Liu Qiuming Steps Down as Jirui Vape Chairman, Joins Startup BLESS

On August 28, news emerged that Liu Qiuming, chairman of Jirui Vape under the Borton Group, will officially resign soon and join the new e-cigarette service startup BLESS.

Liu Qiuming is a veteran in the Chinese e-cigarette industry, born in 1976 in Suining, Sichuan. He graduated in 1999 from North University of China with a degree in molding technology and equipment. After graduation, he joined Jiangnan Mould Group and entered the BBK Group in 2000.
 
He began engaging in e-cigarette-related businesses as early as 2006, leaving BBK in 2009 to work full-time at Jirui, where the first e-cigarette manufacturing factory was established in Huizhou, focusing on the research, production, and sales of e-cigarettes.

Liu Qiuming worked at BBK for nine years, starting as an engineer and later managing quality, engineering, R&D, and procurement, eventually becoming a regional manager. He personally experienced the significant impact of patents on businesses, which is why he did not want Jirui to be just a simple OEM factory but aimed to create a patent-holding OEM like Foxconn.

As a result, Jirui began to emphasize R&D and patent invention. As of January 2019, Jirui Technology held 43% of the patents in the e-cigarette industry.

In a 2016 ranking of domestic technology companies' PCT (Patent Cooperation Treaty) applications, Jirui ranked eighth domestically and 95th internationally, with ZTE in first place and Huawei in second.

By 2013, Liu Qiuming wanted to push Jirui towards the public capital market. In 2014, it successfully passed the SEC review for an IPO in the U.S. stock market, but at that time, the market was not optimistic about Chinese concept stocks, and the valuation did not meet Liu Qiuming's expectations. Considering the risks of collective lawsuits after listing on NASDAQ, Jirui ultimately decided not to go public.

At that time, the disclosed data showed that in the first nine months of 2014, total revenue was $87.57 million, with U.S. business accounting for $80.02 million (90%), EU business accounting for 8.5%, and Asian business accounting for 0.2%, with a net profit of $18.41 million.

In 2016, Borton Group announced a total acquisition of Jirui for 750 million RMB, bringing Liu Qiuming and the company into the Borton Group.

During his three years at Borton, Liu Qiuming led Jirui to complete patent protection and technological breakthroughs for low-temperature tobacco in both hardware and software. However, this also meant missing out on lucrative overseas tobacco opportunities, which may be Liu Qiuming's biggest regret, but at the same time, it created opportunities for the explosive growth of disposable e-cigarettes in 2019.

In August 2019, Liu Qiuming completed the lock-in agreement made when Borton acquired Jirui and decided to seek new opportunities in the Chinese e-cigarette industry.

Born in 1976, Liu Qiuming is in his prime, but in terms of experience in the e-cigarette industry, he is an absolute veteran, having witnessed the entire development history of e-cigarettes in China, making him a living fossil of the industry.

With the old horse Liu Qiuming, what are his next plans?

Liu Qiuming revealed to the media that after leaving Borton, he will join BLESS, the first service platform in the e-cigarette industry invested by Borton, to continue serving the industry.

The media had another conversation with Liu Qiuming, presenting "Ten Questions for Liu Qiuming."

1. Why did you leave Jirui?

Liu Qiuming: Jirui has completed its engine construction and can innovate and develop independently. Production, R&D, and sales have entered the fast lane. With one of the founders, Xiang Zhiyong, continuing to lead, I can take time to serve the entire Chinese e-cigarette industry and do my best to solidify the industry's foundation for a healthier future.

2. Do you have any regrets from founding Jirui over a decade ago to selling it in 2016 and now truly leaving?

Liu Qiuming: Jirui is like my own child; when it truly flies away from me, there is always a sense of loss, regret, and emotion, akin to a parent's feelings for their child.

3. What did you gain during your three years at Borton?

Liu Qiuming: During these three years, I received personal guidance from Chairman Wang Mingfan of Borton Group, who is like a teacher and brother to me, allowing me to make significant progress in management, which is incomparable to anything else I gained.

4. What did you lose during your three years at Borton?

Liu Qiuming: There were certainly losses, but what I gained far outweighed what I lost. Mainly, I gained skills and a mindset improvement, making any losses negligible.

5. How do you view the position and status of Jirui and Borton in the Chinese e-cigarette industry?

Liu Qiuming: Jirui holds the most patents in the industry, totaling over 4,000, creating a strong barrier in the e-cigarette industry. Additionally, we have deep cooperation with 13 domestic tobacco companies, providing strong policy insights and potential domestic market momentum. Borton is a leading company in natural flavors in Asia, with numerous extraction bases, laying a strong foundation for the future development of e-cigarette liquids. Borton also has significant industry inclusivity and will certainly become a leading service platform in the e-cigarette industry in the future.

6. Do you have any non-compete agreements with Borton or Jirui, preventing you from engaging in e-cigarette entrepreneurship for a few years? Or from being involved in the supply chain or e-cigarette brands?

Liu Qiuming: I have signed a non-compete agreement, and I cannot independently engage in e-cigarette R&D and manufacturing for 15 years, but I can serve Borton and its invested companies.

7. How do you evaluate your career in the e-cigarette industry?

Liu Qiuming: I am a driving force in the e-cigarette industry and will continue to serve the healthy development of the industry in the e-cigarette service platform invested by Borton Group.

8. How do you view the current development of the Chinese e-cigarette industry?

Liu Qiuming: You can refer to my previous predictions made at industry forums; most of them have been realized.
 
  9. What will you do in the future?

Liu Qiuming: I believe there are still great opportunities and space for development in the e-cigarette industry (including low-temperature tobacco, CBD, and medical products). I will continue to serve everyone in BLESS, the first service platform in the e-cigarette industry invested by the group, helping newcomers avoid the pitfalls I once encountered and quickly become industry leaders.

10. What advice do you have for Chinese e-cigarette practitioners?

Liu Qiuming: Choice is greater than effort. Do things steadily and be honest. Take small steps quickly and move forward steadily.

The media has conducted preliminary research on BLESS, the company Liu Qiuming will join.

Andy, the person in charge of BLESS, stated that BLESS aims to create the world's first service platform for the e-cigarette industry, effectively integrating the upstream and downstream industrial chains, establishing a complete closed loop of the e-cigarette industry from "R&D - production - flavor - branding - sales - logistics - recycling," helping e-cigarette practitioners reduce startup costs and save time, quickly launching e-cigarette products to seize the market.

"Liu Qiuming's joining is a significant milestone for BLESS," Andy said. "With a professional veteran on board, BLESS will integrate the entire e-cigarette industry chain faster and provide more comprehensive services for e-cigarette practitioners."

Currently, BLESS has already participated in the incubation of several new e-cigarette brands, including Taki, Chopper, Meike, and Qinglan.