Recently, selection of the 2018 Lishui County She Nationality “Good Mother”, jointly organised by the Organising Committee of 3/3/2018 She Township Activities, the Women's Federation, and the National and Religious Affairs Bureau (Lishui Branch), took place. With the assistance of grass-roots voting, the judges selected ten candidates from the She nationality, and Lei Yunmei, an alumnus of the Suichang Radio and Television University (Suichang RTVU), was named the 2018 She “Good Mother.”

Lei Yunmei was born in Dazhong village, Suichang County, Zhejiang province, and graduated from the Tourism Management programme of the Zhejiang RTVU’s Suichang Branch (Suichang RTVU) in 2012. She set up the Weeping Willow Tea Shop in 2001 and expanded the shop into a Suichang Specialty store in 2011. In 2015, she began to enter e-business, and in July of the same year was named the Most Beautiful Female Boss in Suichang. She obtained a senior e-business qualification in 2018, and is currently executive vice president of the Association for the Promotion of Lishui National Cultural Industries, and Director and Deputy Secretary General of the She Nationality Culture Research Association of Suichang.

"The key to rural revitalisation lies in industry, and e-business is a new industry suitable for rural development. Selling the food of ethnic minorities and helping the She people make more money can lead to the revitalisation of an industry and rejuvenation of a village," Lei Yunmei told Zhejiang news and NetEase, her medal in hand. For all aspects of her business, from marketing to production, tea picking to cooking, the planting of young trees to the picking of ripe plums, Lei Yunmei, who calls herself "Aunt Lei", uses what she learned at the RTVU, and always gives service and quality top priority. In each link of what she does, including the tea shops, the greeting of guests, the ordering of tea, cooking, selecting and evaluating, she gives tender and careful attention. She follows all business procedures carefully, from the e-commerce side to supplier selection, purchasing, packaging, distribution and after-sales. The pure and natural quality of traditional She cuisine is manifested throughout the preparation process in the selection and mixing of ingredients, the processing, tools, packaging, delivery and WeChat services.

"By buying bamboo shoots, eggs, mushrooms, fungus and other agricultural products from the villagers, and selling them through my sales channels, we can increase their income by 20 to 30 thousand yuan a year," said Lei Yunmei. She ensures the quality of the farm produce she buys because she believes that customers will only trust her if the quality is guaranteed. Now, the She food business she manages is flourishing, and making sales all over the country. Because of her food, many She people have increased their incomes, and many foreign customers have gotten to know Suichang.

In addition, Lei Yunmei helps create proposals for e-commerce development in Suichang County, basing them on her own practice and experience, and making suggestions for the sales of agricultural products from Suichang and food of the She nationality. Lei Yunmei's story attracted the attention of the e-commerce industry association as well as the media. In October 2015, Zhejiang satellite TV introduced the "Thousand Layer Cake" , a gourmet product of the Weeping Willow Specialty Shop, while China Blue Zhejiang Satellite TV produced a report in 2017 on the residents of She Township selling their agricultural products online all over the country. In 2018, a gourmet cake originating in She township was featured in the "Lasting Taste of Suichang" column, giving She food and its production processes wide exposure.

While promoting She food, Lei Yunmei is also very keen on doing the same for She culture: singing She songs, weaving ribbons, embroidering costumes, and performing at village shows. In her shop, She cultural elements can be seen everywhere. The display board at the entrance is decorated with She colored lace; the words "She Nationality Food" and a brief introduction to the She nationality are printed on the packing box; She nationality clothes hang in the store. At the 2017 Spring Festival, some of the performers were busy with housework, and Lei Yunmei took her twin sons and her nieces onto the stage to give a demonstration of She culture. She says that she should do what she can to preserve the cultural heritage of her people.

By Ye Jinxion, Suichang RTVU, OUC