Winners of 2009 Models of Taiwan and Overseas Entrepreneurs Unveiled

The China Youth Career Development Association (CYCDA) selected for the 2009 Models of Taiwan and Overseas Entrepreneurs 16 winning enterprisers to be honored this year.

Established by the CYCDA in 1978 to award entrepreneurs who lead an enterprise to success, Models of Taiwan and Overseas Entrepreneurs are picked as excellent examples who contribute to the nation and society, helping to create a more prosperous future. In 1992, the CYCDA also allowed overseas Taiwanese entrepreneurs to enter the competition, making the event more globalized.

Not a day at the beach by any means, aspiring entrepreneurs, besides meeting the basic criteria, are stringently evaluated by a jury of professionals from industry, academia, and government, including on-site inspections. Every year, dozens of successful enterprisers fiercely compete to be selected as models, no matter in Taiwan or overseas.

All the winners, or selected entrepreneurs, in fact are shouldered with social obligations, which makes winning more than a personal achievement. In essence, winners are supposed to promote diligence, industry, entrepreneurship to set up models for emulation; "contribute to the society that fueled one's success;" share one's business insights and experience; offer suggestions to help governmental promotion of financial, economic and foreign-affair policies; explore international markets; and help official liaison with overseas Chinese etc. Also winning entrepreneurs are also expected to contribute to public welfare, help disadvantaged and minority groups, repay society, and engage in meaningful work for public interest.

To give credit where it is due, the CYCDA has also been citing "behind the scene heroes," or assistants who often make the success achieved by model entrepreneurs possible, by being tolerant, helpful, versatile etc. Marital partners, siblings etc. are qualified to vie for the best assistant award.

Basic Qualifications

Prospective Models of Taiwan and Overseas Entrepreneurs have to meet various criteria. Male or female candidates have to be ID-card bearing citizens of Taiwan aged between 25 to 55, without criminal record or unpaid taxes, and be proprietors of an enterprise. Second, a contestant's business must be in operation for at least three years, capitalized minimally at NT$30 million (US$ at US$1: NT$32.5), with the candidate's investment being at least NT$10 million (US$30.8 million).

Candidates are nominated by various parties, including central and local officials, governmental units, financial institutes, academic research institutes, business and commercial groups, industrial park administrations, or business incubation centers, former model entrepreneurs, directors of the CYCDA, and CYCDA's branches throughout Taiwan.

Gung-ho Spirit

Wang Yu-ting, Minister of the National Youth Commission (NYC) and director of the jury for the 2009 selection, points out that, despite Taiwan's modest size, the nation has prospered with global recognition driven by the Taiwanese gung-ho spirit. However, such success can no longer be duplicated, maintained amid globalization and the emergence of the knowledge economy.

"I believe the selection process is professional, impartial and serious, and all selected model entrepreneurs are worthy to be emulated by all sectors of society because it's really difficult to be chosen among a group of outstanding entrepreneurs," says Wang, adding that Taiwan industries have begun harvesting the early fruits of the government's long-term, planned promotion of integration of innovation and entrepreneurship.

"A Taiwanese entrepreneur is found every corner of the business world," says another jury member Wu Ying-yih, Minister of Foreign & Overseas Compatriot Affairs. "Taiwan owes its rapid economic growth in the past 30 to 40 years to entrepreneurship. Overseas Taiwanese entrepreneurs deserve special recognition for doing business in foreign nations is especially tough given cultural, language, regulation differences; while including overseas Taiwanese entrepreneurs to compete in 1992 paves a new diplomatic road into allied nations."

A real-life rags-to-riches success story in the IT sector, the globally-famous Taiwanese entrepreneur Stan Shih, chairman and CEO of the Taiwan-based Acer Group, says: "It requires long-term planning to start a business. Young people should not go too deeply into debt for only a dream otherwise they may not have a chance to start again if they default. A key concept I always share with people is 'admit failure first and you will win.' Model entrepreneurs and their success stories can inspire all young people who aspire to set up new businesses."

Winners of 2009 Models of Taiwan and Overseas Entrepreneurs
Domestic Winners
Company		Winner		Title
Viking Tech Corp.		Stone Wei		President
Genesis Photonics Inc.		David Chung		Chairman
Formosa Optical Co., Ltd.		Tsai Kuo-ping		Vice President
Macroblock Inc.		Yang Li-Chang		Chairman
Sheng Chyean Enterprise Co., Ltd.,		Huang Yu-chuan		Chairman
Taiwan Order Furniture Corp.		Chen Kuo-tu		Vice Chairman
E Tai Enterprise Co., Ltd.		Simon Hung		President
Integrated Service Technology Inc.		Danny Yu		Chairman
Como Furniture Enterprises Co. Ltd		Ko Wen-shan		Chairman
Entire Technology Co., Ltd		Wang Jyh-horng		President
Overseas Winners
Leg Avenue Inc.	Amy Tsai		CEO
Orimicro Alloys Sdn. Bhd	Chih Tsung-liang		Chairman
Yu Chang Enterprise Co., Ltd	Hu Yung-chang		Chairman
IQ Laser Vision	Roger Lin		CEO
APresident Plastics Pty Ltd	Peter Ho		Chiarman
Super Bean International Pte. Ltd.	Puay-seng Kang		Chairman

　

Some of the winners engaged in domestic sales and exports are profiled below.

E Tai Enterprise Co., Ltd.

Shower doors, bathroom accessories and home spa equipment

Few Taiwanese saw shower doors as part of home furnishings 20-30 years ago, until E Tai Enterprise Co., Ltd. achieved success in the segment with years of dedication.

Starting out by making aluminum windows and doors in 1977, E Tai, after some 10 years, ventured into producing shower doors as the pioneer in Taiwan. After 20 years of hard work, the firm is a leading bathroom ware supplier in Taiwan, offering three major product lines: shower doors, bathroom accessories and home spa equipment, sold under its own "Itai" brand.

Being sensitive to water-conservation, Hung Fang-shing, president of the firm, decided to focus on shower doors because showers consume less water than tubs. However, he says, "It was a risky decision then, as the Taiwanese had been used to bathing in tubs. Or consumers were hard to convince to switch to showerheads and shower doors."

According to Hung, E Tai shipped less than 50 shower doors in the first year, teetering the firm on a ledge. But undaunted, Hung stuck to promoting the products, consistently improving quality, building sound distribution channels around the island to enhance service efficiency. "We taught consumers to save water by taking showers and, for safety, keep bathroom floors dry by installing shower doors," he says. "We label all our shower doors with the Itai mark to take full responsibility of any defects." Now the firm ships 2000-3000 sets a month, with 80% sold domestically and 20% exported.

With can-do attitude, Hung has not only achieved success over the past two decades, but was also officially named one of Taiwan's 16 top entrepreneurs of 2008. The firm has also set up a novel marketing model with a "tourist factory" on the island, which is open free to both buyers and the general public, displaying all E Tai's products and new imports. "Above all, the factory is also a history museum of Taiwan's bathroom industry that showcases the evolution of the bathroom culture," he says.

Entire Technology Co., Ltd.

Diffuser plates for LCD panels

Entire Technology Co., Ltd. was established by Dr. Wang Jyh-Horng in 2003 and has been focusing on optoelectronic materials, extrusion and super-precision production processes. After only a few years, Entire has grown into one of the top-three global suppliers of diffuser plates for liquid crystal display (LCD) panels.

The company's major products include diffuser plates applied in backlight modules of thin film transistor-liquid crystal display (TFT-LCD) panels, mold-decoration film used in manufacturing electric consumer products, and many more. All of Entire's products are globally patented and developed with its own core technologies. The firm enables many companies of major industries in Taiwan to source fully-homegrown key parts, without relying on expensive imports.

Entire's diffuser plates are certified by many foreign and domestic LCD panel manufacturers, as well as system-module companies. With 15 patents in Taiwan, Japan, the United States and Mainland China, Entire is the first Taiwanese manufacturer with the capability to mass-produce diffuser plates. It is also engaged in research and commercialization of high value-added diffuser plates with surface microstructure, achieving better brightness-enhancing effects to reduce usage of film and electricity, features sought-after by LCD panel companies.

Entire is already the largest diffuser-plate supplier in Taiwan, the largest TFT-LCD manufacturing nation in the world in terms of shipment, and in recent years the ambitious firm has been aggressively exploring oversea markets.

Entire's founder Dr. Wang recognized the potential in the TFT-LCD industry as early as 2003, venturing into the segment without rivals at that time. Investing everything he had to develop diffuser plates, a key part to differentiate LCD monitors from TV panels, Dr. Wang is harvesting the fruits of his foresight and industry. The diffuser plate is critical in LCD TV panels to evenly illuminate the whole panel, as well as playing an important role in heat-insulation and ultra violate (UV)-absorption.

Formosa Optical Co., Ltd.

Eyewear and optical product supply and service

Established in 1976 as a small and first optical shop in Taipei Country, Formosa Optical Co., Ltd. has grown into the largest optical chain-store in Taiwan now. It ran into financial woes due to bad investments in 2001 and was taken over by Tsai Kuo-ping, current vice president of firm.

After the takeover, however, Formosa Optical has evolved into a middle- to high-class and fashionable optical product supplier with its professional knowledge.

Tsai, the real hero behind Formosa Optical's success, integrated the product source and knowhow to build a new core competent platform. Tsai's Family also invested in frame, contact lens and lens manufactory and wholesale.

Backed by marketing sense, Tsai set up a contact-lens factory in China in 1996 and another similar facility in 2000. The group also began producing contact-lens cleaning and care solutions in 2002.

Formosa Optical is still the largest and most famous optical chain in Taiwan with 330 directly-operates stores, with a targeted growth to 500 in next five years.

Sheng Chyean Enterprise Co., Ltd.

Wide-ranging bar making machines

Sheng Chyean Enterprise Co. is one of Taiwan's most specialized manufacturers of bar-making machines. The ISO9001:2000, CE-certified company was founded in Changhua County, central Taiwan in 1994 to focus on sales of automation-equipment parts and components as well as machinery repair and maintenance services.

Sheng Chyean president Huang Yu-chuan was one of the 16 model entrepreneurs selected by the CYDCA in December 2008. Huang's forte is to create innovative machinery by improving the functions and structure of foreign-made products.

To meet the demand to upgrade industries, a few years after its inception, Sheng Chyean began developing and producing peripheral equipment for the bar and wire industry by integrating electro-mechanical know-how it has acquired on its own.

Sheng Chyean owes part of its success to building good relations with over 90% of domestic manufacturers of bar-drawing parts, driven by its long-term dedication to improving the quality of bar-extending machines. After years of development, the company is one of the world's top-five manufacturers of bar-making machines.

The company's major product lines include multi-type extending machine, cold drawing extending machine, flat mill, chamfering machine, metal circular pipe/bar stick end chamfering machine, high-speed round bar straightening machine, etc.

Sheng Chyean boasts its extending machines sell for only one-third of those from specialist manufacturers in Japan and Germany, and yet achieve 90% quality in terms of surface and straightness integrity.

Another reason for the firm's success is, according to Huang, that his company budgets 3% of annual revenue for R&D of innovative products, which enables the firm to land customized orders from home and abroad.