From "chicken feathers for sugar" to "world supermarkets", from regional markets to "world small commodity capital", Yiwu City, Zhejiang Province has created a sample of China's county economic development. Starting from the era of reform and opening up and embarking on a new journey of promoting Chinese-style modernization, Yiwu continues to create new experiences and make new contributions, and continues to attract attention from home and abroad.

This summer, the "Record China" team (hereinafter referred to as the "Record China" team) from the School of Journalism of Fudan University came to Yiwu City, Zhejiang Province to understand how Yiwu can transform traffic into "retention" under the challenges of new technologies and new business formats to achieve the continued prosperity of international commerce.

A different umbrella

"Come, try this umbrella." Zhang Jiying, founder of Xingbao Umbrella Industry, opened the palm-sized folding umbrella. The moment I let go, the umbrella weighing only 100g fell slowly like a feather, drawing cheers-"It's really light!"

In shops in the second district of Yiwu International Trade City, colorful umbrellas of different styles are filled with shelves. According to Zhang Jiying, according to different market needs, umbrella styles, colors and packaging will be developed and designed in a targeted manner. "Take Japan for example, umbrellas and raincoats have been integrated into local people's lives. Regardless of men, women and old, umbrellas are must-carry when going out every day, so Japanese umbrellas are generally made lighter. Our ultra-light umbrellas are mainly exported to the Japanese market."

For Zhang Jiying, umbrellas are not only a tool to protect against the wind and rain, but also a "fashion item" to show lifestyle; Xingbao Umbrella Industry must not only become a product manufacturer, but also become a fashion leading brand. "Without a brand, there is no right to speak. Brands are the basis for us to do business." Zhang Jiying said. The "Record China" team observed that every umbrella in the store had a label with Zhang Jiying's stick portrait printed on it, which was her "personal IP."

In 2003, Zhang Jiying shifted from OEM to founding her own company. In 2013, with the proposal of the "Belt and Road Initiative", she registered her trademark abroad.

"Now more and more domestic guests are coming here." Zhang Jiying told the "Record China" team,"We used to mainly deal in foreign markets, but now we are slowly entering the domestic market. To truly achieve 'double circulation', domestic consumers need to also know and recognize us."

In the AI video,"digital boss lady" Zhang Jiying is introducing products in a foreign language.

At present, Xingbao Umbrella Industry has independently designed more than 3000 products and has more than 1000 patents and copyrights. The company sells more than 7000 umbrellas per day, and its products are sold to more than 100 countries and regions.

A different "Star Umbrella" can be regarded as a microcosm of Yiwu's small commodities 'journey to the world. From design and research and development, to product promotion and image creation, Zhang Jiying and global "righteous merchants" explored how to build "hot money" into "brands" and transform traffic into "retention".

Hard core technology empowers traditional manufacturing

On the mobile phone screen, AI-generated digital humans reproduce a series of actions in real-life videos vividly. However, the scientific research team at the Yiwu Research Institute of Fudan University is facing a new problem-what companies need is a cartoon mascot, and the movements have no human reference. How can they use AI to make it?

"But this problem must be solvable. Because meeting needs is often easy, finding needs is the most difficult." In the process of helping transform and upgrade Yiwu's traditional manufacturing industry, Lu Qiyong, deputy dean of the Yiwu Research Institute of Fudan University, concluded this.

The Yiwu Research Institute of Fudan University was inaugurated in 2020. Combining Yiwu's industrial characteristics and Fudan's disciplinary advantages, it has set up a high-precision, cutting-edge manufacturing center for new materials, new devices and new equipment, a biotechnology and biomedical engineering center, a "Belt and Road" and global governance research center. Four scientific research platforms are the center and the Global Communication All Media Research Center.

But when hard-core technology entered the "World's Small Commodity Capital", it failed to find a "place to use it."

"Yiwu's industrial positioning is 'fashion industry'. Their production model is mainly 'flexible production', which is to produce different products using the same raw materials by transforming processes and processes. Under this model, different communities have different products. Distinguish the processes first and then freely combine them. The advantage is that it can quickly produce a variety of products. The shortcoming is 'chaos.'" Lu Qiyong introduced.

Under this model, Yiwu manufacturers are good at "introduction, digestion, absorption and innovation", but they are always lacking in "original innovation". Yiwu enterprises can do 1-10 R & D, and are especially good at industrialization of 10-100, but they always lack 0-1 innovation as a "source of living water".

"Yiwu wants products that can be sold. But what kind of products can be sold? I haven't seen it, so I don't know." Faced with unclear needs, Lu Qiyong and his colleagues at the research institute have continued to communicate with local companies and conducted many surveys, moving from "self-entertainment"-style scientific research to "empathy" technological innovation, and from the perspective of users. Help users raise their needs and find new ideas for industrial upgrading.

The scientific research results of the Yiwu Research Institute of Fudan University are displayed in the exhibition hall. Photo by Zhang Zixin

At the intersection of traditional crafts and modern technology, researchers from the research institute have designed an industrial upgrading plan for Yiwu intangible cultural heritage brown sugar that is "robot generation". In order to preserve the valuable craftsmanship and experience of the old masters, the researchers conducted a large amount of preliminary research and established a "knowledge base" for brown sugar production through data cleaning and verification, so that intangible intangible cultural heritage can be transformed into query-able and usable data resources. Based on big data and artificial intelligence,"time-honored brands" have achieved digital transformation, improved production efficiency, product quality and production process flexibility, and moved towards innovation-driven sustainable development.

Converting traffic into "retention" and realizing industrial transformation, upgrading and sustainable development is inseparable from long-term, high-investment scientific and technological innovation as the driving force.

"When I first came to Yiwu, I felt that the cultural atmosphere here tended to be 'short, flat and fast', and I expected to produce hot products; but now I can feel that the local people's thinking and mentality are slowly changing." Young researcher Yan Guanghui commented.

Telling the "Chinese story" with "Made in China"

Walking into the "Belt and Road" International Communication Center, what you see is a large data monitoring screen that fills the entire wall.

This large monitoring screen was designed by researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences. It can automatically capture overseas key media content through programs. The titles of Yiwu related reports in Chinese, English, Russian, and Arabic are scrolled on the screen, and the corresponding sentiment analysis and keyword cloud are automatically generated.

As one of the world's largest small commodity distribution centers, Yiwu is not only synonymous with "Made in China", but also an important fulcrum city for the "Belt and Road" initiative. There is not only the Yizhou-Singapore-Europe Railway connecting China and Europe, but also the Maritime Silk Road leading to the world. The establishment of the "Belt and Road" International Communication Center is aimed at using Yiwu's trade network and international influence to spread Yiwu's voice and China's story to the world.

According to Zhu Guojin, director of the center, Yiwu's small commodities have reached 66%. In order to effectively promote these products and the culture behind them, based on Yiwu Overseas Communication Studio, the "Belt and Road" International Communication Center will be unveiled and established in 2023. Currently, the center has opened official accounts on the five major overseas social media platforms: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and Twitter.

The "Belt and Road" International Communication Center released a video on YouTube introducing the delicacies of various countries gathered in Yiwu.

From a traditional media reporter to an overseas social media operator, Zhu Guojin and his colleagues explored a set of "methodology" in practice. "We cannot do hard communication, we must do soft communication." Zhu Guojin said,"When you spread the 'soft news' and can bring Yiwu out, you will succeed." Among the content posted on official accounts, the one with the best communication effect is often this kind of lively and interesting content-a Short Video of "Yiwu girls playing basketball" has received more than 10 million views on TikTok.

"Spread outside" is another "magic weapon" of the center for international communication. Currently, there are about 20,000 permanent foreign businessmen in Yiwu, and there are about 570,000 floating foreign businessmen every year. They are not only participants in international trade, but also envoys of spreading Chinese culture. The center has established a group of foreign bloggers and regularly publishes topics within the group, such as "Exploring Yiwu International Trade City", inviting bloggers to participate.

The topics chosen by the center are often close to the work and life of foreign bloggers, and local media in Yiwu will also help bloggers promote and increase the popularity of personal accounts. In Zhu Guojin's view, this is a "two-way rush" between the center and the blogger. Some bloggers with good image and strong expression skills will also form long-term cooperative relationships with the center. Only with good content and mutual trust can Yiwu's traffic be transformed into a "retention" of wealth.

In addition to local anecdotes and friendly foreign businessmen, Yiwu Commodities itself is also the "narrator" of the "Chinese story". Wherever Yixin European trains open, Yiwu's overseas warehouses and overseas outlets will be built, and Yiwu's overseas markets for small commodities will expand. From Germany, France to Spain, wherever there is "Made in China", there is a "Chinese story".

"We need to rely on international communication. For example, if this small product is an umbrella with many elements of Chinese culture in it, then when this small product is exported, we can spread Chinese culture at the same time." Zhu Guojin told the "Record China" team.

When I left Zhang Jiying's store, the AI video was still playing on the advertising screen in front of the door. "Hello","Hello","Bonjour","Hola"..."Digital Boss" Zhang Jiying warmly greeted foreign businessmen in Chinese, English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Japanese and other languages, and fluently introduced each umbrella.

This screen is like a door that opens to the world, attracting the attention of the whole world and inviting guests from all over the world to stay.