Women dazzle China's business circle

After graduating from California's Pepperdine University in 2004, Zong returned to China and joined the family business.

"The study experience in the United States has made me more frank but people of my father's generation care more about human relations," said Zong, who spends most of her time and effort making the company bigger worldwide.

"We are trying to inject western culture into the group," she said.

Wahaha plans to market its tea beverages in overseas markets. Some products are available in Canada, the Republic of Korea and the UK. The group's operating revenue reached 78.3 billion yuan ($12.6 billion) in 2013.

Without being born with a silver spoon in her mouth like Zong, Scarlett Li has built a successful career on her own. After seven years at News Corporation as general manager of StarTV's [V] music channel in China, Li started to focus on the cellphone-based music business in 2004. She founded Zebra Media three years later, and it has grown into a leading company that promotes pop music and concerts on TV and mobile devices.

"I was lucky. A changing society gave me the chance to succeed, " said Li.

In her view, as Chinese people become richer they are thirsty for spiritual and recreational enjoyment. Music, movies and dramas are all now lucrative businesses in the country.

Li said because of tight controls it was almost impossible to start a private media company in the past. But regulators have become more market-oriented, and as a result the cultural industry is flourishing.

It's easier for women to succeed as their sensitivity, taste in beauty and better communication skills are all advantages. "For example, I can better communicate with my homosexual employees," Li said.

Women at the top

Top 10 richest women 2014