Latest news with #Zhou
Forbes
5 hours ago
- Business
- Forbes
Z Grills CEO Unveils Radical ‘Reward Crowdfunding' Strategy
Z Grills unveils bold, new business shift. In a marketplace cluttered with promotional noise and fleeting brand loyalty, Z Grills is taking a radically different path—one that redefines what it means to do business with consumers. The company, best known for its high-performance wood pellet grills, is moving beyond the conventional sales model and launching what it calls a "Reward Crowdfunding" strategy. In this exclusive interview, Mr. Zhou, CEO of Z Grills shares why this long-term vision may just be the future of customer-brand relationships. Z Grills first grabbed attention with a campaign titled "Buy One, Get Ten," which sounded like a classic sales promotion. But as Zhou explains, 'It was often mistaken for a discount deal. In reality, it was the beginning of something much bigger.' That "something" is the Reward Crowdfunding model—a fresh take on customer engagement that aims to transform a single transaction into a decades-long partnership. 'You support us today, and we reward you for the next 50 years,' Zhou says. 'It's a completely different way of thinking about business.' So how does it work? In traditional models, profit margins remain with the company. Z Grills flips that script. 'We treat that margin as your investment in us,' Zhou explains. For customers, that investment pays off over time: Every five years, for up to 50 years, participants receive a brand-new wood pellet grill of equal value. It's a bold commitment, rooted in growth and loyalty. 'As Z Grills grows—through product innovation, market expansion, and brand building—we share that growth with you,' he adds. One of the central goals of the new initiative is to deepen customer trust—and keep it. The CEO lays out several key components of this trust-building framework: The company also draws confidence from its long manufacturing legacy. With over 30 years in grill manufacturing—and the last decade spent pushing innovation in the pellet grill sector—Z Grills has built products for major industry players. 'Now we're building something even bigger under our own brand,' he says. The CEO also views this model as a strategic defense against global uncertainties, including tariffs. 'By building a mutually beneficial relationship, we create a more resilient business,' he notes. The company has also taken proactive steps to optimize its supply chain, reducing the direct impact of tariffs on both the business and its customers. Z Grills' Reward Crowdfunding initiative isn't just about customer retention—it's a complete rethinking of how value is created and shared. In a time when customer loyalty is increasingly elusive, the company is betting on long-term commitment and shared success as the ultimate differentiators. 'Our vision isn't about the next quarter,' the Zhou says. 'It's about the next half-century.' If you'd like to learn how data and AI come together to deliver exceptional business value and help your business stay ready for what's next, click here.
RTHK
7 hours ago
- Politics
- RTHK
Liaison office director Zhou Ji pays district visits
Liaison office director Zhou Ji pays district visits Zhou Ji visits the Cheung Hang Community Hall in Tsing Yi. Photo courtesy of the Beijing liaison office Zhou Ji says the central government has entrusted him with building a better Hong Kong. Photo courtesy of the Beijing liaison office The newly appointed director of Beijing's liaison office in Hong Kong, Zhou Ji, conducted his first district visits on Sunday. Zhou, who was appointed on Friday, visited the Kowloon Women's Organisations Federation Fu Cheong Women Service Centre in Sham Shui Po, and the Cheung Hang Community Hall in Tsing Yi. The liaison office's website wrote that the director got to know more about the community and residents' lives, and acknowledged the efforts of the District Council, care teams and the three committees. Zhou said, during his time at the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, he witnessed the SAR entering a new stage of advancing from stability to prosperity. He said President Xi Jinping and central authorities have entrusted him with the liaison office role, and that he understands that he has heavy responsibilities to shoulder. The director said he will fully and accurately implement the "One Country, Two Systems" principle and "patriots administering Hong Kong", and safeguard the Constitution and the Basic Law. He said he will fully support the SAR government and Chief Executive, and support the city in leveraging its advantages with the strong support of the nation and being closely connected to the world. Zhou said he will also support Hong Kong in consolidating its status as an international finance, shipping and trading hub, developing innovation and technology, and attracting top talents. He added that the central government has entrusted him with building a better Hong Kong.
RTHK
2 days ago
- Politics
- RTHK
CE welcomes appointment of Zhou Ji
CE welcomes appointment of Zhou Ji John Lee welcomes the appointment of Zhou Ji as the new director of Beijing's liaison office here, noting his wealth of experience and knowledge of national policies on Hong Kong. File photo: AFP Chief Executive John Lee on Friday welcomed the appointment of Zhou Ji as the new head of Beijing's liaison office in Hong Kong, expressing confidence that he will lead the office in continuing its support to the SAR. In a statement, Lee also thanked departing liaison office director Zheng Yanxiong for his contributions to the city, noting that he had fully supported the city's government in fulfilling its historic mission of enacting local national security legislation under Article 23 of the Basic Law during his two-year tenure. The State Council had earlier announced that Zhou, 61, would replace Zheng as both the director of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (LOCPG) and as national security advisor of the SAR's Committee for Safeguarding National Security. Lee noted that Zhou is well acquainted with the national policies in Hong Kong, having served as the Executive Deputy Director of the Hong Kong and Macao Work Office of the CPC Central Committee and the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office of the State Council since July 2023. 'I am fully confident that Mr Zhou will lead the LOCPG in continuing its support to the HKSAR Government's governance in accordance with the law, working together with us in fully, faithfully and resolutely implementing the principles of 'one country, two systems', 'Hong Kong people administering Hong Kong' and a high degree of autonomy,' Lee said in the statement. 'I am also confident that Mr Zhou will lead the LOCPG in its continued co-operation with the HKSAR Government of promoting the HKSAR's proactive alignment with national strategies, creating new momentum and advantages for Hong Kong's economic development, promoting Hong Kong's transition from stability to prosperity through innovation and invention, and making greater contribution to the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation,' he added. Lee also expressed his deep gratitude to Zheng for steadfastly upholding the 'one country, two systems' principle on issues such as safeguarding national security and maintaining the city's constitutional order.
Straits Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Straits Times
High Court upholds acquittal of Chinese company accused of bribing ex-LTA deputy group director
Henry Foo Yung Thye, who was in financial difficulties from gambling, had reached out to two senior employees from China Railway Tunnel Group's Singapore branch and asked for loans. PHOTO: ST FILE SINGAPORE – The High Court has upheld the acquittal of a Chinese company that was charged with bribery after two of its employees gave loans totalling $220,000 to a Land Transport Authority (LTA) deputy group director. In a written judgment on May 29, the court said there was insufficient evidence to show that the company's top management was aware of or somehow complicit in the illegal acts. The Singapore branch of China Railway Tunnel Group was first acquitted of three corruption charges by a district judge in March 2024 on grounds that the two employees' acts could not be attributed to the company. Xi Zhengbing, who was the general manager and head representative of the branch, and Zhou Zhenghe, who was a deputy general manager, gave the loans to Henry Foo Yung Thye between January 2018 and August 2019. The district judge said Xi did not have a sufficiently high level in the chain of command. The Singapore branch is only one of the sub-departments within the company's overseas department, which is in turn only one department in the company's corporate structure. The prosecution appealed to the High Court against the acquittal. On May 29, the appeal was dismissed by a panel comprising Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon, Justice Tay Yong Kwang and Justice Andrew Phang. The court also noted that Xi and Zhou had resorted to defrauding the company with false invoices to obtain the $200,000 that was given to Foo as loans in 2018. Zhou then had to borrow $20,000 to provide the subsequent loan. 'All these showed clearly that the respondent was never involved in its employees' illegal activities and neither did it give its tacit approv al (nor) prete nd to be ignorant of what the Singapore branch's employees were doing,' said the court. In September 2021, Foo, then 47, was sentenced to 5½ years' jail for taking about $1.24 million in bribes in the form of loans from contractors and sub-contractors. Foo, who resigned from LTA in September 2019, was also ordered to pay a penalty of about $1.16 million, equivalent to the amount he had not returned. Xi and Zhou were arrested in September 2019 by the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau. After being released on bail, they absconded to China, where they were arrested and subsequently convicted by a Guangzhou court. Xi was sentenced to a five-year jail term and a fine of 300,000 yuan (S$57,400). Zhou was sentenced to two years' jail and a fine of 100,000 yuan. China Railway Tunnel Group has 24 branches, eight of which are overseas. The Singapore branch was a sub-contractor for two different projects on the Thomson-East Coast Line (TEL), and was awarded the main contract for a project on the Circle Line. At the time of the offences, Foo was involved in the project management of the main contractors in respect of TEL projects. Between 2016 and 2019, he reached out to the company's employees, including Xi, to ask for loans. No loan was given as a result of Foo's first request. Subsequently, Xi agreed to give him a loan upon his second request in the hope that Foo would refer more job opportunities to the company. Zhou then arranged for false invoices to be issued to the company and prepared supporting documents with forged signatures. These documents were presented to the company's finance department, which disbursed the payment. After receiving the money, Xi and Zhou passed $200,000 to Foo. In 2019, Foo made a third request. Xi agreed to give him another loan, in the hope that Foo would expedite the company's payment claims and help the company to win the tender for another project. On Xi's instructions, Zhou borrowed $20,000 from a friend and passed the money to Foo. The prosecution alleged that in 2016, Mr Liu Chenyu, who was based in China, was told of the discussions to pay Foo a bribe and approved his request for a loan. Mr Liu was then the deputy general manager of the company's overseas department, which was in charge of all the overseas branches. The prosecution presented text messages, including one from another employee of the Singapore branch telling Foo that Mr Liu was grateful for his support. But the High Court panel said the prosecution has not presented the necessary evidence to prove that Mr Liu was involved. The messages did not prove that Foo's request for a loan was actually conveyed to Mr Liu, said the judges. Lawyer Paul Loy of WongPartnership, who acts for the company, said his client will continue to respect the laws of countries in which it operates. Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.
Mint
3 days ago
- Business
- Mint
Chinese Students Ditch US Plans as Trump Vows Crackdown on Visas
The Trump administration's move to revoke visas for Chinese students is upending Anqi Dong's dream of a US education even before it starts. The 30-year-old Shanghai lawyer, who applied to a PhD program at the University of Texas at Dallas in January, is abandoning her plans, saying bad news for foreign students seems to be piling up by the day. 'Everything is looking just too uncertain right now in America,' she said. 'I'm now considering programs in Finland and Norway, which I never actually thought about before. These are rich and stable places.' Chinese students have found themselves at the sharp end of the Trump administration's push for greater scrutiny of foreigners at American universities. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday their visas would be 'aggressively' revoked, including for students with connections to the Communist Party or studying in critical fields. Future applications from China and Hong Kong will also face heightened scrutiny, he said. Taking action against people with links to the Communist Party casts a wide net, given the role it plays in the lives of Chinese people and institutions, including universities. While just under 100 million people are party members, its reach is so pervasive that the number of those who can be said to have ties with it runs into multiples of that figure. The moves are forcing Chinese students to seek alternatives, even as some education consultants urge patience in case the US policy shifts. Zhou Huiying, founder of Shanghai-based consultancy Lideyouwei Education Technology, said at least 30% of her clients have either canceled plans to study in the US or are applying to schools in places like Australia, the UK and Singapore as back ups. She believes that ratio may increase to about 50% if the Trump administration announces new restrictions on Chinese students. Typically, families that target America for higher education would only focus on US colleges and rarely look at universities in other nations, Zhou said, but now many are having second thoughts. 'The policies have been very capricious and really got on clients' nerves,' Zhou said. 'Some families, where the parents are Communist Party members working for the government, are pretty concerned and now abandoning the US as an option.' The visa restrictions extend a broader crackdown underway since President Trump returned to the White House. He's pledged to ban international students at Harvard University, escalating his campaign to force changes at the elite institution. Earlier this week, Rubio ordered US embassies worldwide to stop scheduling interviews for foreign student visas. For now, the situation is chaotic for students. While some education advisers suggest looking to other countries, others say ride out the bluster, others still have differing views on just how broad the crackdown will be. But just about all agree that there's a greater threat than before as tensions mount between the two nations in Trump's second term. Fangzhou Jiang, a Chinese student at Harvard Kennedy School and co-founder of college consulting company Crimson Education, said he is trying his best to remain optimistic. He said that after receiving the Harvard news last week, he has been mentally preparing for the worst. With one more semester left in his program, he has decided to keep his lease and not make any rash decisions. At Harvard, Jiang has been a model student — serving as a the Vice President of the Kennedy School Student Government. Still, he knows he has to be cautious. 'I'm still cautious because number one, I tick both boxes at the moment, right? Both Chinese and Harvard,' he said. 'I've got some big targets on my back. So I don't want to be blindly optimistic.' Trump has been throwing up successive roadblocks for Chinese students since he was elected the first time. His administration announced in 2020 that the Confucius Institute US Center, a program funded by the Chinese government that's dedicated to teaching Chinese language and culture in the US, had to register as a 'foreign mission.' That made it subject to administrative requirements similar to those for embassies and consulates. Later that year, the visas of more than 1,000 Chinese students and researchers were revoked. Some students are sticking with their US study plans, betting that Trump will eventually change course, said Dennis Huang, co-founder of Dream Education, which provides high-end overseas education services. 'Most of my clients are growing increasingly insusceptible toward the ever-changing policies and people are mentally prepared for the potential hiccups,' Huang said. 'It's not Trump's first presidential tenure and people have grown used to his fickle style.' Brian Wang, founder and chief executive officer of Blueprint, a global admissions consulting firm in Shanghai, thinks the restrictions will be limited to a subset of students who are targeted based on 'perceived political leanings,' or due to their links to sensitive academic subjects. Students already in the US should be 'vigilant about their behavior, including posts on social media,' he said. The number of Chinese students in the US declined 4% last year to about 277,000 amid increased tension between the two nations. Yet Chinese students are still the second-largest international group, trailing only India. In the 2023-2024 year, India and China accounted for about half of the 1.1 million global students in the country, according to the Institute of International Education. Dong, the Shanghai lawyer, doesn't expect to be joining those ranks anytime soon. The visa woes 'impact not only school life, but also plans for after graduation,' she said. 'It is highly likely that new rules would also negatively affect potential jobs.' With assistance from Allen Wan, Diana Li and Gabrielle Ng. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
