'Couldn’t afford to fail': Woman starts business with Rs 9,240, now runs clothing brand earning Rs 23–57 crore yearly

In her twenties, she raised her child alone. (Image credit: Weibo)

• Dong Na turned 700 yuan into a nationwide clothing brand
• She now earns over 10 million yuan annually from her business
• Her determination and success inspire many online.

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A young single mother in China turned a street stall and just Rs 9,240 (US$100 / 700 yuan) into a thriving nationwide clothing brand. Earning tens of millions of yuan each year (≈ Rs 23–57 crore), the “new Chinese-style clothing” brand has become an online inspiration.

Born in the 1990s in Zhengzhou, Henan province, Dong Na has caught the public eye with her business story.

According to the South China Morning Post, in 2012, Dong became a single mother with no savings and no stable income. She said she had borrowed from relatives to afford milk powder for her child, whose age and personal details have not been disclosed.

She recalled being in her early twenties when, unlike her carefree peers, she had to raise a child on her own. “I could not afford to fail. If I failed, my child would have no one to rely on,” said Dong.

“I can be poor, but my child cannot be poor. This belief helped me endure the toughest period of my life,” she added.

To support her family, Dong turned to night markets, which demanded low capital and few contacts.

She invested all her savings, just Rs 9,240, to start selling clothes at street stalls, beginning her journey as an entrepreneur. Dong told Henan Media Group that her early days were extremely tough.

To save money, she started waking up at 5 am to buy stock, then sold clothes outside a vegetable market at night and slept only 3 to 4 hours a day. She personally managed every step, including bargaining and carrying heavy goods.

Caring for her child while running the stall was tough. Sometimes she pushed her sleeping child through quiet streets late at night. Her determination helped the business grow steadily.

Moving beyond street stalls, she now runs retail stores and has built a popular brand blending Chinese tradition with contemporary design.

With stores across the country, the brand’s sales continue to rise, and she now earns over Rs 11.4 crore a year (10 million yuan).

Dong shared her goal of reaching Rs 114 crore this year (100 million yuan), and her journey has inspired many online.

One person said, “Only she knows how much hardship she endured along the way. This single mother is incredibly powerful.”

Another wrote, “When someone puts all their energy into raising their child and making a living, they can become unbelievably strong.”