Ashes and Fire, Return Date; Sharp Edges Enshroud the City

But they didn’t know that Lin Group was my parents’ life’s work—something they had built with their very lives. I cannot abandon it, nor will I ever abandon it. Not only will I reclaim Lin Group, but I will also make it stronger and more prosperous than before, ensuring my parents’ lifelong dedication lives on. I resolutely took over Lin Group and became its new CEO. When I walked into Lin Group’s headquarters—into the very office where my parents used to work—I gazed around at the familiar surroundings, and my eyes welled up with tears. This place held my childhood memories and my parents’ unwavering devotion—yet now it lay in shambles, morale shattered and trust eroded. Faced with Lin Group’s dire state, I did not flinch or retreat. Drawing on business expertise and professional networks accumulated overseas, I began restructuring the company step by step. First, I convened an all-employee meeting, publicly exposing the crimes of Shen Zhiyan, Su Manyun, and Lin Yurou, apologizing to every staff member, and pledging to lead Lin Group out of crisis—to deliver accountability to all. Next, I launched a large-scale internal overhaul: firing executives who had colluded with Shen Zhiyan—those negligent, corrupt, or incompetent—and purging employees who exploited chaos for personal gain. Meanwhile, I promoted capable, responsible, and loyal young talents, injecting fresh vitality into Lin Group. I redrafted corporate regulations, standardized operational procedures, strengthened management oversight, and eradicated corruption and substandard practices. Then, I issued public apologies to all partners and consumers, acknowledging Lin Group’s failures over the past three years, committing to comprehensive reform, guaranteeing product quality, repaying all outstanding debts—and never betraying public trust. Personally visiting partners Shen Zhiyan had alienated, I sincerely apologized and presented precise, mutually beneficial cooperation plans—gradually restoring their confidence. Many renewed their contracts with Lin Group. I also adjusted Lin Group’s business strategy: exiting deeply unprofitable, low-potential ventures; focusing on core businesses; intensifying R&D investment; and pursuing premium-quality products. Simultaneously, I expanded into new markets—distributing Lin Group’s products nationwide and even internationally. Through accurate market positioning and superior products, consumer confidence slowly rebounded, and sales steadily rose. Throughout this restructuring, I encountered numerous difficulties and obstacles. Remnants of Shen Zhiyan’s faction remained hidden within the company—sabotaging operations covertly, spreading rumors, attempting to undermine Lin Group’s recovery, sow discord between me and employees, and even threaten my safety. Some Jiangcheng-based competitors, sensing Lin Group’s revival, seized the opportunity to strike while we were down—spreading false information and maliciously suppressing Lin Group’s stock price in hopes of acquiring it. Once, a rival secretly bribed one of Lin Group’s core technical staff to steal proprietary technology and cripple the company. That engineer was someone I’d personally promoted and trusted deeply—yet he betrayed both the company and me for money. Upon learning of this, I neither panicked nor raged—but swiftly calmed myself and set a trap.

Home Page Insight | The Home Furnishings Industry’s ‘Rising Prices Everywhere’: Even Integrated Home Packages Are ‘Reversing Their Price Cuts’

Even though some furniture manufacturers have reluctantly raised prices, most do so discreetly—even certain raw-material suppliers, after issuing price-increase notices, still offer selective discounts or goodwill gestures to long-standing customers. It is clear that, amid persistently rising raw-material costs, most home-furnishings enterprises have refrained from passing on price hikes. To many operators, this reflects a classic dilemma: profit versus sales volume. One manufacturer noted that any price adjustment would cause an immediate, sharp drop in sales—and if competitors hold prices steady while only they raise theirs, dealer confidence in joining their distribution network would inevitably wane. Under these combined pressures, although cost burdens have become unbearable for many home-furnishings firms, most remain hesitant to raise prices outright. Instead, they struggle on by boosting operational efficiency and cutting expenses wherever possible. By late 2023, ceramic-industry factories—representative of broader furniture manufacturing—announced ‘ultra-long holidays,’ with some suspending operations for over half a year. Industry insiders view such near-total shutdowns as indirect evidence of severe operational hardship: squeezed relentlessly between upstream price hikes and downstream discounting pressure, many factories prefer idling to operating at a loss. Yet this coping strategy clearly sacrifices profitability. In recent years, revenue and profit growth across the sector have noticeably slowed. Take OPPEIN, for example: in 2022, it achieved RMB 22.48 billion in revenue—a 9.97% year-on-year increase—but fell short of its five-year compound annual growth rate (18.22%). Its profit growth likewise decelerated to single-digit levels. To counter mounting cost pressures, many companies are actively exploring transformation strategies through multiple avenues. First, most emphasize ‘cost reduction and efficiency enhancement.’ For instance, Shangpin Home Collection has pursued digital transformation—including applications of AIGC technologies—to cut costs, boost efficiency, and accelerate product iteration. According to its 2023 earnings forecast, net profit is expected to rise 25.28%–62%, achieving a successful turnaround from losses to profitability. Zhibang Home Collection has also deepened cost-reduction and efficiency-enhancement initiatives over the past two years—strengthening supply-chain management, among other measures—to absorb adverse impacts from rising costs. In 2023, Zhibang achieved RMB 6.116 billion in total operating revenue (up 13.50% YoY) and RMB 595 million in net profit (up 10.78% YoY). Second, some enterprises optimize product portfolios to capture niche markets. For example, SLEEEPING BEAUTY has increased investment in e-commerce, extending its premium brand downward into mass-market segments to seize greater market share. Its 2023 net profit is projected to surge 80%–110%, a stark contrast to its negative growth in 2022. MUSICAL BED has maintained high-margin new-product launches while reducing direct-supply volumes to OPPEIN. In the first three quarters of last year, it posted RMB 518 million in net profit—a 21.44% YoY increase. Finally, industry leaders like OPPEIN and Shangpin Home Collection are aggressively expanding into integrated renovation (‘whole-home assembly’) markets. This new business line drives growth in store franchising and marketing, broadens their ‘entire-home’ strategic product categories, and raises average transaction values through richer product lines. OPPEIN, for instance, initiated frequent price wars last year—but still projected net profit growth of RMB 2.957–3.226 billion, representing a 10%–20% YoY increase, significantly outpacing its single-digit profit growth in 2022.

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