If we use people as an analogy for businesses, the 90-year-old Yuen Foong Yu would be a pioneer with experience, solid skills as well as great courage and insight. Now that we have metamorphosed into an investment holding company, I'm convinced that YFY will become a trailblazer who is characterized by flexibility, integration of resources, and vitality; as well as a strategist with great passion for the future.
We started out as a paper manufacturer and I had mixed feelings when I realized that our company name wouldn’t contain the word “paper” any more. On the one hand, I fondly recalled my hard-working colleagues who had been an integral part of the company's growth and success and who, through their selfless sacrifices, have contributed to our steady progress. On the other hand, I'm also aware of the fact that a forward-looking transformation allows YFY to expand beyond the fields of paper, technology, finance, biotechnology, and educational social welfare, based on active participation and a progressive spirit. As we approach the centennial of our company, our conversion into an investment holding structure is not only in sync with the spirit of our times, but represents our determination to achieve sustained development in the future.
Over the past decade, our environment has been changing faster than ever before. At the same time, YFY has also experienced the most drastic and rapid transformations. We were forced to decrease our reliance on products we do best and make strategic decisions based on accelerated responses to market demands. I’m aware of the fact that it is no easy task to change our established practices. However, our accumulated experiences and solid foundation were necessary prerequisites for the successful transition that we were able to accomplish. During a factory visit to the Jiutang plant with an employee who was due for retirement, I saw a machine that used to make traditional paper, now producing special paper with high added value. The sight of this machine, a first in our industry, filled us with pride and affection.
In 2005, industrial paper became an independent business group, which later merged with Jupiter in 2009, giving it an international outlook. Our Consumer Products subsidiary was established in 2007. In addition to tissue paper, we have also developed cleaning products and cosmetics based on a business model of multiple brands and sales channels. Our Fine Paper and Board subsidiary merged with the Chung Hwa Pulp Corporation in 2012, with the goal of spurring innovation and expanding our profit base through an integration of the pulp and paper manufacturing processes.
The goal of business transformations is to allow each business to follow their own path in an independent and professional manner and establish themselves as the leader of their industry. An understanding of the essence of change enables businesses to cope with successive challenges. I’m convinced that our conversion into an investment holding company will allow us to focus on strategic management and efficient asset utilization. It will also increase the attraction of foreign investments, improve alliance formation, and allow more objective internal and external assessments from a macro-perspective. This transformation will turn our company into an integrated investment and management platform.
The emergence of digital applications has driven us to explore e-paper technologies in addition to traditional paper products. Cloud computing has changed the appearance of paper in multiple ways by incorporating its virtual and physical aspects. The degradation of our natural environment and depletion of natural resources has also prompted us to focus on biotechnologies and organic agriculture. While aiming to maintain our profitability, we achieved a deeper understanding and implementation of efficiently using natural resources in a humanistic way.
All changes and transformations have to be based on the right balance of firmness and flexibility and can't be successfully accomplished without observing rules and conventions. In this era of rapid change, I ask all of you to strictly adhere to our rules and etiquette so that you can distinguish what should be done from what should be avoided in the creation of meaningful services for our society and continued accumulation of our most valuable cultural assets.
With the official inauguration of our investment holding company, we have to embrace constant change and maintain a progressive spirit in our quest for future glory and preservation of our heritage. All our business units presently possess the ability to operate independently. It is my firm conviction that based on our sound company culture, every step we take is bound to produce brilliant results. We therefore embrace the principle of change, innovation, traditions, and a constant pursuit of excellence in our quest for renewed glory towards the second century of our company's history.
S.C. Ho