BIZCHINA> Newsmakers
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BIZCHINA> Newsmakers
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Top draws
(China Daily)
Updated: 2007-07-16 06:48 Star River
China Business Weekly reporter Hu Yuanyuan speaks to Tian Yuan, vice-president of Guangzhou-based Hongyu Group, the developer of Star River. Q: Why is Star River so sought-after? A: Rigorous standards and unremitting commitment to further improvement. There are three essential tools on our chairman Huang Wenzai's office desk: a telescope, a magnifier and a ruler. With the telescope, he can see the garden scenery over the whole block to determine how it could be further improved. With the magnifier, he can check the nuances of the property's decor. And the ruler helps him check the construction quality according to the blueprint. Q: Could the Star River model be copied by other property developers? A: Hardly. This attention to detail has been ingrained in all of our staff. Corporate culture like this can't be built overnight. And very few developers could put as much money as we did into the project. For instance, we insisted all infrastructure and elements be fully completed before we delivered the housing to buyers. Although it may tighten our capital flow, we believe it is worthwhile to do that for our customers' benefit. Q: Star River has seen great success in Guangzhou and Beijing. Do you plan to explore the Shanghai market? A: Sure. In fact, we are bidding for land in Shanghai now. But as the negotiation is still going on, I can't give any more details on our Shanghai strategy. Q: And what about plans to tap second-tier cities, as other developers are doing? A: We don't have any plans to do this for the time being. We would like to focus on our projects in Beijing and Guangzhou. And there are new products in the pipeline. Q: Have you considered joining forces with foreign institutional investors? A: We are open to such opportunities. But we haven't yet found the right partner. Foreign real estate funding has many innovative financing tools, but given China's existing capital management framework, those tools cannot function properly here. Q: Some high-end residential developments didn't make any sales in March. This situation hasn't improved much since for some projects, despite general improvement in the market. Why is this? A: The problem may lie with product design and positioning. Knowing exactly what your target customers want is really important for successful sales. (China Daily 07/16/2007 page7) (For more biz stories, please visit Industries)
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Star River is another big name in luxury housing. Built in the central commercial district of Panyu in Guangzhou in 2000, the developers expanded to Beijing and it was the bestseller of the city's high-end residential sector in 2006.