JA China teaches teens recipe to successful business

By Huang Daohen

GaGa Company is determined to succeed in a crowded, recessionary manufacturing industry. Huang Siyan, CEO of GaGa, said her company will double its sales goal this year and pay a dividend to shareholders.

But unlike other high-tech companies, GaGa does not have a manufacturing plant or even an office. What it has right now is only an idea.

The company, composed of 10 high school students from across the nation, competed last week against 10 other groups in the 2010 Youth Enterprise Summer Camp. While the team didn’t take home the trophy, the experience itself was a win.

The camp, co-organized by Junior Achievement (JA) China and HSBC, aims to provide a platform where teens can practice turning a business idea into reality with the help of local business leaders.

As many as 100 students from more than 40 top high schools in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Jinan, Chengdu and Shenzhen participated in the camp.

During the event, students formed teams, then started their own “company” with the guidance of volunteer entrepreneurs. Participants learned to make business decisions, create innovative products and weather the company’s ups and downs with their teammates.

GaGa Company chose to sell products that would protect the human body from radiation, saying such goods have become increasingly in demand in recent years but that there are few quality products in the market, said Huang Siyan in a statement.

Though Dream X B Company emerged on top, Huang, 16, was named the camp’s Most Promising Future Entrepreneur. “The three-day camp was an unforgettable journey in my life,” Huang said. “We learned that product innovation requires not only creativity and an adventurous spirit, but also careful market research and a detailed marketing plan.”

Paul Chou, President of JA China who also chaired the competition’s judging panel, said the objective of the event was to develop business awareness and entrepreneurship among high school students in the country.

“Training future entrepreneurs has been JA’s signature program for decades,” Chou said. “And we will be bringing more educational programs to Chinese youth.”

Before the competition, participants joined the JA Economics Program, which teaches basic economic theory and how to run a business. To date, some 12,000 high school students have participated in the Economics Program.