How bottled water catapulted Zhong Shanshan to world's richest list from wisepowder's blog

In a year when tech - small and big - ruled the roost, Nongfu Spring - a Chinese bottled water manufacturer - has emerged as an improbable winner.To get more news about Nongfushanquan, you can visit en.nongfuspring official website.

Nongfu Spring, which is based in China's eastern city of Hangzhou, hit a jackpot after the company's $1.1 billion initial public offerings in Hong Kong in September last year saw a stellar response. The stock has risen over 200% since it hit the equity market. The bumper response to the IPO propelled its founder Zhong Shanshan to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. In fact, Zhong saw his wealth surge more than $13.5 billion to nearly $92 billion since the start of 2021.

Zhong is now the sixth richest man in the world after surpassing the likes of Larry Page and Mukesh Ambani. He is also the only Chinese national in the Billionaires Index after property tycoon Wang Jianlin to make it to the top 10 in the list.Founded in 1996, Nongfu is a leading bottled water producer in China. The company also produces, and sells fruit juice, sports drinks, and tea drinks and has nearly 19,000 employees. Zhong, whom the Chinese media refers to as lone wolf, has capitalised on rising Chinese disposable income, public wariness of tap water and changing lifestyle patterns to push demand for bottled water.

In fact, the red-capped mineral water bottles - the company's main segment - are a common sight and can be found in practically every convenience store and supermarket. According to reports, consumption per person of bottled water in China rose from 41 litres in 2014 to 59 litres in 2019. However, China's per capita consumption is just around one-fifth of that of the U.S. The industry is likely to grow annually by 5.7% according to reports.