Zhong Shanshan Biography & Net Worth

Zhong Shanshan Biography & Net Worth

Zhong Shanshan is a Chinese billionaire business magnate and entrepreneur. He is known for his involvement in multiple business endeavors and investments, but most particularly, he is recognized for being the founder of Nongfu Spring, a beverage company which he also controls as chairman. In addition to that, Zhong is also a major stake owner in the Beijing Wantai Biological Pharmacy Enterprise.

Early Life: Childhood, Education

Zhong Shanshan (Zhōng Shǎnshǎn) was born in December 1954, in Hangzhou, China.

Due to a series of unfortunate events, particularly during the Cultural Revolution, he dropped out of primary school and took up jobs in construction.

In 1977, he joined what is now known as the Zhejiang Radio & Television University studying Chinese.

Professional Life: Business Career, Investments

After graduating from the Zhejiang Radio & Television University where he studied Chinese, Zhong started his career as a journalist, working for the Zhejiang Daily before leaving his job in 1988 to pursue other things. He moved to Hainan in 1988 and started selling turtles, mushrooms, and prawns on the island which is situated on the coast of southern China. He then proceeded to work as a sales agent at Wahaha Beverage Company, selling healthcare supplements.

After many years of struggling to find his bearings, Zhong Shanshan founded the beverage company Nongfu Spring, which he currently controls as chairman. In addition to that, he also acquired a major stake in the Beijing Wantai Biological Pharmacy Enterprise.

His wealth exploded in an unimaginable way in 2020 after his companies went public, one on the Shanghai exchange and the other on the Hong Kong stock exchange. Two years prior, he wasn’t even named as a billionaire by wealth-tracking and finance reporting sites, including Finanticum. In July 2020 Zhong had a fortune of $16 billion, and by the end of the year, he has multiplied that figure by more than four times. His net worth of $70 billion as of December 2020 made him one of the world’s top 20 richest people, and the richest man in China, surpassing Alibaba’s Jack Ma who had a net worth of $58 billion at that time. When his net worth eventually surpassed $80 billion, Zhong Shanshan became the richest businessman in the whole of Asia, topping Mukesh Ambani‘s $78 billion affluence.

Zhong founded bottled water-making company Nongfu Spring in 1996. Today, his company is the biggest packaged water producer in China. The company posted revenue of $3.4 billion in 2019. It also produces tea and other beverages, while also controlling one of the largest product distribution networks in China.

Zhong Shanshan also owns Wantai, and serves as the pharmaceutical company’s chairman. He owns 75 percent of Wantai which, in addition to Nongfu, was listed on the Hong Kong stock exchange in 2020.

His wealth received a massive boost during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic when in addition to making hepatitis E test kits, his pharm company, Wantai, created a nasal spray COVID-19 vaccine which helped the company’s shares grow by 2,000%.

Personal Life: Family, Wife, Children, Private Interests

One other thing about this man is that he is an expert in maintaining an ultra-low profile. Never has he been caught being too available to the public and in the media, and this is probably why the Chinese media calls him a “lone wolf”.

Zhong lives with his wife and their children in an apartment he acquired in Xihu District, Hangzhou, China. He is married to Lu Xiaoping, the mother of his three children.

Zhong Shanshan Net Worth: Salary, Income Sources, Stocks

By early January 2021, after receiving a major boost from his successful nasal spray COVID-19 vaccine, Zhong Shanshan’s net worth topped $94 billion. At that level, he reached the position of sixth-richest human being alive behind only American businessmen like Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk, and Bill Gates, and the French business mogul Bernard Arnault.

As of today, Zhong’s net worth is $62 billion. The Chinese businessman and entrepreneur earned his wealth thanks to the success of his bottled water company Nongfu Spring and the pharmaceutical firm Beijing Wantai Biological Pharmacy. Zhong owns 75 percent of Wantai and 85 percent of Nongfu, both of which IPO’d in 2020.

Despite dropping out of school at the age of twelve and scampering for income by taking up several small jobs as a mushroom farmer, beverage salesman, construction worker, and also as a news reporter, Zhong Shanshan made it to the top from the ground and is now living the life he had always dreamt of. His story is an inspiration to millions around the world, especially the youth and upcoming entrepreneurs. Zhong’s journey shows that almost everybody can succeed under the right circumstances, especially if they’re determined and never give up their goals for anything.