COMPANY Inner Mongolia Yili Industrial Group

Company, Ltd. 

BRAND VALUE US$ 5.1 Billion

YEAR-ON-YEAR CHANGE 1% 

HEADQUARTERS Hohhot 

INDUSTRY Food and Dairy 

YEAR FORMED 1993 

To further ensure the safety and quality of its products, Yili engaged three international certification groups to oversee its operations. And it established a research center in Europe, in cooperation with Wageningen University, in the Netherlands.

Reflecting confidence in the brand, two private equity firms, including one co-founded by Alibaba Chairman Jack Ma, acquired a majority stake in Yili. The company produces about 1,000 products, with a focus on liquid and powdered milk, ice cream and yoghurt.

To promote the brand, Yili continued its product placement in the “Transformers” movies and sponsored a leading China reality TV show. It also was active on ecommerce sites.

The company was listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange in 1996.

Net income increased 32 percent to $372 million on a 15 percent revenue rise to $4.4 billion, in the first half of 2013. For full year 2014, net income jumped 90 percent to $518 million on a 17 percent revenue rise to $7.7 billion.