Shanghai Tycoon: Huang Chujiu

Author: Zeng Hongyan
Publisher:
Publishing Date: Not available
Features: This book comprehensively documents the rise and fall of Huang Chujiu's life. From the owner of a small pharmacy, Huang Chujiu rose to become the giant of Shanghai's pharmaceutical industry and later ventured into the entertainment business, founding the world-famous Dazhong Amusement Park. Behind the success of this national capitalist, there are many stories of hard work, as well as numerous innovations in business management and publicity. Huang Chujiu was a pioneer in China's Western pharmaceutical industry and a pioneer in China's entertainment industry. His entrepreneurial career spanned many fields, earning him the nickname "Manager of a Hundred Trades." His bold pioneering spirit led to the creation of many firsts in China:
- The first national capitalist pharmaceutical company—Longhu Company (Zhonghua Pharmaceutical Company);
- The first rooftop garden in China—Loubuilou;
- The first comprehensive entertainment venue in China—Xin World;
- The first large amusement park in East Asia—Dazhong;
- The first entertainment enterprise newspaper with the largest circulation in China—Dazhong Daily;
- The first pharmaceutical "trust"—Huang's Pharmaceutical "Group," which owned 21 pharmaceutical and industrial enterprises.
His innovative and diverse advertising methods are an important and page in the history of Chinese advertising; his forward-thinking brand awareness is a visionary concept in the history of Chinese business operations; and the numerous lawsuits he fought to protect his company's rights have left valuable cases in the history of Chinese jurisprudence.
He was also social work, serving as a member of the Shanghai Chamber of Commerce, an economic committee member of the Shanghai Red Cross, and the president of the Shanghai Pharmaceutical Association, among other roles. However, in the past half-century, Huang Chujiu has been portrayed as a "shrewd merchant" in various texts, with stereotypical and cartoonish descriptions that are often misleading. Evaluations of Huang Chujiu reflect the long-standing biases of mainstream ideology toward the commodity economy and merchants. Reconstructing his life will have an extraordinary significance for clarifying the history of Shanghai in the 1920s and 1930s and for understanding how to develop China's national industries.
Ms. Zeng Hongyan, the great-granddaughter of Huang Chujiu, spent five years researching his life. During this time, she traveled to places where Huang Chujiu left his mark, such as Yuyao, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Macau, and Hong Kong, to trace family records, interview older and younger family members, former performers of Dazhong, descendants of former employees, and other relevant historical witnesses. She also visited the Shanghai Library, Archives, and Museum to gather historical materials about Huang Chujiu and conducted thorough research on some historical issues to restore the truth of the past.
This 320,000-word biography brings back to life Huang Chujiu, a remarkable business figure who had a significant impact on modern Chinese history. When the book is published, some of Huang Chujiu's descendants will gather to hold commemorative events in his birthplace, Yuyao, his villa in Hangzhou, and Dazhong in Shanghai.