Rong Erren

Rung Ren was born in 1908 in Wuxi, Jiangsu Province, and passed away in 1993. He was the second son of the renowned modern Chinese industrialist and capitalist Rong Desheng. Coming from the famous Rong family, which had a profound influence across various industries including textiles and finance, Rung Ren was influenced by his family's business endeavors from an early age and committed himself to the textile industry.

He began working at the Shenshin Silk Mill at age 19, steadily advancing from an entry-level position. By 1931, he served as an assistant manager at the Shenshin No. 3 Factory; by 1935, he became the manager of Shenshin Nos. 3 and 5 factories, implementing modern management practices that turned the enterprises around from losses to profits; in 1937, he also became the manager of Shenshin No. 2 Factory. After the outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War and following the Battle of Shanghai in 1937, he relocated Shenshin No. 2 and No. 9 factories into the Shanghai International Settlement to utilize wartime economic opportunities for profit and to repay corporate debts.

During the war, Rung Ren led the revival plan of Shenshin in Chongqing, where he also founded the Public Industrial and Commercial Research Institute to promote industrial development and technological innovation. In 1944, he planned for postwar industrial recovery in Chongqing, advocating for diversification and modernization of industry. After the victory in the war, in the early 1950s, he promoted the integration of enterprises within the Shenshin system, attempting to establish modern shareholder and board systems, pushing forward industrial management modernization, though these efforts were not fully realized.

In 1947, he founded Tián Yuán Hemp Textile Factory in Wuxi, trying to achieve unified management through a family funding management committee, but internal disagreements hindered success. In 1948, he left China for Brazil to develop overseas ventures, managing flour and textile industries and continuing the family business tradition. His son, Rong Zhikuang, developed into the president of Brazil Global Company, becoming an influential figure in Brazilian business circles.

Throughout his life, Rung Ren not only held leadership roles within China's textile industry but also actively engaged in public works, such as contributing to the construction of Kaiyuan Road in Wuxi, thereby promoting the family’s traditional value of serving the nation through industry. Abroad, together with his brother Rong Yiren, he continued to expand and develop the family enterprise, supporting the building of industrial research institutions and cultivating technical talent, thereby contributing to China's industrial development and economic growth.