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Growing up in Haiyun county, Zhejiang province, Song Yadan never had many toys.
Her mother was a garment worker, her father was in the concrete business. They made enough to get by, but there was never anything left over.
Still, Song’s friends couldn’t help but notice that her doll was dressed like a princess. As a young girl, Song would take scraps of cloth her mother brought home from the factory, put them together with a bit of lace, and create an eye-catching design.
“Even as a kid, I had an interest in design and a talent for sewing,” Song says today.
That, and the legendary business acumen of people from Zhejiang, were all she needed. Now 23, Song Yadan – better known as MuMu – is an internet phenomenon.
Since April 2008, Song’s e-store on Taobao.com has sold more than 5 million copies of her designs, with sales of more than 10 million yuan ($1.5 million) last year alone. She owns a factory with more than 100 employees and has a devoted following of some 330,000 internet customers who wait breathlessly for her next design.
Those designs would come as no surprise to Song’s former playmates. Typically, they combine a simple design with a bit of embroidery or lace, often pink, to create a look that is every girl’s fantasy.
“I think every girl dreams of looking like a princess, whether she is pretty or not,” says Song.
Still, the road to business success had some twists and turns. She graduated from Zhejiang Forestry University, majoring in furniture and interior design. Fashion design was not on the curriculum.
“I didn’t need that, really,” she says. “All design shares common elements; besides, I knew the basics from making clothes for my doll.”
Song’s parents insisted that she focus on her studies, but the fashion designer in her would not be denied. In her third year at university, she scraped together 300 yuan ($44), bought some material, and began to work on her designs.
She learned the mechanics of garment-making by pulling apart old clothes and figuring out how they were made.
“Once, when I was in primary school, I pulled apart a radio and put it back together,” she says matter-of-factly. “It’s basic reverse engineering.”
Song did not even own a sewing machine, but the owner of a local laundry allowed her to use his equipment after hours. After finishing her schoolwork, she would sew all night, catch a few hours of sleep on a pile of clothes, and go off to school in the morning.
Once she had finished a half dozen dresses, Song hung out her shingle on taobao.com, China’s equivalent to eBay. Within two days, she had orders for 20 more.
Soon she had 1,000 yuan ($146) in her pocket and began to hire tailors to execute her designs. Two months later, she was the first wanyuanhu (person with 10,000 yuan) in her class; by the summer of 2008, she proudly told her family she had made 50,000 yuan ($7,323).
Song’s parents now work for her at Mumu Home, a full-fledged factory with 100 employees and separate departments for design, sample making, manufacture, shipping, and customer service.
“My father sometimes shares his business experience with me, but we both know I’m the boss,” she says.
She once lost her temper with her mother when she didn’t finish an order on time. Later she apologized and took her mother a pearl necklace as a peace offering.
“I listen to my mother when she tells me to get home on time,” Song says, “but she has to listen to me at work.”
Meanwhile, she is rapidly taking on dependants of her own – fledgling designers who hope to emulate her success.
“I have several new designers, but they lack experience,” says the 23-year-old CEO. “Many of their designs are hard to make and don’t match what our customers want.”
Song says her goal has always been “to make other girls look pretty,” yet she appears to spend little time on herself. She foregoes makeup and stylish clothes, favoring no-nonsense, half-rimless glasses and long hair with bangs. She rarely goes shopping, and says she has no time for nightclubs or parties.
“My hobby is cars. I bought my first car, a Toyota Camry, when I was in university. Now I have a Mercedes 350 and a BMW X5 as well,” she says. She also has four dogs, including a black Teddy poodle.
Still, Song Yadan is not your average internet entrepreneur.
“I get up at 10 am every day and go to the factory, where I deal with business issues until noon. I devote the afternoon to design, and try to produce one or two new designs each day,” she says.
Her e-store is idiosyncratic as well. Photographs of her clothing are accompanied by poems and often personal notes as well.
“I write my thoughts and feelings about the designs on the side of the pictures. That’s how I communicate with my customers,” she says.
Song’s website lists job opportunities for designers, photographers, and models, offering an annual salary of 50,000 to 150,000 yuan ($7,323 to $21,974). Her favorite model, Hui Hui, has become a star in her own right.
She has an ambitious business plan. “My business is expanding rapidly,” she says. “I plan to spend 3 million yuan on advertising alone next year.”
She also plans to open a boutique in Hangzhou where, in addition to trying on clothes, her customers will be offered coffee, cakes, and fashion advice.
Asked who she admires in the fashion industry, Song says, “I like Vera Wang, because she designs wedding gowns and makes her customers happy.”
But whom does she hope to emulate?
“Myself,” Song says.
