Jin Xiaoxia, who became rich by raising rabbits, does not forget her fellow villagers
Jin Xiaoxia, 45, head of the Hengdao Breeding Professional Cooperative in Xixiang Town, Qinyang, recently registered an APP on the Henan Agricultural Platform Network, hoping to use the wings of the Internet to expand the cooperative's rabbit farming. Yesterday, she told reporters that only by leveraging the Internet for major development can she better lead her fellow villagers to get rich by raising rabbits.
Difficult beginnings | Moving the family into the farm so work and life are both covered
Yesterday, at Jin Xiaoxia's farm, the reporter saw that no matter who came to ask her for advice, she was happy to teach and shared everything she knew. The villagers said: "Jin Xiaoxia's selfless spirit has not only earned her goodwill but also expanded her sales market."
Regarding the villagers' comments, Jin Xiaoxia said: "I also started as a layman who knew nothing and got to where I am step by step. I understand the difficulties of having no skills or experience. Being able to give them a hand so friends who have just started their businesses take fewer detours and spend less money on mistakes makes me very happy too."
Looking back on her entrepreneurial experience, Jin Xiaoxia had many feelings. In 2009, when she proposed the idea of raising Rex rabbits, the first response she got was opposition from her family.
Jin Xiaoxia needed to take care of three children, and her youngest daughter had just started third grade. For this reason, her husband did the math for her: Rex rabbit farming, not to mention difficulties in funding and technology, if she wanted to start a business, she would have to devote herself fully and single-mindedly study the techniques. Who would take care of the children's daily lives and tutor them in their studies? They could not hold the children back just to make money.
Her husband's words left Jin Xiaoxia deep in thought. Starting a business is hard, and for a woman shouldering the responsibility of caring for a family, it is even harder. But where there's a will, there's a way. If you are scared off by difficulties before you even begin, you will not be able to do anything. Jin Xiaoxia discussed with her husband building a few rooms near the farm and bringing the children and elderly over, so that both work and family could be balanced, and starting a business would never affect the children's education. In this way, after winning her family's support, Jin Xiaoxia resolutely moved toward her "farming dream."
Entrepreneurial journey | The first batch of rabbits: more than half died or were injured in one summer
At the very beginning of her business, an even bigger difficulty stood before her: where would the money come from? For an ordinary farming family, with her husband working away from home and supporting three children, savings were minimal, while establishing a breeding cooperative required renting land, building rabbit sheds, buying breeding rabbits, purchasing feed and covering various other expenses.
Jin Xiaoxia steeled herself, sold the house in the village, and while seeking support from entrepreneurship funds, she also borrowed money from relatives and friends. In 2010, with the 300,000 yuan she had raised and borrowed, she bought the first batch of breeding rabbits and began her arduous entrepreneurial journey.
After the breeding rabbits Jin Xiaoxia bought moved into the rabbit sheds she had carefully designed, they showed various signs of "not adapting to the environment," and within a few days more than half had died or been injured. In the summer of 2011, with the hot high temperatures, she suddenly lost four to five hundred rabbits in the sheds, nearly more than 20,000 yuan worth.
Seeing this, Jin Xiaoxia was so anxious she could not eat or sleep well. Although she had learned some farming and management knowledge herself, without being tested in practice, no matter how much effort she put in, it was of no help. She carefully observed the Rex rabbits' condition, kept detailed records, and then, with her questions and notes, set off nonstop on her "journey to seek knowledge."
In nearby Wuzhi, Xinxiang and Zhengzhou, she visited every Rex rabbit breeding base she knew of, humbly asking for advice, from feed ratios to the Rex rabbits' living habits, key farming precautions, epidemic prevention and control, and so on. She learned while taking notes and applied what she learned immediately. From a complete novice with no farming experience at all, she kept exploring and sought a way out through repeated failures and despair.
Using "Internet Plus" to expand broader space for the rabbit farming business
After more than two years of effort, Jin Xiaoxia, integrating actual conditions, finally summed up her own Rex rabbit farming experience and developed a unique breeding technique. The Rex rabbit breeding professional cooperative she founded started with 300,000 yuan and expanded year by year. It has now developed into a breeding professional cooperative with more than 3 million yuan in assets and an annual output of more than 30,000 rabbits.
"Being able to achieve today's results, I owe much to the help of kind people. Every time I encountered difficulties, someone reached out a helping hand," Jin Xiaoxia said gratefully.
In order to keep up with the pace of the Internet era, she bought a computer, asked friends for advice, and broadened her horizons and vision by searching online. Not long ago, she also registered an APP on the Henan Agricultural Platform Network, using the wings of the Internet to expand the cooperative's development.
"I feel fulfillment and happiness in starting my business. In the future, I hope to contribute something for the elders and fellow villagers in the village and drive more women to start businesses and become rich," Jin Xiaoxia told reporters.