Li Shufu 李書福

 Company: Zhejiang Geely Holding Group

Industry: Automobile

Position: Chairman

Age: 48

Li Shufu originally founded Geely in 1986 as a refrigerator-maker. The company then turned to producing motorcycles and vans before it got approval to manufacture automobiles in 2001. The resolute and persistent Li transformed Geely into a successful private automaker. Though tagged with a low-end label, the company consistently enhanced its foothold against the heavyweights in the fiercely competitive auto market. Last year, Geely sold about 420,000 units, a slightly 1.3 percent increase from 2010.

The group, ranked 10th in China's auto industry, bought the ailing Swedish luxury car brand Volvo from U.S. auto giant Ford for US$1.8 billion in 2010. It was the biggest purchase of an foreign car brand by a Chinese company and clearly showcased the homegrown automaker's ambition to expand overseas. Presently, its automobiles are sold to more than 40 countries and regions. In 2011, Geely exported nearly 40,000 cars, a 120 percent increase year-on-year, leading all homegrown independent automakers in export growth rate. In 2012, apart from penetrating further into the third and fourth-tier cities in China, the group is also trying to win a share of the high-end auto market. With his cross-culture vision and localization strategy, Li is poised to revive the glory of the Volvo brand.