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Case Study

Chinese entrepreneurs: The story of Liu Qiongying

By Winter Nie, Katherine Xin and Lily Zhang

6 pages

November 2007

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Reference: IMD-3-1858

This case describes the growth of Aiminger, from a small shop of only 9 square meters to a retail business, a wholesale business, then finally a manufacturer targeting the domestic market. After the Russian financial crisis, Aiminger began manufacturing for overseas markets. With OEMs’ profit margin squeezed by the competition, Aiminger decided to build its R&D capacity and establish its own brand name. Did Aiminger have enough strength in its organizational structure to support this new strategy?

Learning Objective

To understand how the Chinese entrepreneurs started from scratch and grew to a certain size and how the business evolved as they grew. What entrepreneurial characteristics can be drawn from the case? What contributed to their success? How could MNCs compete with them in China market? As they move forward, what challenges are they likely to face in the future?

Keywords

Leather Goods

Settings

China
1986-2006

Type

Field Research

Available Languages

English

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