Starting as a small workshop with three people in 1994, the enterprise now has its products in over 20,000 stores worldwide, with annual revenue nearing 300 million yuan and overseas business accounting for 90%. Amid the wave of "Henan enterprises sailing overseas in fierce competition", this Henan-based enterprise has deeply cultivated the niche track of window coverings, forging a development path of "Breaking Through via OEM—Technological Upgrading — Global Layout" and completing the transformation from an inland OEM manufacturer to a global window coveringbrand. Recently, a reporter from Dahe Fortune Cube visited Zhengzhou Mingyang Windeco Technology Corporation (hereinafter referred to as Mingyang) to explore its path to going global.
Mingyang's overseas journey began with the combination of era opportunities and proactive breakthroughs.
China's accession to the WTO in 2001 opened global channels for foreign trade enterprises. Mingyang's Chairman Zhang Nianqing secured the enterprise's first German order through a Taiwanese client. Although it was only worth tens of thousands of US dollars, it allowed Mingyang, which relied on Henan's demographic dividend and played the role of an "OEM manufacturer", to get its first "glimpse" of the vast international market.
The 2008 international financial crisis became the second critical turning point. While most companies were scaling back, Mingyang made a risky decision —to independently exhibit at the International Frankfurt Home and Contract Textiles Fair in Germany. Without the endorsement of intermediaries, they faced customers directly with case studies of serving well-known overseas brands, full-chain production system data and authoritative certification documents, converting the quality strength of "Made in China" into trust and successfully initiating the transformation from OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturing) to ODM (Original Design Manufacturing).
The 2022 "cord ban" in the North American market became an important test for Mingyang. Concerned about accidental child entanglement, the US CPSC (Consumer Product Safety Commission) and WCMA (Window Covering Manufacturers Association) introduced a cordless ban, which upgraded cord operation standards and required cordless designs or restricted cord lengths to reduce child risks. At that time, 10 containers of Mingyang products shipped to the North American market were forced to be returned, resulting in a direct loss of nearly one million yuan. "This made us realize that cost advantages cannot sustain long-term development, and we must shift from following standards to leading innovation," said Liu Cun. The R&D team immediately launched round-the-clock research. Although the cordless system seemed simple, it actually required restructuring the entire product structure. "We must maintain aesthetics, ensure convenient operation, and control costs—all three were indispensable."
After two years of intense efforts, Mingyang successfully developed various cordless solutions such as push-pull systems and electricroller shades, which not only resolved the crisis but also upgraded their products.
Today, Mingyang's product lines have expanded from traditional internal sunshades to external sunshades. New product lines such as awnings, outdoor curtains, and pavilions have quickly entered the market.
Technological investment has become its core strength. Liu Cun told the reporter from Dahe Fortune Cube that Mingyang invests 3% of its annual revenue in R&D, and has established the Henan Engineering Research Center for High-end Window Covering Materials and the Zhengzhou Engineering Technology Research Center for Intelligent Sunshade Functional Products in cooperation with multiple universities and research institutes. Currently, 80% of Mingyang's curtain fabrics are produced independently, breaking the monopoly of European and American enterprises on high-end fabrics, with an annual production capacity of 5 million square meters of special sunshade fabrics.
Intelligent manufacturing has improved both production capacity and efficiency. At Mingyang's intelligent manufacturing park, 60 intelligent production lines are seamlessly connected through a central control system. International top-tier equipment such as German Monforts setting machines and South Korean Mikwang coating machines realizes full-process minimal human intervention, creating an industry record of "one curtain per second from the production line". After intelligent transformation, the annual production capacity has jumped from 15 million units to 20.18 million units, with production efficiency increasing by 60% and labor costs decreasing by one-third.
Being rooted in Zhengzhou's locational advantages has become a significant booster for Mingyang's global expansion.
"The Zhengzhou-Europe Railway Express delivers goods to Europe in 25 days, nearly a month faster than traditional sea freight," Liu Cun cited as an example. Attracted by the logistics stability, a German client shifted 70% of his orders originally placed with a company from another province to Mingyang. As a national logistics hub, Zhengzhou's well-developed international flight network enables cross-border e-commerce goods to "rival U.S. domestic shipping in delivery speed".
The opening of the Zhengzhou-US cargo route in 2025 has further shortened the overseas delivery cycle to 7 days. "This policy dividend has driven an average annual growth of 40% in cross-border e-commerce sales for Zhengzhou's window covering and home furnishing industries, benefiting more than 20 upstream and downstream enterprises," Liu Cun said. The logistics advantages of an inland cityare being transformed into competitive advantages for industrial overseas expansion.
A clear global layout strategy has made growth more sustainable. In mature European and American markets, it has in-depth cooperation with century-old German home brands such as JYSK and OBI. The "muting electric curtains" with noise ≤30 decibels are used in thousands of stores, accurately capturing Europeans' yearning for "quiet life", with annual sales exceeding 50,000 sets. In the North American market, through the acquisition of local window covering companies, it has leveraged mature sales networks to seize the market opportunity of "transition from wooden blinds to fabric curtains" and quickly opened the customized market. (Chinese source: Henan Daily Reporter: Yan Wenrui Translator: Hong Jianyuan)
