company, and the "Sichuan livestock" was often subjected to all kinds of harassment, extortion and fraud by the army, spies, and tax authorities.
However, with the quality of a first-class entrepreneur at that time, Gu Gengyu overcame many difficulties and continued to move forward. Not only in Sichuan, but also in Guizhou, Yunnan, Shaanxi, Gansu, Hunan, Hubei, Henan and other provinces to set up acquisition and processing institutions, from a local Sichuan gang enterprise to a national large enterprise.
In the international market, the popularity of "Sichuan Animal" is higher than before the war, and British and American importers all know that China has a "Sichuan Animal", a "King of Pig Bristles", and a Gu Gengyu and his Tiger trademark.
Gu Gengyu once said: "Bureaucratic capital once wanted to bring me down, but I replied, and they had nothing to do. ”
At the beginning of its establishment, its registered capital was only 500,000 yuan in legal currency, equivalent to 160,000 US dollars. However, by 1948,"Sichuan livestock"Although its assets do not exceed 7 million US dollars and its working capital is less than 500,000 US dollars, its turnover is as high as more than 10 million US dollars, and its domestic foreign exchange settlement is as high as 16 million US dollars.
This is equivalent to doing a business of $32 with $1 per year, and the capital turnover rate is extremely high. According to Gu Gengyu's recollections, back then"Sichuan livestock"The capital turnover rate is as high as 16 times a year, which is unmatched.
What's more worth mentioning is that due to his good reputation, Gu Gengyu can even rely on his reputation to do business. U.S. importers in order to get first"Tiger"Pai Mane did not hesitate to take the risk of taking out capital to Gu Gengyu in exchange for the right of first refusal.
For example, Kong Company once unconditionally offered a $1 million bill"Revolving Letters of Credit"to Gu in exchange for $10 million worth of bristles.
The value of this letter of credit is always maintained at the value of $1 million, and the seller automatically disburses the amount in the U.S. bank as much as it uses. With this letter of credit, Gu Gengyu can redeem US$1 million in cash to Bank of China at any time within the specified period.
Sichuan livestock"You can use the $1 million as your own working capital. With this letter of credit,"Sichuan livestock"Many transactions have been completed, which fully demonstrates its superb management ability and excellent reputation.
Shortly after Japan's surrender in 1945, news broke out of civil war in Chongqing. In an interview with the reporters of "Business**" and "Xinhua**", Gu Gengyu expressed his views on the current situation.
He said that after years of resistance to war, the people have suffered a lot, and they are now united in their desire for peace and resolutely oppose the occurrence of civil war.
A day or two later, Pan Zinian and Gu Gengyu had lunch in the special garden, ** and others were present, and Gu Gengyu was the only guest. ** When asked about Gu Gengyu's views on the current situation, he bluntly said: "I'm not very interested in politics.
But I don't think a civil war should be fought, and it's up to us to build the country. Moreover, if you go to war, then our business will be affected, so I am firmly against civil war!
** Response: "Peace and democracy are the common aspirations and demands of the people of the whole country. The Communist Party of China advocates peaceful nation-building and opposes civil war. After the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, we need to have a stable political environment to achieve the goal of nation-building.
In order to strive for peace, the Chinese Communist Party was willing to gradually withdraw its anti-Japanese troops in some areas, but the Kuomintang troops could not advance into the liberated areas. We also hope that civil society and the national business community can unite to stop the civil war and build our country together.
The meeting took longer than ever before. Gu Gengyu later said: "This conversation with me has had a profound impact on my future choices.
After the outbreak of full-scale civil war, Gu Gengyu was clearly aware that he was faced with an important choice.
In 1948, with the victorious advance of the People's Liberation War, the Kuomintang ** faced the fate of collapse, and they adopted a series of perverse measures, including the issuance of gold yuan bills on August 19, and restrictions on the people's possession of **, silver coins and foreign currency.
The heads of major enterprises in Shanghai were "summoned" by Chiang Ching-kuo one after another, and were coerced to hand over gold, silver and foreign exchange. In this tense atmosphere, Gu Gengyu also acted cautiously in Shanghai, and even prepared a set of bedding and toiletries, ready to be imprisoned at any time.
Bristles are not only my wealth, but also my career, and a symbol of a nation. If I love my career deeply, I must love my country deeply. Only when the motherland is prosperous can my career flourish.
Therefore, I have decided to break with the Kuomintang, unswervingly follow the Communist Party, and contribute my own strength to the construction of New China. ”
In the revolutionary era, the trust and entrustment of the Communist Party of China to Gu Gengyu was like a torch, illuminating his life path. He was entrusted with the important task of being the general merchant of the liberated area, and was fully responsible for the export and sales of pig bristles.
At the same time, he also tried by all means to break through the Kuomintang's naval blockade line and transport pig bristles and other livestock products from the liberated areas of Northeast China and North China to Hong Kong, where they could be rerouted for export. Gu Gengyu made contributions to China's democratic revolution with practical actions.
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, the first prime minister met with Gu Gengyu and entrusted him with the important task of taking full charge of the China Bristle Company. As a businessman who is not a member of the middle school, Gu Gengyu was deeply moved by the trust of the party and the state in him.
He asked specific questions and expressed his willingness to submit to the arrangements of the people. The story of Gu Gengyu allows us to see a person's loyalty to the cause, love for the country, and care for the people.
1.In March 1950, Gu Gengyu creatively merged the private Sichuan Animal Husbandry Company with a state-owned company, becoming the first general manager of the China Pig Bristle Company. On November 12, 1958, the letter of appointment was issued, and China Pig Bristle Company expanded into China Animal Products Company, and Gu Gengyu continued to serve as the general manager.
He continued to improve his management position and went all out to formulate a strategic plan for developing international development and stimulating the enthusiasm of the business community in socialist construction.
In the foreign world after the founding of the People's Republic of China, pig bristles also played an important role. Especially after the outbreak of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, the United States imposed ** sanctions on China, but Gu Gengyu successfully exchanged a large amount of foreign exchange and military supplies for my country through pig bristles.
As a national capitalist, Gu Gengyu faced many choices and paths, but he resolutely chose the Communist Party of China, he once wrote: "* Treat me as a national soldier, and I will repay it as a national soldier."
Gu Gengyu actively participated in the construction of socialism in New China, especially in the bristle industry and foreign affairs and made great contributions to the country. Even during the "Cultural Revolution", he was still strong after the reform and opening up, and offered suggestions for the country's economic construction with full enthusiasm, and was even received by ***.
His career was devoted to his career, especially his contribution to nation-building in his later years, which is unforgettable.