Wang Zhenghua: Headwind Flight

"If the government approves, I dare to sell standing tickets on the plane."

In June 2009, a great remark made many people remember him - Wang Zhenghua, chairman of China's only low-cost airline (low cost airlines) Chunqiu airlines.

You may think he is abrupt.

However, an Internet survey launched by Tencent finance showed that nearly 60% of netizens supported planes selling tickets and were willing to buy them.

You have to admit that behind the seemingly "open mouth" is the support of customer psychology.

Wang Zhenghua overthrew many airlines.

He always groped for the road, then took off firmly and kept exploring in flight.

At the same time, we should watch and adjust, safely land, and then take off.

Entrepreneurship: self discovery in groping

In the sea

Nevertheless, Wang Zhenghua still worked hard and stayed at home for less than an hour every day. After eating her mother's supper, she rode back to the organ to continue working.

In 1980, Wang Zhenghua received the task that he had been sent to him at last to change his life -- to solve the work for the educated youth who returned to the city in large numbers.

At that time, he was Deputy Secretary of the Party committee of Zunyi street in Changning District, Shanghai, so that the educated youth had a meal to eat, and a place to live became the most important job for him.

Wang Zhenghua set up six enterprises in one breath, including the spring and Autumn International brigade, which later became a private head card of the national tourism industry, while the spring and Autumn International brigade laid a solid foundation for the later spring and Autumn Airlines which were more familiar to Wang Zhenghua.

The six companies initially showed his judgement of the market.

He judged that there would be more and more travel demand, and set up an automobile factory, followed by a passenger pport company, followed by freight, then taxi, then travel agency.

In addition to another embroidery factory, it can be said that in the 80s of last century, Wang Zhenghua was already practicing the "whole industry chain" which was regarded as a standard by enterprises such as COFCO today.

That is, in the process of founding these enterprises, Wang Zhenghua gradually discovered "self discovery" through exploration, which is more suitable for him to compete in the business world than the official life.

In 1985, he was asked to quit his job and was told that he could only take one out of the six enterprises he founded.

Wang Zhenghua finally chose the lowest cost travel agency.

Automobile factories, passenger pport and freight pport require high cost. Only travel agencies with low hardware requirements are suitable for a few dollars in their pockets.

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Learning: exploring business models in two books

In the spring and Autumn period, the first time the CITS used the enrollment fee and training fee of 1 yuan / person for the educated youth. They set up a tin pavilion with 2000 yuan. They wrote the Chunqiu travel agency and opened a small window to sign up for the tour.

Looking back on his career and starting from this iron house, Wang Zhenghua said with emotion, "this world works, you have to look for it and care for it."

At that time, Wang Zhenghua was keenly aware that even though Chinese tourism was basically based on the unit organization at that time, personal travel would flourish along with the development of the economy.

The spring and autumn brigade took the lead in playing the concept of "individual traveler" in China, and after ten years of being separated from the street, in 1994, it became the leader of domestic private tourism.

This leading business model owes to Wang Zhenghua's reading habits.

When he was thinking about Chinese tourism, he found a textbook written by a teacher at Zhejiang University, plated by the world tourism industry and its philosophy. The book says that world tourism is mainly based on individual travellers, which makes Wang Zhenghua a treasure.

A few years later, on the way to Wang Zhenghua's aviation industry, another book, southwest of America, tells us about the successful experience of Southwest Airlines.

This made him firm in taking the road of cheap air, thereby lifting his prelude to "rolling mines" in the Chinese civil aviation industry.

But Wang Zhenghua did not see southwest America when he was in the airline industry.

As early as the 1994 spring and autumn brigade became a private leader in the industry, the whole company is still celebrating the income of hundreds of millions of yuan. When Wang Zhenghua, who came from the suburbs (Changning District suburb of Shanghai), overlooked his own city business, he took out the American Express Company to compare himself with others: when people earn $about 20000000000, you only get RMB more than 100 million, what are you proud of?

Wang Zhenghua led management to study the ten largest tourism enterprises in the world, to investigate these companies, then to discuss who models and how to make the business go upstream and downstream.

They thought about the American Express's "tourism + finance" mode, but at that time, China's financial industry was not open at all and gave up. They thought about the exhibition mode of the British exhibition company, but at that time, the exhibition was basically in the hands of the government and gave up. Finally, they chose the European Thomsen charter travel agency. This was echoed with the Chartered mode of the three brothers in Wenzhou at that time, and Wang Zhenghua decided to lead the Chunqiu International brigade to air pportation.

At that time, it was 1997, and after two or three years of exploration and deliberation, Wang Zhenghua began his first civil aviation charter flight.

From 1997 to 2004, the charter flights in spring and autumn lasted for seven years, totaling 30 thousand voyages.

During this period, Wang Zhenghua was still conducting an inspection of airlines all over the world, almost everywhere in the world, and preparing for flying at any time.

The chance is coming.

On the day of 2003, Yang Yuanyuan, the then director of the Civil Aviation Administration of China, talked openly about the release of civil aviation at a Chinese and foreign press conference, and named it that the private enterprises such as Chunqiu and Guo brigade had the conditions to enter civil aviation.

At the end of 2003, the monopoly industry of civil aviation opened the door to private enterprises.

In May 2004, the spring and Autumn Airlines were founded, and Wang Zhenghua boldly shouted the slogan of "cheap airlines" and made a sensation in China's aviation industry.

And this is the distance from his further thinking of the spring and autumn brigade in 1994. He has initially considered entering the aviation industry for the past 10 years.

From 50 years old to 60 years old, Wang Zhenghua finally realized the dream of flying freely.

Just when Wang Zhenghua decided to apply for the establishment of an airline, his old friend, Gong Xue Ping, the then director of the Shanghai Municipal People's Congress, scolded him severely, and put out a series of data to prove that the airline industry's profits were low and he often lost money. He said he certainly didn't think well.

But Wang Zhenghua said, "we have demonstrated that for three years, we have practiced for seven years, for ten years.

What can I do if I don't do these risky and competitive things? "

But in fact, Wang Zhenghua on the surface of "riding a tiger hard" is in the bottom.

He has designed a route suitable for himself, and the book "southwest of the United States" provides the target for Chunqiu airlines, a low cost (low-cost) airline that has made profits for more than thirty years, Southwest Airlines.

At first glance, his pformation seems to be breaking the rules.

But every time, he was prepared.

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Air China, China Eastern Airlines and China Southern Airlines also have many local state-owned airlines. They have strong government financial support behind them. However, a series of civil aviation such as Chunqiu, Okai, Eagle alliance and Dongxing have rushed forward without hesitation.

After several years of steady development, the aviation industry ushered in a bleak financial crisis.

In 2008, airlines of various powers were deeply involved in the hedging of aviation oil.

Since 2009, private aviation has also encountered a round of "national advance and retreat". State-owned airlines have received a series of financial injection, while private aviation has undergone a series of accidents: East Star Airlines has gone bankrupt and liquidation. Eagle alliance Airlines has been annexed by Sichuan airlines.

But Spring Airlines still made a profit of 20 million yuan in 2008 and 158 million yuan in 2009.

Of course, thanks to the low cost strategy of Chunqiu airlines, it is the only one of several private airlines to take cheap airline routes.

Low cost is the premise of cheap, and low price is the demand of consumers. Wang Zhenghua affirms that in the late 90s and early twenty-first Century, most people in China began to travel by plane. People wanted prices to come down. "My appearance is to cater to the needs of the market, and we are targeting people who are paying their own expenses."

But the low price of spring and autumn has been blocked by state-owned airlines.

299 yuan, 199 yuan, 99 yuan, or even 1 yuan of fares, let the once high up opponents rise up and accuse him of being a price butcher. Cheap airlines are vicious competition.

At the end of December 2006, the Shanghai Price Bureau issued a warning to disrupt the market in the spring and Autumn period and issued 150 thousand tickets for launching a 1 yuan ticket on the Shanghai Ji'nan route.

There are two choices before the spring and Autumn Airlines: one is to admit mistakes, the other two is to make things big.

Some people advised him that this is a good opportunity to promote the reform of air ticket prices. A hearings were held to make things bigger and let some leaders with reform ideas seize the opportunity to push forward the reform.

But Wang Zhenghua finally persuaded some leaders of CAAC to choose to admit his mistake.

In contrast, in May 2006, the same low price promotion caused the antipathy of the state-owned airlines. The "mad man" of Lanxing Airlines launched a rebellion and made the matter go to the public hall, so that both sides could not come to the stage until the mediation was made.

This is probably a microcosm of the different ending of spring and autumn and East Star.

Talking about the attack of monopolization of state-owned enterprises, Wang Zhenghua told Tencent Finance: "no difficulty is strange."

He stressed that if you want to have a thankful heart, thank the government for letting you come to this industry first. If you have advanced, you will always have an opportunity.

For example, spring and autumn have been applying for some hot routes from Shanghai to Beijing and Shanghai to Taipei, and have not been approved. Wang Zhenghua once complained about this problem in front of the media.

But this time, he told Tencent finance that there must be a good mentality. "Every time I apply for a newspaper, I must report it. It is your business not to approve it, but I have to fight for it."

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Dispute: the spirit of "stubborn" contract

Low cost aviation means saving the cost by all means.

Including Wang Zhenghua, the salary level of spring and Autumn Airlines is lower than that of other airlines; using the network of spring and autumn national travel, bypassing the ticket system of the middle flight letter, saving the ticket agency fees of hundreds of millions of yuan, and the travel thrift, Wang Zhenghua taking the lead in the basement and eating instant noodles.

In addition, the cost savings of the spring and Autumn period are also a "start" for passengers, but the characteristics of low-cost airlines which have been widely accepted abroad have caused a strong rebound in China.

In the spring and autumn flights, there are no first-class stateroom and all economy class; when you want to eat, you are told not to provide free food and beverage service; if your luggage is a little bit too small, they will ask you for money; you are sleepy and want to squint for a while, and the crew member will sell the scarf with the radio, so that you think you have surmounted the train, the plane is delayed, you are told that there is no compensation.

Each of them has caused passengers to complain, prosecute, or even dominate the aircraft.

But Wang Zhenghua is not easy to compromise. He said that when the Internet was booked, Chunqiu had already used the word "big one". The red color was highlighted, and the delay was not compensated.

"If you buy it, you sign the contract and abide by the spirit of contract."

If you take the act of rowing and so on, next time you will enter the "blacklist" of Chunqiu airlines, and no longer provide you with ticketing service -- they call it "no service capability".

Wang Zhenghua said that there are more than 200 people on the list, but he said the list is not permanent. If passengers change their minds to accept the provisions of the spring and Autumn period, they can be taken from the list.

In fact, every low cost airlines abroad do this without encountering a strong rebound in the spring and Autumn period.

One of the reasons is that the development of cheap aviation abroad is very common, but domestic is the only one. Passengers do not understand the way of operation in the spring and Autumn period, they only see their own "cheap", and do not know that the reason for the low price is "low cost".

If more than a few cheap airlines, will resolve the "loneliness" of the spring and Autumn period?

Speaking of this, Wang Zhenghua said, there is no sense of loneliness, that is, a little more difficult.

He believes that the market for cheap airlines will continue to expand, and that the number of passengers in the spring and Autumn period is now 15 million. He believes that as the number of people continues to expand, more people will be able to understand cheap airlines.

Wang Zhenghua's low cost ambition is even more than that. He once thought, "can we take a bag by plane and take a bag to stand by, not to check luggage, not to feed meals, nor to supply water?"

His standing ticket plan has not yet been implemented, and airworthiness authorities have made it clear that the station ticket is "unsafe".

But Wang Zhenghua will obviously continue to grope for ways to reduce costs. Just as every decision has been made before, after a long period of groping and argumentation, once there is no obstacle, he will immediately release.

Speaking of his family, Wang Zhenghua said that when he decided to resign from the public service, the leadership was puzzled. The society speculated that he was a "money worship", but his support strengthened his confidence.

She said to Wang Zhenghua, "if you want to do it, I will support you. Fortunately, I am a teacher and an iron rice bowl. If you fail, I will raise you. Rice porridge and radish can always afford you. Do it."

Nowadays, nearly seventy of the elderly are living, and their daily lives are also "low cost" like air travel.

At home, tap water can be used for two or three times, washing dishes, washing dishes, then mop the floor, and finally flush the toilet.

"There is nothing else in my family, there are seven or eight barrels."

Wang Zhenghua said he and his wife enjoyed it because it was "green".

When we were flying together, two people suddenly thought, "let's make a will."

So they wrote: all property, including houses and deposits, goes to charities and to Chunqiu airlines.

There is a case study of Chunqiu airlines, which is one of the reasons for the success of the spring and Autumn period.

In the spring and Autumn period, when Wang Zhenghua was the founder of the company, only 20% of the shares were left to him, 5% to the Changning District government, 65% to 23 executives, and the remaining 10% to some of the old employees.

And Chunqiu airlines, Wang Zhenghua holds 30% of the shares, 70% by the company executives and ordinary employees.

He said, 30% is also for work, without it, it would be difficult to become chairman.

Chinese proverb says: wealth is scattered, wealth is scattered and people get together.

Along with Wang Zhenghua's 9 employees who started the "fight the world" from the iron house, in the past 30 years, except for the late one, only one person left the spring and Autumn period to take the "iron rice bowl" to the Inland Revenue Department, and the remaining 7 have been insisting on it until now.

Wang Zhenghua's son Wang Yu graduated from university and was persuaded by his father to go to the United States to exercise. He only gave 50 thousand yuan.

Wang Yuceng and illegal immigrants from Wenzhou live in dirty and disorderly basement rooms, work as interpreter, and help Chinese restaurants buy vegetables.

"When my son came back from the United States, he got two master's degrees and brought back 30 thousand dollars."

Speaking of this, the look of pride appeared on Wang Zhenghua's face.

"To understand this society, only the bottom of this society will be more deeply understood."

Wang Zhenghua said.

Wang Yu finally gave up his position in a consulting company in the United States and joined Chunqiu airlines.

Although Wang Zhenghua stressed that the proposal was put forward by Chunqiu Airlines CEO Zhang Xiuzhi and asked for his son's wishes at the same time, he also told Tencent finance that he could not rule out the possibility of passing his career to his son.

However, he also stressed that he would not deliberately pursue his son's performance and pursuit.

Wang Yu is currently the senior vice president of Chunqiu airlines.

Wang Zhenghua said that Chunqiu CITS and Chunqiu airlines should learn Ctrip mode. This business has not been valued and is the most difficult. Wang Yu is now in charge.

Wang Yu rarely appeared in front of the media, but just after a few days' interview with Wang Zhenghua in the commercial life, Chunqiu airlines announced the announcement on receiving the listing guidance, which officially announced that it would seek to register A shares.

The announcement shows that the management and employees of the company are holding Chunqiu Airlines shares through the newly established Shanghai spring wing and Shanghai Chunxiang two investment companies, while the former legal representative is Wang Yu.

Vision: let everyone get on the plane.

Wang Zhenghua once said that the goal of spring and autumn is to provide cheap fare so that every Chinese can get on the plane.

On the flight of Spring Airlines, there are always the first passengers on the plane.

"Every time I see them sitting on a plane looking out of the window, they are delighted and surprised. They will give me great comfort and make me feel that what I have done is worth it."

Wang Zhenghua's remark made many people moved.

At present, Wang Zhenghua has withdrawn from the daily management of Chunqiu airlines, but he is still the captain of the spring and Autumn period. He said that work is a pleasure. "I really am not allowed to work at all. I am afraid it is still very painful."

To achieve the goal of "let every Chinese be able to get on a plane", Chunqiu and Wang Zhenghua have a long way to go. He and Chun Qiu must continue to explore and take off, adjust, land and take off.