Zhong Shanshan, the founder and chairman of Chinese bottled water giant Nongfu Spring, has hit back at social media posts spreading online that accused him of “biting the hand that fed him” by undermining his former partner Zong Qinghou, the late founder of rival beverage producer Hangzhou Wahaha Group.
Zhong Shanshan (left), founder and chairman of Nongfu Spring; Zong Qinghou, founder and chairman of Hangzhou Wahaha Group.
VCG via Getty Images
In a statement posted Sunday on Chinese social media platform Weibo, Zhong said the allegations against him began spreading online after Zong died last week. The posts claimed Zhong had built his fortune by first working with Wahaha as a reseller, but then later established Nongfu to compete against Wahaha after he was fired by Zong for violating the company’s rules against sales of its products across provincial borders.
“To me, Zong has always been a respected entrepreneur. We were both mentors and friends to each other, and of course, we were also competitors,” Zhong said in the statement. “Zong despised online attacks during his lifetime. Never did I expect that, following Zong’s passing, there would be so many people making defamatory statements against me and Nongfu Spring on the internet. This is definitely not what Zong would have wanted to see.”
Forbes Asia reached out to Nongfu Spring and Wahaha for comment, but they did not respond to our requests.
The accusations against Zhong sent Nongfu’s shares tumbling about 7% on the Hong Kong stock exchange over the past week as of Tuesday, and also sparked calls from consumers to boycott Nongfu’s bottled water.
In his statement, Zhong dismissed rumours that he first started building his fortune as a reseller of Wahaha’s products. The Nongfu chairman said his first success in the business world came through a curtain business he had founded. He added that he had “never received a salary from Wahaha, not to mention getting fired.”
Zhong also commented on Nongfu’s long-time rivalry with Wahaha. More than two decades ago, Nongfu launched an advertising campaign that claimed its water, which is taken from natural sources like springs and lakes, had greater health benefits than water purified in factories. The campaign at the time prompted a group of beverage companies led by Wahaha to appeal to Chinese regulators to accuse Nongfu of false advertising. Nongfu was fined 200,000 yuan ($28,000), but over time, the company has grown to become the country’s leading bottled water producer.
“We have had lawsuits against each other, but in the end, Zong and I reached a peaceful settlement, which was witnessed by Hangzhou city’s officials at the time,” said Zhong. “Whether it’s Wahaha or Nongfu Spring, we have always been committed to the same thing, which is to produce quality products for consumers.”
Wahaha’s founder and chairman died last Sunday at the age of 79. Zong was once the richest person in China in the early 2010s, but saw his fortune decline over the years as Nongfu and other competitors chipped away Wahaha’s dominant position. Last year, Zong was No. 53 on China’s 100 Richest list with a net worth of $5.9 billion.
This article was first published on forbes.com and all figures are in USD.
