Our reporter Zhou Jianping Figure/Text

A good ecological environment creates a unique “Xining Dabaimao” and “Tibetan sheep wool”; carpets filled with national and cultural elements fly into countries along the “One Belt and One Road”; each year, 17,000 tons of wool is digested, which directly drives pastoralists out of poverty...

One wool is connected to Qinghai herdsmen at one end, and connects to more than 40 countries and regions such as the United States and Russia at the other end.

The development orientation of the Tibetan carpet industry along the way is the province's transformation and upgrading of traditional industries, the cultivation and expansion of new industries, the deep integration of modern technologies such as the Internet and the real economy, the acceleration of the conversion of new and old kinetic energy, and the realization of economic development. A "sample" of scale expansion to improve quality and efficiency.

On December 6, the reporter walked into the Nanchuan Industrial Park to find out how a family of rugs sold their Qinghai blankets to the world through their own efforts.

Qinghai Blanket + Artificial Intelligence

Into the exhibition hall of Qinghai Shengyuan Rug Group Co., Ltd., large to the world map, small to cartoon image, beautiful Qinghai carpet, make people shine.

“It is thanks to the good policies of Qinghai Province and through the national strategy of 'Belt and Road', more and more countries and regions have recognized Qinghai blankets. We are also constantly striving to transform and upgrade and integrate the most advanced technologies into traditional industries.” as Tsinghua One of the things that Xue Ting, chairman of the Qinghai Shengyuan Rug Group Co., Ltd., a top student at the University’s Wudaokou Finance College, was doing was a surprise to many people in the industry – integrating carpet design into AI (artificial intelligence) technology.

What is the concept of this? When she was wondering, Xue Ting took out her cell phone, played a video, and opened another photo. "The video just now shows how to design a product that meets consumer demand through big data collection and artificial intelligence platform. This photo is not very familiar, but it is the first time you have seen it?"

Indeed, the portrait of a mighty artist in the background of her mobile phone with a gorgeous sky background has not been seen before, but she feels familiar. “This is the charm of AI. This photo was designed based on Van Gogh's Starry Sky,” said Xue Ting.

As a young entrepreneur, Xue Ting, who has been studying abroad for many years, has integrated many creative ideas into the entire industry chain, maximizing output value.

Since it was put into production in 2007, Qinghai Shengyuan Rug Group Co., Ltd. has been developing and growing for ten years, and has gradually grown into a collective collection of blankets, tapestry production, dyeing import and export trade, product research and development, and testing. Tibet (ground) blanket large-scale production enterprises. In recent years, sales outlets have been established in Houston, United States and Manchester, England. The products are sold to more than 10 countries and regions such as Europe, North America, Australia, and Japan, and established long-term relationships with customers in Russia, Australia, Japan, Canada, and Hong Kong and Macau. Supply and marketing relations.

In Xue Ting’s eyes, even though the supply of Qinghai blankets on the market is in short supply, it is still necessary to keep pace with the times and seek a more perfect development path in constant escalation.

“We are working with the team of Tsinghua University to independently develop the AI design platform. Next year, we will also realize an open centralized office. That is, as long as customers place orders, we will be able to realize the entire industry chain operation in the same office area. It will target different markets and innovate marketing models to allow Qinghai to spread carpets to more countries and regions."

Xue Ting believes that Qinghai has both the "One Belt and One Road" resource advantage and its locational advantage, leveraging the power to expand the development of opening up to the outside world. Therefore, since the beginning of this year, the relative growth rate of the domestic economy has slowed down, the market is shrinking, and the demand in the traditional international market has dropped. Shengyuan will also actively respond to the national “One Belt and One Road” strategy, fully analyze domestic and foreign markets, and further expand South America, Emerging sales markets in Southeast Asia, Europe, the United States, the Middle East, and East Asia, and plans to acquire foreign sales companies or to attract domestic and foreign markets through investment promotion, re-planning sales channels and positioning the sales market.

Three upgrades behind a Tibetan carpet

Almost every Qinghai carpet entrepreneur is a flying trapeze. The total number of trips to the countries and regions visited in these years can be around the Earth several times. The same is true of Ma Xinmin, chairman of Qinghai Tibetan Sheep (Group) Co., Ltd.

After entering the weaving workshop of the Tibetan Sheep Group, the nine production lines in the factory are working. Workers are busy in front of the computer. In less than half an hour, a beautifully patterned Tibetan blanket is woven.

Prior to 2008, Tibetan sheep's products were hand-knitted. The products were mainly exported to Europe, the United States, the Middle East and East Asian countries. Since 2008, with the changes in the international market, orders have decreased and the cost of handmade blankets has continued to rise. “Tibetan Sheep” began to actively adjust the industry, and adjusted a single hand-carried Tibetan carpet into hand-woven and woven carpets of nearly a thousand varieties, and continued to innovate in patterns and patterns, creating different carpets according to the culture and customs of different regions.

"This blanket carries not only the corporate dream, but also the future of the Tibetan carpet industry. Therefore, every step needs careful consideration," said Ma Xinmin. As a result, there are three upgrades of “goats”: go out, invite in, and dare to innovate.

Before 2013, only Tibetan, Uzbek and other countries and regions were exported to Tibet. The traditional distribution model of Tibetan carpet companies is based on the dealer’s secondary sales, “but the traditional distribution model will have no advantage in the next few years.”

In the second half of 2014, with the help of the national “Belt and Road Strategy”, “Tibetan Sheep” took the initiative to “go global” and successfully developed more than 40 new international markets including five countries in Central Asia, Russia, Turkey, and Malaysia, and established them in the region. Store outlets in the form of direct sales. This year, the “Tibetan Sheep” specialty store has been extended to Russia, Belarus, UAE and other places.

“The five countries in Central Asia and Turkey and other countries have a large demand for home-use woven blankets. We have created a variety of woven blankets that meet local conditions and customs for different countries and cultures. I did not expect that supply would fall short of demand once it was launched. The strategy allows the company to regain its vitality and its benefits have improved significantly."

"please come in". Since last year, “Tibetan Sheep” has invited a group of foreign carpet manufacturers to visit the company. “The international friends are very shocked. They did not expect that the Qinghai Provincial Government gave such a great support to the Tibetan carpet industry and did not expect a carpet in Qinghai. Enterprises can have such a large scale of modernization. Many foreign companies that have come to visit have become our partners!"

Going out to see the world, please come to see the strength, the economic downward pressure struck, "Tibetan sheep" did not "wait and rely on", but opened up the multiple channels of transformation.

The third step in the transition is to open up the domestic market with new channels. “All kinds of domestic consumers are the key to developing a marketable product. After re-orientation through market research, we have developed a number of mid- and low-end 'functional blankets' favored by consumers, from yoga blankets to the development of the Qinghai tourism market. 'Tangka carpet', a few hundred dollars to meet the consumer's buying needs."

Under the strategy of mass innovation, using the Internet+, companies have found new ways. At present, "Tibetan Sheep" has jointly established a "Chinese carpet trading network" with China Netbank and opened its own professional carpet website and online flagship store. After “Organic Tibetan Blanket” produced by “Tibetan Sheep” obtained the EU organic certification, it further opened up the “Bei Shang Guang” and other high-end markets in the mainland, and the products are also in short supply.

Today, the “Tibetan Sheep” has successfully entered more than forty countries and regions, and direct sales in the form of specialty stores in 10 regions. This year, the “Tibetan Sheep” store has extended to Russia, Belarus and the United Arab Emirates.