Ma Yong (secretary of the Party Group, vice chairman and secretary general of China National Food Industry Association)

I participated and witnessed the partnership between Zhenjiu and Jindong Group for the past ten years.

After Zhenjiu was incorporated into Jindong Group, Xiangdong and me visited the distillery, and what we saw was devastation. Everything had to be started from scratch. Ten years later, we know how hard-won the achievements are in Zhenjiu.

Zhenjiu has two valuable assets:“the national team” and the noble blood. It has a national team because it was the only distillery instructed by the State Council to be included in the national investment plan after the 1970s; it has the noble blood because it received leaders, technicians, yeast, raw materials and equipment from Maotai in the “relocation test”.

We summarize the past to inspire the future. From the forty-four-year development course of Zhenjiu, I summarize five experiences:

Firstly, we will run Zhenjiu Distillery well and be confident in the next ten years. In the 1970s, the older generation of Maotai people left home for Zunyi under harsh conditions, just to build a new high-quality Maotai-flavour distillery. It was the persistent confidence in the traditional food fermentation industry of China that laid the foundation for Zhenjiu Distillery.

Secondly, be persevering. There is extremely intense competition in the liquor industry. Perseverance is required to create brilliant achievements.

Thirdly, persist in good craftsmanship. Laziness and fraud are never tolerated in the liquor industry. It is an asset-heavy industry that places equal emphasis on funds and talents. It also takes time and history to make good liquor. So, we must persist in the spirit of craftsmanship.

Fourthly, Conscience is also an ingredient of good liquor. Most liquor enterprises regard Maotai as the price benchmark but not the quality or history benchmark. That’s why they struggle. Increasing the price will simply separate them from consumers. Their products can be too expensive to be popular. What we need is genuine and cost-effective Maotai-flavour liquor affordable to consumers.

Fifthly, bear our original aspiration in mind. Zhenjiu Distillery was built under the instruction of the State Council because good Maotai-flavour liquor was not available. Our original aspiration was to make good liquor products that are fairly priced to the public.

Maotai Is Glad to See Zhenjiu Gets Bigger and Stronger

Li Baofang (secretary of the Party Committee and chairman of Maotai Group)

As a witness to the development of Zhenjiu, I would like to share with you three feelings:

First, emotionally, Zhenjiu and Maotai have deep relations and affection. Zhenjiu was born in 1975 as the result of relocation test by Maotai. At that time, in order to realize the long-cherished wish of the older generation of national leaders to increase Maotai’s output to 10,000 tons, state ministries and commissions selected a site and built a team to launch “a relocation test” that lasted for more than ten years. Zhenjiu was born under this context. This was done by the Maotai people. That’s why the old factory manager of Maotai was also here today.

I am here to support a brother enterprise. After the expert panel honored Zhenjiu as “treasure of liquor”, it created glory and encountered difficulties. WhenZhenjiu’s products were sold, I was in charge of liquor sales at the Economic and Information Commission of Guizhou Province. From the perspective of the Guizhou Provincial Government, we, of course, hoped the products to be sold better and at higher prices, so that the enterprise solved its problems and resettle its employee better. At that time, Chairman Wu Xiangdong talked with me dozens of times in the provincial government.

It was the involvement of Jindong Group that solved the development problems which had bothered Zhenjiu Distillery for many years and injected in it new vitality. Jindong Group deserves special thanks for investing heavily in the reconstruction of Zhenjiu and devoting so much energy to reverse the development dilemma of the company and gradually send it to the right track. The company not only survived, but also thrived. That was a very difficult task. I sincerely congratulate it again!

Second, in terms of the whole picture, Maotai will give Zhenjiu the greatest respect and support possible. Liquor is a defining characteristic of Guizhou. It’s our responsibility to make full use of the characteristics, expand advantages, and tap into the collective effect of the liquor industry cluster in Guizhou. It’s a mission that must be done well. Our original aspiration also echoes with the development direction of a “Golden Triangle” for liquor brands jointly built by Sichuan and Guizhou Provinces and the proposal to “build Guizhou into a core production area of Maotai-flavour liquor in the world”. Zhenjiu is one of the organizers of the roundtable forum next year. We express our support to Zhenjiu in this way and look forward to the roundtable conference next year.

Thirdly, from the development perspective, Maotai is glad to see Zhenjiu gets bigger and stronger. Moutai will always pay close attention to its development. We are happy to see Zhenjiu becomes big and strong enough to promote the development of high-quality liquor.

Finally, I sincerely wish Zhenjiu prosperity and great success in the future!