HAIYAN - Traditionally, business start-ups were a male phenomenon and multimillionaire entrepreneurs were characterized as poker-faced men wearing plain suits and ties.
That is why Song Yadan (well-known by her cyber name Mumu), a 23-year-old fashion designer and also a budding female entrepreneur, is surprising many middle-aged businessmen.
The young woman, who wears a pair of black half-rimless glasses and sporting long hair with a straight bang, has become a web celebrity with her Haiyan garment factory employing more than 100 staff and a popular online store at Taobao.com, China's largest e-commerce site similar to eBay. Annual sales at the shop exceeded 10 million yuan in 2009.
Wearing a pair of black half-rimmed glasses and sporting long hair, Song Yadan, 23, is a businesswoman, fashion designer and also an automobile fanatic. Many netizens only know her by her cyber name, Mumu. She has become a web celebrity admired by many of her contemporaries. Zhang Wei/China Daily
Since Song opened her e-store on Taobao in April 2008, she has sold more than 5 million elaborate and chic clothes designed by herself. More than 330,000 Taobao users have added her site to their favorites list.
The opening page of the cyber shop is overwhelmingly pink in color and features princess-style dresses, coats, skirts and shirts with simple decorations of lace and embroidery. Hundreds of new items frequently sell out within seconds. Song, a member of the post-80s generation who was born in Haiyan county, Zhejiang, inherited the business acumen for which the province is renowned.
Dresses for dolls
Song attracted attention 16 years ago because of the high quality and fashionable dresses she made for her doll, a constant companion.
"I started displaying an interest and talent in clothes design and sewing when I was very young," Song said proudly. "My parents were not able to buy me many toys at that time but my mother, who used to work at a local garment plant, always brought back some scraps of cloth for me."
The little girl made two big cartons of doll dresses but was not content with just dressing up her doll: She wanted to dress real girls.
She said: "I think there is a dream of being a princess in the heart of every girl no matter whether she is pretty or not, no matter whether she is smart or not."
Song graduated from Zhejiang Forestry University, majoring in furniture and interior design.
She hasn't received any professional training in fashion design.
"All designs have many common elements. Also, I laid a solid foundation for myself when I was making clothes for my doll," she said.
"My initial capital of 300 yuan was money I saved from my daily expenses. My parents wanted me to be focused on my studies rather than doing business. But I really love fashion design and enjoy making other girls look pretty."
In 2008, during her third year at university, she spent the 300 yuan on purchasing cloth and started designing dresses. However, she could not afford sewing tools.
Luckily, a kind owner of a laundry near Song's university was willing to provide equipment to her every night after business closed for the day.
"Initially, I knew nothing about making clothes (for grown-ups)," Song said. "I'm intelligent enough to separate old clothes or dresses and learn the structure. It was just like when I dismantled a radio and made a new one at primary school."
During that period Song had to burn the midnight oil to design, tailor and sew after finishing her schoolwork. She only slept three hours a day on a heap of cloth before rising and going to school.
After one week of particularly hard work she made six sample dresses and applied for an on-line store at Taobao. Surprisingly, she received more than 20 orders within two days.
When she sold the first batch of dresses, she pocketed 1,000 yuan, the first money she had ever made. Business snowballed and soon Song had to ask professional tailors to manufacture her samples.
Within two months she became a self-made wanyuanhu (literally a wealthy household with 10,000 yuan in savings).
In the summer vacation of 2008, Song astonished her family when she told them she had made 50,000 yuan.
Her conservative father started to understand her daughter's ambition and helped her to look for processing factories.
Mumu Home
Within 18 months, Song had created her own brand - Mumu Home - and her workplace was a big factory with separate areas for design, sample-making, manufacturing, packing and after-sales service.
She also employed her parents. "My father used to work in the cement business but now he is full-time working for me," she said. "Sometimes he passes on to me his business experience but he has to respect my decisions as I'm his boss."
As to the former housewife, "I will listen to my mother if she asks me not come home late but during work time, mother should listen to her boss," Song said with a grimace.
Song said she once lost her temper with her mother because she didn't finish an order on time. Later she bought her a pearl necklace by way of apology. Many young Chinese of the same age are either still asking their parents for pocket money or struggling to find a decent job. Song, however, has started helping other graduates to build their careers.
"Most of my employees are new graduates and I hope they will find their direction in life like me," Song said, with the attitude of an experienced chief executive officer.
"I have several new designers but their problem is a lack of experience. Many of their designs are hard to make or do not fit in with market needs."
Still a young girl
Forgoing makeup and stylish clothes, Song has devoted most of her time to dressing other women, something she is a little sad about.
She doesn't have time to go on shopping sprees or clubbing like many other young women. "My hobby is playing with cars," she said. "I bought my first car - a Toyota Camry - myself while I was at university. Now I have a Mercedes-Benz 350 and a BMW X5," she said. "I am also raising four dogs including a black poodle."
A model wearing one of Song Yadan's designs. Her dresses have proved to be very popular with young women with annual sales at her online shop in 2009 exceeding 10 million yuan. She also has more than 300,000 fans on Tabao.com. PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY
Song doesn't like many workaholic entrepreneurs and says she wants her own life. "I get up at 10 am every day and go to the factory, dealing with some business issues. I devote all the afternoon to design and one or two new designs will come out a day on average," she said.
Song's e-store features attractive pictures of items with beautiful poems alongside. When a new batch of samples come out, she will take pictures of them with a photographer, a cosmetician and the model Hui Hui, who has also become an Internet star.
"Then, I will write all my feelings and design notions on the side of the pictures, which is a way I communicate with my customers," she said. "They always leave homework for me saying what kind of clothes they need."
A recruitment advertisement on her e-store page said photographers, models and designers are offered an annual salary of 50,000 yuan to 150,000 yuan.
Song has a very clear but rather romantic business plan. "I will spend 3 million yuan on advertisements this year as the business is expanding," she said.
"I will have a boutique in Hangzhou next year. It will be unique because it will have some designs on display but most of the space will be given customers to make cakes, coffee or chocolate." She said customers would be offered fashion consultations and be able to share the experience of selecting clothes while sitting on exquisite sofas in the boutique.
Asked who she most looked up to, she said: "I don't admire anyone but myself. I like Vera Wang because she designs wedding veils and creates happiness for her customers. I wish to do the same," Song said.
